Victoria City Council Decisions
Community Voices Matter gives residents of Victoria, British Columbia, a way to share their views on decisions made by Victoria City Council and to see how other residents feel about those decisions.
Each survey takes only a few minutes. You’ll receive a short overview of one Council decision, answer a handful of questions, and then see how other residents responded and how councillors voted.
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When Victoria's police department asked for four new officers, council approved two. Was that the right call?
Estimated time: 3 minutes (4 questions)
In March 2026, Victoria City Council debated a request from the Victoria Police Department for additional patrol officers. This survey asks how council should approach police staffing decisions.
Each year, the Victoria Police Department submits a budget request to City Council for approval. Council reviews the request and decides how much funding to allocate.
For 2026, the Victoria and Esquimalt Police Board submitted a provisional budget that included a request for four additional patrol officers. The request was part of a broader ask that also included funding for specialized units and a Crime Reduction Unit.
The original request represented an increase of roughly 14.35% to the police budget. After the department offered reductions in February 2026, the request before council was an increase of approximately $7.75 million, or 9.8%, bringing the total core police budget to approximately $86.75 million.
On March 3, 2026, Councillor Jeremy Caradonna put forward a motion to approve funding for two of the four requested patrol officers rather than all four. Councillor Krista Loughton seconded the motion.
During debate, Councillor Caradonna argued that Victoria already pays more per resident for policing than any other municipality in BC. (His full statement appears after the survey.)
City staff estimated the motion would reduce the proposed tax increase by approximately 0.18%.
The motion passed 5 to 4.
Vote record will be shown after survey completion.
Primary source: March 3, 2026 Special Committee of the Whole Post-Meeting Minutes
This survey is a summary only. We encourage you to follow the links provided in the survey for a more comprehensive understanding of the issue and any voting history.
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