Regina council votes 7-4 to put $500K toward harm reduction 

The City of Regina will be putting $500,000 toward harm reduction after a record breaking year of overdoses.

Coun. Andrew Stevens brought forward the harm reduction proposal as an amendment to the city's budget on Wednesday. He proposed $500,000 be taken from the city's COVID-19 recovery reserve and put toward harm reduction through the community investment grant program. 

"This is us not overstepping our jurisdiction but staying in our lane ... but I think it's an offer to be partners with other levels of government," Stevens said. "I don't want to keep blaming the province for problems … we need to act on this."

Councillors voted seven to four in favour of the amendment.

Stevens said the money would be for mental health positions, naloxone kits and other harm reduction initiatives. The exact initiatives weren't laid out at the meeting, but will be clearly defined in the grant program, he said.

Regina Police Service said 111 people were confirmed to have died from an overdose in Regina in 2020. Police said they knew of at least 1,060 overdoses in the city in 2020. 

Police say they are aware of 417 overdoses so far in 2021, but that there are likely more that police were not called to. Police say their numbers show the scope of the crisis, but not the entire picture. 

Police say there have been 37 apparent overdose deaths so far in 2021.

Stevens said the $500,000 is just the beginning of what's needed. Regina's administration is working on a community, safety and well-being plan, but it's not set to be presented until August 2020. 

Other city councillors expressed concerns about removing the money from the city's COVID-19 recovery reserve. 

Coun. Lori Bresciani said she sees the reasoning, but doesn't want to get ahead of the province. She also said the COVID-19 recovery reserve wouldn't be the place to take the money from. 

"I would say that it needs to remain there until we are through this [pandemic]," Bresciani said Wednesday. 

Stevens said the plan to take it out of the reserve wasn't made lightly. He said this is an important way to use the money. 

Other councillors expressed their support, given the number of overdoses.  

"I think it could do a lot of good and it could reduce the demand on our emergency services," Coun. Cheryl Stadndichuk said in favour of the amendment. 

Councillors Stevens, Cheryl Stadnichuk, John Findura, Dan LeBlanc, Sharon Zachidniak, Jason Mancinelli and Landon Mohl voted in favour. Councillors Bob Hawkins, Lori Bresciani, Terina Shaw and Mayor Sandra Masters were against. 

Masters told CBC Saskatchewan's The Morning Edition Thursday that she voted against the proposal because she wanted to wait until the provincial and federal government budgets came out in April.

She said she is worried the other levels of government may shift their attention away from Regina.

"The intention was to wait until April to approve that money being allocated there simply to ensure that we're ... piggybacking on where the federal and provincial budgets are at."