Legislative Report
(4 August 2011)

More Police Officers

Our government understands that the safety and security of your family comes first. That’s why we have kept our campaign promise to add 120 more police officers over our four year term to help make our communities safer. With funding in place for the last 30 police positions, and some of their locations across Saskatchewan determined, our goal is complete. Since 2007, our government has invested $14.3 million to add 120 new police officers, which includes 76 RCMP positions and 44 municipal police positions. These new positions will enhance policing services in both rural and urban areas, and also support specialized crime-fighting activities such as the Combined Forces Special Enforcement Unit (CFSEU), the Internet Child Exploitation (ICE) Unit and the Northern Drug Strategy. More police officers will help to provide peace of mind, so that you and your family can truly enjoy all of the advantages of living in Saskatchewan today.

Excess Moisture Assistance

One of those advantages is our agriculture industry – the backbone of our economy. Our government, along with the federal government, recently announced $250 million in funding for Saskatchewan farmers and ranchers affected by excess moisture this year. This funding includes the Excess Moisture Program (EMP), which will once again provide producers with $30 per eligible acre for crop land that could not be seeded as of June 20, 2011, and crop land that was seeded and subsequently flooded out on or before July 31, 2011. Forages seeded in 2010 or 2011 that failed to establish due to excess moisture are also eligible under the EMP. For producers enrolled in Crop Insurance, this $30 per eligible acre is in addition to the $70 per eligible acre coverage for land too wet to seed under Crop Insurance’s Unseeded Acreage Benefit.

We also announced our 40 per cent provincial share of the Saskatchewan Feed and Forage Program, which includes feed shortfall assistance and reseeding assistance. The feed shortfall component will provide $12 per ton to eligible producers who have to purchase additional winter feed for their breeding herd due to excess moisture. This represents the provincial government’s 40 per cent share of a $30 per ton payment. For the reseeding component, producers will be eligible to receive $12 per acre for reseeding hay, forage and pasture land damaged by excess moisture in 2010 or 2011. This represents the provincial government’s 40 per cent share of a $30 per acre payment. We are hopeful the federal government will contribute their 60 per cent share to both of these programs in the near future.

We also recently announced a new Intensive Livestock Operation (ILOs) Environmental Program. Under this program, ILOs, such as feedlots, are eligible for a 75 per cent rebate on the costs of repairing or replacing pens and manure storage systems that have been damaged by excess moisture in 2010 or 2011.

Further assistance is also available through the Provincial Disaster Assistance Program (PDAP) for producers affected by excess moisture. This includes assistance for transporting feed and livestock, pasture rental assistance, and compensation for spoiled grain or feed. For more information on PDAP, producers can also call 1-866-632-4033 or check this link.

I hope this assistance will help those farmers and ranchers who were affected by excess moisture in 2011.

Past Legislative Reports