MOOSE JAW — The Moose Jaw Police Service is monitoring how U.S. President Donald Trump’s tariffs will affect Canada considering those extra costs could increase the purchase price of gun ammunition and vehicles.
The issue of tariffs arose at the Board of Police Commissioners’ March 19 meeting during a conversation about the police service’s 2025-29 equipment reserve budget. During that discussion, one commissioner asked whether police leadership had concerns about equipment or other items coming across the border.
“Yes, I think we’re (aware of) the fact there might be some pressures to our costs,” said Acting Chief Rick Johns, noting that ammo expenses are increasing based on quotes the agency obtained recently. “So we … might have to make some priority decisions based on costs going up.”
Johns was unsure what percentage of equipment was coming across the Canada-U.S. border, saying while the agency attempts to purchase new vehicles locally, other manufacturing costs could increase those expenses at the point of sale.
Therefore, everything depends on what the police service buys and from where it sources those materials, he added.
These tariffs could “be a moving target” during Trump’s presidency over the next three-and-a-half years, said Commissioner Jamey Logan. The board is aware of this problem, so it may have to review the MJPS’s annual equipment reserve requests as the agency sends out tenders.
“I think we’re cognizant of the fact that that may change … ,” he added. “We (also) had the same conversation at city council, and so I think everyone’s aware that it’s up in the air at this point. So, we’ll keep an eye on it.”
Speaking with reporters afterward, the deputy chief said the cost of bullets has increased by 10 per cent year over year, and while the agency doesn’t know what the exact cost will be, it anticipates further expense increases.
“We’re reaching out to a number of different vendors all across the country and probably further,” Johns said. “I’m leaving that to the capable hands of some of our people in the firearms section that handle that. But they’re going to be shopping around for the best price.”
According to ammobin.ca, the cost of .40-calibre bullets ranges from $27.00 for 50 rounds to $639.99 for 1,000 rounds, or per round, 54 cents to 64 cents.
A police spokesman said by email that the MJPS uses semi-automatic pistols (9-millimetre or .40-calibre), rifles (.308-calibre), shotguns (12-gauge) and carbines (5.56-mm and semi-auto). Furthermore, the agency uses training ammo (lower cost) and duty ammo (higher cost), so the cost depends upon availability, supply, demand, calibre and manufacture; costs are roughly $1 per round.
“In terms of the amount that we buy, that varies year-to-year depending on mandated firearms training requirement and additional training that the MJPS would conduct internally to ensure a high level of proficiency,” the spokesman added.
Similar to most people, the acting chief said he didn’t completely understand how the tariffs would affect Canada but knew the extra taxes could increase the costs of equipment like computers and vehicles.
With the equipment reserve, when the police service purchases gear, it amortizes those items over several years so it has the money to replace them, Johns explained. The organization will determine if it has enough money this year to replace some pieces, and if it doesn’t, it may defer those purchases or prioritize needs-based projects.
“We try to stay as close to what we feel the replacement value will be. We don’t have a crystal ball, unfortunately, so we don’t know when unanticipated things occur,” he said. “But we do have the ability to have a look at what needs to be replaced and what can be carried forward to a future year for replacement.
“We would look at the condition of the equipment and make decisions based on that.”
The police service — via the police board — could return to council to ask for more money for equipment reserve purchases, if necessary, Johns continued. The agency doesn’t have that information early in the year but does track it and would approach the board first.
“We would make every effort to work with the money we have in the budget right now,” he added.
The next police board meeting is on Tuesday, April 8.
