Beaver County’s administration is seeking approval to review the shared services agreement between the county and Beaver Emergency Services Commission (BESC).
Council will consider authorizing Chief Administrative Officer (CAO) Kayleena Spiess to work with the Regional Emergency Manager of the Beaver Emergency Services Commission.
The review’s object is “to amend the shared services agreement to enable timely grant payments to the Commission and incorporate the applicable provisions of Bill 50.”
CAO Spiess is making the request and outlined her report for the May 21 county council meeting.
She explained that the Beaver Regional Partnership (BRP) composed of the county’s five municipalities, have a shared services agreement with BESC.
The agreement was formed “to provide fire protection and emergency management services to properties within the Beaver Region.”
The agreement has the municipalities paying 75 per cent of BESC’s “projected annual deficit during the calendar year,” states her report. “A reconciliation payment will be made once BESC’s financial statements are approved and the amount of the annual deficit is confirmed.”
This has meant paying 100 per cent of the projected amount with the adjustment of the actual amount done for the first quarterly payment of the new year. This practice was done to “prevent cash flow challenges” on behalf of BESC.
However, Spiess says this practice has also become “problematic because the municipalities and BESC have not always agreed on the reconciliation amount.”
In an effort to resolve the issues, BRP met April 15 and recommended “that each council authorize their CAO officers to work with the Regional Emergency Manager of BESC to amend the shared services agreement to enable timely grant payments to the Commission.”
Spiess also stated that Bill 50 was tabled by the Minister of Municipal Affairs last month. This bill will amend the Municipal Government Act “to clarify the contents of inter-municipal collaboration frameworks,” which automatically includes their shared services agreements within those frameworks, she said.
“The necessary changes will be incorporated into the agreement in conjunction with the amendments,” stated Spiess.
She added that the 2025 budgeted grant for BESC is $1,110,898. County council will consider the matter on May 21.
Patricia Harcourt
