Don’t be fooled by the Sarnia Police budget graph

The Sarnia Police Service is utilizing visual data that suggests a downward trend in spending while the actual budget is projected to reach a record high of $40,780,727 by 2027

The Sarnia Police Service just released a bar graph for their annual budgets. It shows the yearly percentage increases getting smaller and smaller: 11.53% in 2023, 9.89% in 2024, 8.86% in 2025, 6.50% in 2026, and just 5.28% in 2027. The bars start tall and blue, then get shorter until the last two turn green. At first glance, it looks like they are finally tightening their belts and saving us money.

But this graph is designed to trick you. While the percentage increases are dropping, the actual dollars keep growing. That’s because each new raise is added on top of the huge budget they already have from past years. By 2027, the total police budget will hit $40,780,727 — a record high for Sarnia.

Our brains fall for this trick every time. When we see bars getting shorter on a chart, we automatically think “they’re spending less.” It feels like good news. The police are counting on that reaction. They use the picture and simple percentages to make their growing costs look reasonable. It’s a common psychological marketing move: show a nice downward trend so people relax and stop asking hard questions about the real dollar amount coming out of our taxes.

The media release states: "The approved amounts continue to demonstrate the Board’s successive annual reductions in the budgetary increase percentage."

How can one not laugh out loud at such an absurd explanation of spending millions more dollars every single year?

At the March 26 board meeting, Chair Kelly Ash told the cameras they are no longer pushing for the $100 million new police building — especially after the Mayor vetoed it and the public pushed back. On the surface, that sounded like they listened.

Chief Derek Davis made it clear, though: “nothing’s changed” about their need for better facilities. He warned that the small $322,815 surplus they found this year could be gone tomorrow just keeping the current building running. Instead of one big, unpopular project, they are now talking about “unavoidable” repairs, maintenance, and other must-have fixes. Same goal, different words. It’s death by a thousand smaller asks.

Look at where the money is already going. In 2025 alone, they went $441,246 over budget on IT systems and security. And let's not forget the $140,000 for night-vision goggles for the Emergency Response Unit.

Sarnia is not a war zone — do we really need that kind of gear?

On social media they post about small crimes, like a man stealing ten tubs of Ben & Jerry’s ice cream. These stories make it look like there is a revolving door in the justice system and that we need more police power and tools to fix it. It’s another way to build support for higher budgets.

The Sarnia Police Service is working hard to shape how we see their spending. They use a graph that hides the real growth, careful words that make every expense sound necessary, and stories that keep us worried about crime.

We deserve straight talk, not clever marketing. Look past the pretty downward bars and check the actual numbers. Our tax dollars are still climbing to new highs. It’s time to ask tougher questions about what the police budget really delivers for Sarnia families.