Rural Dart

April 2, 2024

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Your Voice

The Environmental Management and Protection (General) Regulations - Red Tape Survey

The Ministry of Environment and the Water Security Agency are conducting a Red Tape Reduction review of The Environmental Management and Protection (General) Regulations and its associated policies, procedures, forms, permits, standards and licenses. The ministry is looking for your feedback.

Finding ways to reduce red tape is one of the most important measures a government can take to help promote and support a vibrant economy. A good regulatory environment helps Saskatchewan businesses innovate, grow and remain competitive. Because of this, the ministry is seeking your help to reduce red tape in Saskatchewan.

Red tape is not always easy to define and isolate. Some examples of red tape include:

Rules that significantly exceed government’s mandate to protect public health, safety, well-being and the environment (i.e. over-regulation).
Regulation that exceeds the benefit achieved from the regulation.
Paperwork that is burdensome, unnecessary or ineffective.
Rules that are unclear, confusing or overly complex.
Rules that are outdated, not relevant, obsolete or not enforced.
Rules that rely too heavily on penalties as a deterrent, instead of creating incentives to change.
There is no clear explanation or reason for the rule.

Please have feedback submitted by April 5, 2024.

Review Regulations

Submit Feedback

Information & Resources

Read 2024 SCS Newsletter

Saskatchewan Crime Stoppers attended 3 major conventions in the province including SARM and SUMA, was present and active at 13 tradeshow and community events, many of them multi-day events, and met with representatives and officials at rural, urban, and First Nations locations on 9 occasions to present and discuss the benefits of Saskatchewan Crime Stoppers in their communities.

The program continues to have a successful social media presence with unsolved crimes posted to our website and a following of 44,000 to the program’s Facebook page with a success rate of 54% for all crimes that are posted to the page.

Program Results

Statistic	2023	Since Inception
Tips	2,025	41,276
Calls	9,269	159,600
Arrests	75	3,614
Charges	113	2,703
Rewards Approved	44	1,810
Rewards Approved ($)	$14,575	$463,516
Total Recovered ($)	$91,742	$19,504,378

Donate to Crime Stoppers

Saskatchewan Crime Stoppers acknowledges the tremendous financial support from all sponsors and encourages rural and urban municipalities to consider a $200 donation to the program in their annual budget.

Your contribution will directly support the SCS program's efforts to combat crime and create a safer environment for all residents. Please make a donation online or send your contribution to the Saskatchewan Crime Stoppers' mailing address.

Donate Online

Targeted Sector Support (TSS) Initiative

The TSS Initiative is a cost-shared grant program that uses a portion of Municipal Revenue Sharing ($1.5 million per fiscal year) to support municipalities on projects that focus on partnerships, planning, and collaboration. Projects are offered 75 per cent of the project’s eligible costs to a maximum amount.

The TSS Steering Committee will be accepting applications for funding starting April 2, 2024 until June 7, 2024.

To help prepare, applying municipalities are encouraged to:

Ensure they have at least one community partner.
Obtain a formal letter of support from council with a resolution number.
Obtain a formal quote from an independent supplier(s).

Learn More

Apply for Funding

Respect in the Workplace Training

Since 2019, SARM has been fortunate to offer the Respect in the Workplace Training at half the cost due to SARM’s partnership with the Respect Group. This program is designed to empower your team with the skills to prevent bullying, abuse, harassment, and discrimination. Our goal is to have our members, both council and staff, certify themselves through the training. The program takes approximately 90 minutes and is done online in one sitting, but we recommend you break it up. You can come and go from the modules. The focus of the training is on culture change but of equal importance is the legal risk and liability avoidance it affords.

The certification costs $20.00 per person. Councils and staff simply register for the training. SARM will invoice the members on a quarterly basis based on your activity. It’s as simple as that.

Linked below are the registration and access for Respect in the Workplace. You will also see the “Respect in the Workplace One pager”. Providing these instructions to your users simplifies the registration process for end-users and reduces possible confusion or challenges.

For helpdesk support, visit support.respectgroupinc.com

Registration and Access

Information Page (PDF)

Webinar

Violence in the Workplace: New Policy & Prevention Plan Requirements

The provincial government has legislated that as of May 17, 2024, all employers in Saskatchewan must have violence in the workplace prevention policies in place that include:

A commitment to minimize or eliminate risk
Identification of worksites
Identification of staff positions
Procedure to inform workers of the nature and extent of the risk from violence
Actions to minimize or eliminate risk
Violent incident reporting procedure
Documenting and investigation procedure
Recommendations or post-incident counseling or consultation with physician
Commitment to training

SARM and SUMA have enlisted MLT Aikins to assist in creating a template for municipalities to use to draft their policies. Please find a copy of the template linked to download.

As part of the policy, a workplace risk assessment must be conducted to determine the appropriate actions to eliminate and minimize the risk of violence in the workplace. More information can be found through the Government of Saskatchewan's guide linked for reference.

In addition to the policy template, SARM has invited MLT Aikins to host a webinar for municipalities who are looking for additional information. Join this session to learn more about this new legislation and to ask any questions that you may have regarding your municipality's policy.

Date: April 17, 2024

Time: 10-11:00 a.m. CST

Disclaimer: The following RMs have requested the information below to be distributed and will be billed for using this service.

Looking to Hire:

RM of Heart's Hill No. 352, Equipment Operator, Apr 3 - Close

RM of Tecumseh No. 65, Seasonal Mower/General Operator, Apr 5 - Close

RM of LeRoy No. 339, Heavy Equipment Operator/Class 1A Driver, Apr 5 - Close

RM of Pleasantdale No. 398, Working Foreman, Apr 14 - Close

RM of Coteau No. 255, Grader Operator, Apr 18 - Close

RM of Coteau No. 255, Seasonal Grader Operator, Apr 18 - Close

RM of Senlac No. 411, Grader Operator/Labourer, Apr 30 - Close

Looking to Buy/Sell:

RM of Lakeside No. 338, For Sale: 2018 770GP John Deere Motor Grader, Apr 20 - Close

RM of Britannia No. 502, For Sale: 2016 John Deere 770GP Grader, Apr 28 - Close

RM of Tecumseh No. 65, For Tender: 2007 Castleton Belly Dump Trailer, Apr 30 - Close

If you have questions or would like to post in the SARM Classifieds contact: 306.757.3577 or sarm@sarm.ca

Please send your advertisement in a Word Document.

SARM Classifieds

Secondary Highways Start Spring Weight Restrictions

On March 25, 2024, Spring road weight restrictions began to protect a key part of Saskatchewan's transportation network as the province shifts from freeze to thaw.

Saskatchewan Firearms Office Appoints New Deputy Commissioner and Chief Firearms Officer

After an extensive and competitive process, Murray Cowan has been selected as the new Deputy Commissioner and Chief Firearms Officer of the Saskatchewan Firearms Office (SFO), effective April 1, 2024.

To view past issues of the Rural Dart, visit the Publications page on the SARM website.

Rural Dart Archive