The Federation of Canadian Municipalities wants Ottawa to absorb the cost of retroactive pay for Mounties.

The federal government negotiated the deal with the union and the President of the Federation Taneen Rudyk says it's only right they pay up.

"The Federation of Canadian Municipalities is a member organization that represents over 2,000 municipalities which represents over 90 per cent of the Canadian population and as the order of government that's closest to the citizens that we represent we see first-hand the impacts that decisions made federally, or provincially, have on our communities," she says.

"In this particular instance the RCMP collective agreement was negotiated without our participation or our knowledge and what that means is we weren't at the negotiating table and our wallet was used to negotiate a settlement that many of us simply can't afford."

Rudyk, who's also the Mayor of Vegreville, says for her town the settlement would mean a five per cent tax hike for residents during this difficult time of high inflation.

"We're really in a mode of recovery after the pandemic and trying to rebuild after a couple of really difficult years, citizens and businesses are really looking for the support from our local governments, we've got a lot of priorities on the table and we need to be able to focus on those."

She says their only choices are to raise taxes or cut services just when residents need them the most.

Rudyk says the federal government has been listening to the FCM and they've urged their members to reach out to their MPs and explain what this looks like for municipalities who are also dealing with things like affordable housing and rebuilding after a tough couple of years.

The federal government has delayed payment of the bill but Rudyk says that just kicks the can down the street, what they need is for the government to absorb the retroactive pay and commit to proper consultations in the suture.