Calgarians are navigating real economic pressure.

Three-quarters of Albertans expect the cost of living to worsen in 2026, food prices are projected to rise again this year and the Government of Alberta’s budget last week included our largest deficit since the pandemic.

In this climate, every dollar matters. Fiscal responsibility doesn’t simply mean spending less. It demands that we spend smarter and invest in solutions that reduce costs over the long term. To do so, we must confront one of Calgary’s most costly and preventable public safety challenges — male perpetration of domestic violence.

A new report I co-authored examines the economic cost brought on by the male perpetration of domestic violence in Calgary. Using 2019 Calgary Police Service data on domestic violence incidents and encounters, we calculated the dollar amount associated with police responses, court proceedings and victim services connected to these cases.

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The results are sobering. In 2024 dollars, male-perpetrated domestic violence costs Calgary approximately $58 million every year. Ninety per cent of that cost is borne by taxpayers. The remaining 10 per cent is absorbed directly by victims, who have already experienced profound harm.

With the financial and human costs of male-perpetrated domestic violence reaching this scale, we must move beyond our existing approach. And as it turns out, we have a more affordable and effective solution at our fingertips.

Earlier research we conducted found that 64 per cent of men charged with domestic violence offences in 2019 had previously experienced a police-attended domestic encounter, where no charges were laid.

In other words, nearly two-thirds of men who were eventually charged already had contact with law enforcement. That first contact is not just a warning sign; it is a missed prevention opportunity.

We analyzed what would happen if, at that first police interaction, men at risk were connected to proven behaviour-change programs instead of being ignored. Our findings were striking. Domestic violence could drop by up to 40 per cent — saving Calgary nearly $100 million over five years, all while preventing significant harm.

This is not a theoretical idea. It is a practical, cost-effective solution that shifts our response from reacting to violence after it occurs to preventing it before it escalates.

This is not about diverting funding from women’s shelters, victim services or front-line supports. Those services are essential and must continue to be strengthened. Survivors deserve safety, resources and justice.

But if we are serious about ending domestic violence, we cannot rely solely on crisis response and post-crime proceedings. Investing earlier by intervening with men at risk reduces harm, lowers public costs and strengthens community safety.

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That is why I am urging the Alberta government to invest $1.2 million in behaviour-change programs that would allow the Calgary Police Service to connect men with community-based, evidence-informed interventions. Compared to the human and financial cost of inaction, this is a modest and strategic investment, one that prioritizes prevention over reaction.

We do not need to start from scratch. Existing platforms such as The Men& Project are already designed to engage men early, increase accountability and interrupt harmful patterns before escalation. With targeted provincial investment, such tools could be integrated into police referral pathways, turning a moment of crisis into a moment of prevention.

At a time when families and governments are tightening their budgets, violence prevention is not a luxury, it is a fiscal responsibility. It reduces strain on our public systems. It lowers long-term costs. And, most importantly, it prevents trauma for women and children before harm becomes irreversible.

We cannot arrest our way out of domestic violence. And we cannot afford to keep paying for the consequences of inaction.

It costs more to do nothing. Calgary has an opportunity to lead by investing in prevention — and the time to act is now.

Lana Wells is the Brenda Strafford Chair in the Prevention of Domestic Violence and leads Shift: The Project to End Domestic Violence – a violence prevention research-action hub at the Faculty of Social Work, University of Calgary.

© Calgary Herald