The force has a total strength of 531 sworn officers, 151 civilian staff, 170 crossing guards, nine K-9 dogs and two horses.

A household in the Halifax Regional Municipality typically pays around C$28.39 per month for police services.

[1] The Halifax Police Department was officially formed on October 28, 1864, although a system of constables had been operated in an unofficial manner since the first days of settlement, on July 18, 1749.

In January 1799, the "night patrol" was formed to address a number of break and enters that hit the area in the previous year.

Those include, first with winter and summer issued clothing, air conditioned cars, and dress uniforms.

The investigative call back unit is responsible for contacting people involved in a police incident to ensure that all necessary information has been obtained or given out.

The forensic identification unit is responsible for collecting, preserving and analyzing evidence for police investigations.

The national weapons enforcement support team (NWEST) is a joint unit shared between the RCMP and other police forces throughout the country, including the HRP.

In addition to HRP and RCMP officers, this unit includes members of the Canada Revenue Agency (CRA).

The unit is also partners with the coast guard and the ports harbourmaster to patrol the Halifax Harbour, Bedford Basin, and Northwest Arm.

Since 2011, the Halifax Regional Police are now responsible for bylaw enforcement for the HRM - pesticides, noise, smoking, dangerous and unsightly premises, sidewalk snow and ice removal, and curbside solid waste.

Since then, 17 other HRP officers have served on peacekeeping missions in East Timor, Kosovo, Sierra Leone, Haiti and Sudan.