Funding plan to help pay for police on school campuses set for full debate in Senate

AUSTIN, Texas - Public schools in Texas are required to have armed guards on campuses. That mandate came in 2023. 

SB 260 is an attempt to help school districts pay for what was a budget-crunching unfunded mandate.

What is Senate Bill 260?

What they're saying:

Pflugerville ISD school board member Jean Mayer testified this week before the Senate Finance Committee about the legislation.

"The increases proposed in Senate Bill 260 are a step in the right direction," said Mayer. 

SB 260 doubles the safety allotment sent to school districts.

That’s an increase from $15,000 to $30,000 per campus, and the funding per student would go from $10 to $20.

"These improvements will allow districts to make meaningful investments in creating secure learning environments," said Mayer.

In saying that, Mayer told the committee the state safety mandate is expected to cost Pflugerville ISD nearly $2 million each year, with a one-time ramp-up cost of $1.2 million. 

The additional $10 increase per student in SB 260 still leaves a big funding gap.

"The actual cost per student is $128 annually to fully implement those mandates. Even with the increase, we will still face a shortfall of $108 per student to comply with the law," said Mayer.

Dig deeper:

The concern raised by Mayer at the committee hearing was echoed by other education advocates.

"We really need to make sure that we are equipping our campuses to provide the people to help our staff," said Heather Sheffield with the Association of Texas Professional Educators.

A cost breakdown of the funding gap starts with each badge that has to be hired.

"So, $30,000, that does sound like a lot of money. And statewide, having a certified peace officer on a campus costs around $80,000 or more in some cases," said Sheffield.

Another state gap includes the state mandate for schools to increase mental health programs. Lawmakers were urged to create a separate funding plan for that.

"I think anything that we can try to do is helpful, but obviously more needs to be done. Schools are seeing more behavioral issues than ever before. And mental health is a real problem that needs to be addressed," said Sheffield.

Assistant principals, in many schools, do a lot of mental health work. They are essentially fireman putting out one crisis after another. Sheffield agreed a shift in strategy is needed.

"I think it's really important that we allow our educators to be educators," said Sheffield.

What's next:

Education advocates do not expect SB 260 to be amended with more funding. The plan is to work with what’s provided and hope more funding will come in the next legislative session.

It’s not known when SB 260 will come up next week for debate in the Senate. 

The original safety mandate, issued two years ago, was HB 3. It was done in response to the Uvalde school shooting that happened in 2022.