Contra Costa Sheriff David O. Livingston will be making a recommendation to the County Board of Supervisors to fully fund the School Resource Officer (SRO) position at the Byron Union School District for the remainder of this school year. The proposed funding will come from the County Service Area (CSA) P-6 Zone Fund and not the County General Fund.
For the past two years, the Office of the Sheriff has funded a major portion of this position from the P-6 Zone Fund while the District has funded the remaining $50,000. The District informed the Office of the Sheriff they were unable to secure funding this year. This would have resulted in the SRO being reassigned in January, therefore leaving the District without an SRO for the remainder of this school year, which runs through June 2014. The SRO currently serves Timber Point Elementary, Discovery Bay Elementary and Excelsior Middle Schools.
Sheriff Livingston and his executive staff recently met with Byron Union School District Superintendent Debbie Burnette to discuss funding this position. During this meeting, the District indicated they fell short in their effort to subsidize the position for the rest of the year. Sheriff Livingston agreed to support funding for the remainder of the school year, however encouraged District officials to work toward identifying a secure and stable funding source for this position in the future.
Sheriff Livingston has been working closely with the offices of California State Assembly member Jim Frazier and County Supervisor Mary Piepho to identify funding to bridge the gap for the rest of this year and work toward a more permanent solution.
“The SRO plays a critical role in supporting children and parents and helps keep the campuses safe,” said Sheriff David O. Livingston. “There has been strong community support to maintain this important position and I am proud we were able to work collaboratively with all involved to ensure our partnership with the District continues.”
Editors Note:
If you recall back to May, the Sheriff warned the District the position was in jeopardy and encouraged them to find funding and a long-term funding source. That apparently didn’t happen. Instead, it appears Assemblyman Jim Frazier and Supervisor Mary Piepho work behind the scene with the Sheriff to secure funding.
Here is a look at his May letter.
The cost for a top step Deputy Sheriff (salary & benefits) for FY 2013/2014 is $223,953.07. The cost for an SRO for the nine month school year will be $167,964.
Last year, the School District committed to paying $50,000 towards the SRO position; the same commitment would be necessary this fiscal year. Based on the nine month school year, the Office of the Sheriff will allocate $117,964 from the CSA P-6 CAB Fund. In the event the School District is unable to come up with their share of the funding, the SRO would only be assigned to the School District for approximately six and a half months.
It is also important for the School District be aware that this is a short-term funding solution and it would not be prudent for me to commit to approving this amount from P-6 on a yearly basis. I strongly encourage the School District to aggressively identify a more stable and long-term funding source to sustain the SRO position
