Despite the additional officers, the PD would not impose a large budgetary impact, Norton said, adding that LTISD currently budgets over $600,000 for its contract with Travis County.
The initial one-time cost of developing the department is projected under $400,000 with a yearly price tag estimated at a little over half a million dollars, according to Norton. The majority of the development funding would include the cost of vehicles, guns, ammunition and badges, Norton said.
Bearing in mind the proposed increase in campus police presence, trustee Lauren White brought attention to nationwide disparities in disciplinary action.
“We’ve seen historically across the country and in Texas that more officers across the school sometimes means more students are referred to the criminal justice system, and there’s usually disparities in who that is,” White said. “How do we ensure that as the police force grows ... that we’re able to make sure that doesn’t happen to our students?”