Who should pay Dallas' crossing guards?

DALLAS - On the first day of school for Dallas ISD, city council members questioned the $5.6 million price tag to provide for school crossing guards.

Members of council raised concerns about whether schools or the state should be helping to foot the bill at 286 busy Dallas school crossings.

"$5 million is a lot of money," said Dallas City Councilmember Paula Blackmon.

"I just seems like this is a very large contract numerically, and I'm trying to get a handle on why it is costing so much," added city councilmember Paul Ridley.

Funding crossing guards became the city's responsibility in 2018, after the embattled transportation service, Dallas County Schools, was dissolved amid a corruption scandal.

When Dallas County Schools dissolved, so did the tax dollars the agency collected.

The city did negotiate to add a $1.50 vehicle registration fee with Dallas County to help some of the cost.

"It took almost an act of congress to partner with Dallas County to have the $1.50," said Assistant City Manager Donzell Gipson. "Others cities have found a way to partner with their school districts, but we haven't had the same level of success in figuring that out. The state has frowned on funding additional direct dollars for school crossing guards with the hopes that it would be handled more locally."

The state requires cities with more than 1.3 million residents to train and equip crossing guards.

City staff say they are needed at intersections crossed by 20 or more unsupervised children, where there are four or more lanes of traffic and anywhere a study determines a need.

Dallas City Councilman Adam Bazaldua questioned why the contract's rate of pay for crossing guards, $17.85, is lower than the city's living wage.

"It doesn't do us any good to prioritize a living wage if we let them get buried," he said.

Councilwoman Gay Donnell Willis questioned if the city needs to pay the 514 crossing guards at all, or if the roles should be filled by volunteers.

Dallas City Marshal David Pughes said the state doesn't require crossing guards to be paid.

"We could provide the equipment and the training and then the volunteers would take over from there. I think that would be great," Pughes said.

Another councilmember suggested funds for crossing guards could be generated by wearing advertisements on their vests.

City staff is going to work on some of the ideas and report back to city council later.