Thirty-eight South Carolina school districts will be awarded funding to hire new school resource officers as part of a two million dollar proviso passed by the General Assembly in this year’s budget.
Dillon School District Three and Four will receive funding.
Proviso 1.105 appropriated $2,000,000 for the purpose of hiring certified law enforcement officers to serve as a school resource officer for school districts that otherwise would lack the adequate resources to hire their own school resource officers. In making determinations, the South Carolina Department of Education was directed to use the most recent index of taxpaying ability as the district’s indicator of ability to pay, with districts of the lowest index of taxpaying ability receiving priority consideration. Funding will go directly to the local law enforcement agency to pay for the cost of a full-time school resource officer. Funds cannot be used to supplant existing resources.
Over sixty school districts applied for the funding with thirty-eight selected based upon the criteria set forth by the General Assembly in the proviso.