In order to fix its budget deficit, the City of Orange has elected to slash funding for several sectors, including the school crossing guard program.
The city is responsible for hiring school crossing guards, and there were 14 part–time crossing guards at schools across the city – but not all – before the program was cut.
According to city officials, not having the crossing guards saves Orange around $425,000 a year.
It’s not just patrols outside schools that have been nixed; Orange has also cut out some annual events to save money, including the city’s annual Christmas tree lighting ceremony.
Orange Mayor Dan Slater told KTLA 5 Orange County Bureau Chief Chip Yost that they also reduced funding for the library and essentially had a “hiring freeze” where they were simply not filling open positions in an attempt to reduce spending. The cuts have saved the city about $5.5 million, which still doesn’t cover the entire $19 million deficit.
“[The deficit] is not anything new – we’ve had budget deficits going back to about 2010 – but we are finally trying to address that,” Mayor Slater said. “Tough times call for tough measures, and we can’t spend money we don’t have.”
Budget cuts aren’t the only tactic officials are using to minimize the deficit; city residents will be able to vote on a citywide sales tax increase on the November ballot to raise more revenue.
Officials also said they are looking for sponsors for events such as the annual Christmas tree lighting so that they can keep community traditions alive.
