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Santa Ana Mayor Valerie Amezcua is calling on OC Supervisor Vicente Sarmiento and county leaders to help pay for local crossing guards in the heart of Orange County – something they’ve done in the nearby City of Orange.
Amezcua, who is running for reelection, said at the end of last week’s city council meeting that she sent a letter to Sarmiento requesting help to fund school crossing guards in Santa Ana.
“I have reached out to him today as the mayor of the city to ask for his assistance to bring the school district to the table so that Santa Ana Unified, the county and the city can share the cost – all three of us as partners – for crossing guards,” she said.
Her remarks come following cuts to the city’s program at various crosswalks near Santa Ana Unified schools.
Sarmiento said in an emailed statement Wednesday evening that he looks forward to working with city officials to help with the issue as they focus on establishing a long-term funding strategy for crossing guards.
He also said the funding that went to Orange for the crossing guards was limited and intended to buy some time for a permanent solution, not as a continuous expense for the county.
“There seems to be some confusion in the Mayor’s letter requesting support for ongoing multi-year County funding for the City of Santa Ana’s crossing guard program,” Sarmiento said in the statement.
“To be clear, crossing guard programs are outside the jurisdiction of the County and because of that, would not be included in the County’s Annual Budget.”
Amezcua did not respond to requests for comment Wednesday or a request for the copy of the letter.
She is often critical of the Santa Ana Unified school board that she used to serve on at public meetings.
Her request comes after county leaders in September voted to allocate over $120,000 towards a crossing guard program in the city of Orange, where officials there continue to face a multi-million dollar budget deficit.
Most of that money – over $74,000 – came from discretionary funds from the second district represented by Sarmiento, a former Santa Ana mayor.
[Read: OC Supervisors Help Fund Crossing Guards in Orange Amid City Budget Cuts]
Sarmiento and Supervisor Don Wagner, who also allocated discretionary funds from his own district, decided to chip in for the crossing guards in Orange after officials voted to cut the program amid what initially started off as a $19 million deficit.
But Orange City Council members decided to bring back the crossing guards after pushback from residents.
Sarmiento said his office heard from Orange residents about the cuts due to the budget deficit and he looked into ways he could help the program.
“Though facing significant budget pressures, the Orange City Council worked diligently to restore the bulk of the funding for this important safety program,” he said.
Last year, Santa Ana officials considered cutting funding for crossing guards, with some leaders arguing that the school district should pay for the program instead and pushing a volunteer-based program.
In the end, officials decided to continue funding the program until 2026 while beginning to phase it out starting in the 2023-24 school year and simultaneously expanding the program to eight charter schools.
[Read: Can Thousands of Santa Ana School Kids Rely on Volunteer Crossing Guards?]
According to the Santa Ana Unified school district, 87% of the student population of over 40,000 kids come from low income families.
At a joint school-city subcommittee meeting in August, city staff said that eight crossing guard locations were removed based on how often they were used after officials approved the contract last year with a reduced budget.
The city also slashed the summer school crossing guard funding and could consider more cuts in services in the future.
Staff also said there are several difficulties with implementing a volunteer based program including training and managing the volunteers, reliability and punctuality of the volunteers, and having enough volunteers as well as back up volunteers.
City Leaders Weigh in on Funding Crossing Guards
Councilwoman Jessie Lopez said in a Wednesday phone interview that she was against crossing guard cuts in a city that struggles with pedestrian safety, noting parents are concerned about their children’s safety going to school in the morning.
“We need the money, and we need to be able to provide a service that protects our young students on our public streets,” said Lopez, who is running for reelection and is endorsed by Sarmiento and a majority of Santa Ana Unified school board members.
“I do hope that we are able to also have a conversation about how that need could be fulfilled here in the city as well.”
Councilman Johnathan Hernandez, who is also endorsed by Sarmiento, said in a Wednesday phone call that any support they can get to fund the program will be helpful to maintain a service that’s a priority to residents.
“Crossing guards are a priority to all of our residents in Santa Ana, and if we can get any level of assistance from the county or any agency that wants to participate in making that reality, we’re going to be thankful for that,” he said.
“I know with Vince recently doing that in Orange, families are going to benefit greatly from it, and I want that in our city too.”
Councilman Ben Vazquez, a school teacher who is running against Amezcua for mayor, said in a Wednesday phone interview that the city should be making sure children are walking to and from school safely.
He also said they’re not in the same position as Orange.
“It lays on our shoulders. These are children we’re talking about,” Vazquez said.
“We’re talking about one of the most vulnerable populations, and we’re playing them as political pawns to get back at a school district or now force the supervisors to pay for what is our responsibility as a city.”
He is also endorsed by Sarmiento and all current school board members.
Councilmembers Thai Viet Phan, who is up for reelection and backed by Sarmiento, as well as Councilmembers Phil Bacerra and David Penaloza did not respond to requests for comment last week.
Financial Woes in Santa Ana & Orange
Amezcua’s request comes after city staff warned earlier this year of an expected loss of $30 million in annual tax revenue in 2029 with the decrease of Measure X, a 1.5% sales tax increase approved in 2018.
[Read: Santa Ana Leaders Warn Looming Sales Tax Cliff Could Tear Up Public Services]
Meanwhile, Orange City leaders are asking voters to approve a 0.5% sales tax increase measure of their own in November to help them address their deficit – joining a host of OC cities with sales tax increases on the ballot this year.
[Read: Voters Across OC Are Considering Tax Increases This Year]
If approved, the measure would sunset in 10 years and generate about $20 million annually.
Hosam Elattar is a Voice of OC reporter and corps member with Report for America, a GroundTruth initiative. Contact him at helattar@voiceofoc.org or on Twitter @ElattarHosam.
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