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Working group outlines options and estimated costs for expanding school resource officers
Summary
Presenters summarized a statewide survey of school resource officers (SROs): 35 districts report at least one SRO and the state has about 83.6 full‑time equivalent SROs. Most SROs are contracted through local law enforcement; reported salary+benefit costs averaged about $77,000 per position across responding LEAs.
Michael Griffith, presenting for the recalibration team, briefed the committee on the current SRO landscape in Wyoming and options for state assistance should the committee or legislature move to support universal SRO coverage.
Griffith summarized a 2024–25 survey of local education agencies: 35 school districts reported having at least one SRO; 13 districts and three charter schools reported none. The survey identified about 83.6 full‑time equivalent SROs statewide; most (about 72.6 FTE) serve under contract with local sheriffs or police, while a minority are direct district employees.
Surveyed districts reported wide variation in total SRO compensation and who pays for it. The 30 districts that provided expenditure details reported combined SRO spending of about $5.9 million, an average of roughly $77,000 per SRO (salary plus benefits), though reported per‑officer costs ranged from roughly $10,000 to $148,000 depending on hours, contract arrangements and local funding sources.
Griffith identified preliminary policy options for the committee to consider: (1) fund SROs on a campus or building basis rather than school labels (so a campus with multiple schools may share an SRO); (2) fund SROs on an ADM or per‑student basis so larger schools receive proportionally more coverage; (3) provide supplemental funding for training, equipment, and vehicles; or (4) implement a reimbursement mechanism that passes contract costs through to the state (similar to some special‑education pass‑throughs).
A presenter noted that a judge’s recent ruling found SROs to be an element of the educational program in the case before the court; committee members observed the ruling is by a single judge and that legal and legislative steps would be required before any mandatory state funding. Griffith said additional work remains, including specifying a standard SRO salary and modeling statewide cost implications under different deployment and sharing scenarios.
Committee members asked whether SROs could be shared across districts or counties and whether virtual/remote options were feasible; presenters said geography and local law‑enforcement capacity make some sharing practical but others would require local solutions. No formal decision was made.
