Police, District in Battle Over Crossing Guards : Oxnard: A recent state law allows cities and counties to shift the cost of the service to schools.

In the latest dispute over who should pay for school crossing guards, Oxnard School District officials and parents have responded with outrage to a letter from the city’s police chief stating that his department will no longer fund the part-time positions.

The battle between the police and school officials over which entity should pay for the guards may leave crosswalks unpatrolled in the Oxnard, Rio and Hueneme elementary school districts as early as next month.

Although similar disputes across Ventura County have left some schools saddled with the expense, Oxnard school officials said the district simply cannot afford its share of the $335,675 annual cost.

At issue is a recent state law that allows cities and counties to shift the cost of crossing guards to schools. The law, one of several bills passed as part of the 1993-94 budget package, was intended to offer relief from state budget cuts to local governments.

In a Sept. 2 letter to the school district, Police Chief Harold Hurtt said that because of the new law, the Police Department would no longer fund the program.

But at Wednesday night’s Oxnard school board meeting, board members said they had a different reading of the legislation.

Supt. Norman R. Brekke said a report by School Services of California, an independent consulting firm that analyzes legislation for school districts, characterizes the law as ambiguous.

“It appears that neither the school districts nor cities are now required to provide crossing guards,” the report states.

Oxnard board members who struggled to balance the district’s $86-million budget for the coming year, said they were unwilling to negotiate with police on the issue. The Oxnard district’s share of the program’s cost is about $263,000.

“It is not our problem and we can’t let it be our problem,” said Oxnard school board member Jack Fowler. “We simply cannot be made responsible for directing traffic. That is their job.”

Supt. Peter Rogalsky of the Rio school district said he agreed that the burden of monitoring crosswalks should not fall on the schools. The Rio school board will discuss the issue next Wednesday.

The same debate is being played out in cities around Ventura County, after the county decided not to fund the positions at schools in unincorporated areas near Thousand Oaks, Ojai, Ventura and Camarillo.

Earlier this week, the Thousand Oaks City Council decided to pay for school crossing guards at two schools in unincorporated areas just outside the city.

As proof that they have read the legislation correctly, however, Oxnard police point to Santa Paula, where the city decided in August to stop paying for the guards, forcing the Santa Paula Elementary School District to pick up the tab.

“We’re just following the law,” Hurtt said Thursday. “They’re doing this in other cities, and Oxnard should be no different. I can understand that they have budget concerns, but so does the city of Oxnard.”

Gloria Urango, president of the Oxnard PTA Council, said she expects a large public outcry against the Police Department.

“I think it would be tragic if the police did this,” Urango said. “They should know that the schools cannot afford this kind of sudden expense. And if they leave the crosswalks unattended, parents are going to be very angry.”

Hurtt said he hoped to meet with superintendents from the three districts to hash out the matter.

“We all understand the need for safety of the kids going to school,” Hurtt said. “I’m sure something will be worked out.”