Gov. Jan Brewer's budget adds 100 school officers

PHOENIX - Gov. Jan Brewer's proposed budget adds enough money to pay half the costs of 100 new school resource officers and looks to districts for the rest of the cash.

Brewer had promised to add officers after December's school shooting in Connecticut raised concerns about school safety.

The state now pays for 100 officers split among more than 2,000 schools using $7.8 million from a voter-approved 2000 sales tax increase. The plan Brewer released Friday for the budget year beginning July 1 adds $3.6 million that must be matched by districts.

Brewer spokesman Matthew Benson says the $3.6 million is enough with district matches to cover all the officers districts have requested. But those primarily came in before the Connecticut shooting.

Minority Democrats want $17 million more for school officer funding.