âť“WHAT HAPPENED: Democrat city officials in Dallas, Texas, are being sued for failing to comply with Proposition U, a voter-approved public safety measure requiring increased police funding.
👤WHO WAS INVOLVED: The lawsuit names the City of Dallas, its city manager, and its chief financial officer as defendants. Attorney General Ken Paxton is leading the legal effort.
đź“ŤWHEN & WHERE: The lawsuit was filed in Dallas County following claims of noncompliance with the 2024 voter-approved initiative.
💬KEY QUOTE: “When voters demand more funding for law enforcement, local officials must immediately comply.” – Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton
🎯IMPACT: The lawsuit seeks to enforce compliance with Proposition U, including proper funding calculations and police compensation measures.
Democrat officials in Dallas, Texas, are facing a lawsuit alleging they failed to comply with Proposition U, a public safety measure approved by voters in November 2024 that requires increased funding for police and other safety-related priorities. The lawsuit, filed in Dallas County, names the city, its city manager, and its chief financial officer as defendants. Plaintiffs claim the city did not properly calculate excess revenue when determining police funding levels, as required under the city charter.
According to the complaint, Dallas reported $61 million in excess revenue for the most recent fiscal year, though the suit alleges the correct figure should have been closer to $220 million.
In addition to the revenue dispute, the lawsuit alleges the city failed to hire an independent third-party firm to conduct an annual police compensation survey, another requirement under Proposition U. Public information requests reportedly found no evidence that such a survey was conducted. Plaintiffs argue that the omission violates the city charter.
“When voters demand more funding for law enforcement, local officials must immediately comply,” Attorney General Ken Paxton (R) said. He emphasized the importance of fully supporting law enforcement amid increasing challenges and attacks on police from radical left-wing factions.
Proposition U was adopted following broader national debates over policing that began in 2020 and 2021, when some cities moved to reduce or reallocate police funding. Supporters of the Dallas measure say those policies led to public safety concerns in certain jurisdictions. In Baltimore, for example, critics of defunding efforts pointed to violent crime incidents, including a 2023 mass shooting that left two people dead and dozens injured, as evidence that reducing police resources can have serious consequences.
The Dallas lawsuit seeks a court order requiring the city to include all unrestricted revenue in its funding calculations and to allocate additional resources for police pensions, officer pay, and hiring. The legal action follows a separate lawsuit filed by the Texas Public Policy Foundation, which accused Dallas officials of failing to repeal or amend dozens of ordinances it contends conflict with state law.
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