The Montgomery county public schools

The Montgomery county public schools-Montgomery County Public Schools would continue to have some police presence in high schools under a proposal made Monday to keep nine school resource officers in this year's county budget.

County Executive Isiah Leggett (D) suggested earlier this month that the positions, funded through the county police budget, be cut.

On Monday, a council committee voted to keep the resource officers through at least June 30.

Eliminating the school resource officers would save the county $518,650.

The County Council will vote on that recommendation Tuesday, along with about $36 million in reductions to the county's fiscal 2011 budget. The county is facing a more than $300 million budget shortfall in fiscal 2012.

Leggett is asking most department heads to consider cutting their budgets by as much as 15 percent in fiscal 2012, which begins July 1.

On Monday, Councilman Philip M. Andrews (D-Dist. 3) of Gaithersburg, who chairs the Public Safety Committee, said he would like for Montgomery County Public Schools to pay for all or some of the program, which serves its schools.

Council Vice President Roger Berliner (D-Dist. 1) of Potomac suggested an equal funding system, with the school system and the county government each paying an equal share.

The county's schools are funded by the county government.

In the past, the school system has said it cannot afford to pay for the officers.

Council President Valerie Ervin (D-Dist. 5) of Silver Spring said the issue is far from resolved, but that the council will discuss next year how the school resource officer program should be funded.

"(The school resource officers) are working in their buildings," Ervin said of the schools. "They should be sharing the cost."

In response, Board of Education President Christopher S. Barclay said he was unsure how the school system could take on a financial burden to support the officers at the same time Leggett has asked the school system to cut $19 million from its budget this year.

"To not have them in our schools and to be stuck in a situation where they are overtaxed, meaning they're overburdened, isn't good for any of us," said Barclay (Dist. 4) of Takoma Park. "But to put the finance responsibility on us that hasn't been on us in the past, I don't know where we would get those funds from."

The program repeatedly has been reduced by the county government since 2009, when 33 police officers were assigned to schools. Nine officers now rotate among high schools.