Texas Attorney General Sues City of Dallas Over Police Funding

Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton filed suit against the city of Dallas this week for insufficiently funding the Dallas Police Department in violation of Proposition U.

In a Friday press release announcing the suit, Paxton accused Dallas city officials for "unlawfully refusing to comply with Proposition U, a public safety measure approved by Dallas voters in the November 2024 election that mandates increase funding for police and other critical safety priorities."

Paxton said that the city failed to properly calculate and allocate excess city revenue to the police. The suit names the city, City Manager Kimberly Bizor Tolbert, and Chief Financial Officer Jack Ireland Jr. as defendants.

"Compared to fiscal year 2024–25, the City of Dallas’s projected excess revenue for fiscal year 2025–26 is approximately $220 million," the release states. "However, [Ireland] reported to the Dallas City Council that excess revenue totaled only $61 million, based on an improper calculation that excluded large categories of city revenue without citing any state or federal law restricting their use."

It continues, "As a result, the city's proposed budget fails to fund voter-mandated public safety priorities and does not meet the requirements of Proposition U."

Paxton also accuses the city of failing to comply with a provision of Proposition U that requires it to hire an independent third-party firm to conduct an annual police compensation survey. "Public information requests revealed that no such survey was conducted," the press release states.

"I filed this lawsuit to ensure that the City of Dallas fully funds law enforcement, upholds public safety, and is accountable to its constituents," Paxton said. "When voters demand more funding for law enforcement, local officials must immediately comply."