There are several programs Mayor Chris Beutler warns are in jeopardy if the city does not receive additional revenue. He has proposed a tax increase to cover those costs but said some area pools, libraries and the school resource officers in Lincoln could be on the chopping block without new taxes.

Currently, Lincoln has 10 resource officers assigned to the city's middle and high schools, and it will stay that way if the mayor's proposed budget is adopted with a tax increase. But without the increase, the mayor said those officers' jobs may disappear.

It was one slide of Beutler's presentation on the city's budget, but it was enough to catch some attention. Beutler warned school resource officers may be in jeopardy if the city doesn't get additional revenue like the mayor's proposed tax increase. Losing those officers would create a big void according to school officials.

"It's just such a great program, it's proactive, that's the part I like about it. They become almost like a staff member and build relationships with kids," said Pat Hunter-Pirtle, Lincoln Southeast principal.

The officers become role models, they also provide a sense of security for students and their parents. There can be no replacement for having that officer at the school.

"You're not waiting until something is an emergency and calling the police because the police are here, and they're not seen as an outsider," Hunter-Pirtle said.

The possible cut is nothing new for public schools. They've gone back and forth with the city on funding for several years.

"It can be frustrating, you worry about it, you don't want to but it's the reality of it," Hunter-Pirtle said.

It's a reality mayor Beutler said could happen without extra funds, and one the school's.

Each Lincoln high school is a community of more than 2,000 students and staff, and that's how school officials treat them -- as communities. Along those lines, they say a community in Nebraska of 2,000 would have law enforcement so they should too.

Lincoln will just have to wait and see what the city council decides on the mayor's proposal to see what the fate of the officers will be.