What's next after Dallas voters approve amendment adding 900 police officers?

One of the propositions approved by Dallas voters on Tuesday was a change to the city's charter requiring the hiring of 900 police officers.

The passage of that proposition, observers said, signals frustration with elected leaders at Dallas City Hall.

Dallas voters approved 16 of 18 amendments to the city’s charter on Tuesday, including an amendment requiring the city to set aside 50% of future revenue growth to increase the number of officers at the Dallas Police Department.

Proposition U received 50.5% support from Dallas voters, which mandates minimum police staffing of at least 4,000 officers.

Pete Marocco, spokesperson for the group Dallas Hero, which gathered signatures during the summer to get propositions S, T, and U on the ballot, said voters sent the message of more support for public safety.

“It’s a historic day for Dallas,” Marocco said. “It’s an unquestionable mandate.”

Dallas City Councilmember Paula Blackmon, who represents parts of East Dallas in District 9, said she feels voters sent a message to her and 14 elected colleagues on Dallas City Council.

“What’s its saying is I don’t think people are happy with what’s happening at City Council,” Blackmon said.

Blackmon said the dissatisfaction could be detected too in Proposition C, one of two that did not pass out of 18 on the ballot.  Prop C would have increased the annual salary for City Council members and the mayor.

“Are we at City Council doing what we’re supposed to be doing and focusing on the things that people want us to focus on,” Blackmon said.

Proposition S, which would allow citizens to sue the city to comply with the charter or state law, passed with a 55-45 margin.

Monty Bennett, CEO of Ashford Inc. and a major donor in the effort to place S, T, and U on the ballot, told NBC 5 on Wednesday that Dallas will become the first city to have governmental immunity waived.

“Now there's a city in the United States that has to follow its own law and state law,” Bennett said. “And that is truly groundbreaking and [I am] very excited about that.”

Proposition T, which would have tied city manager bonus compensation and potential employment to the results of a community survey, was the only citizen-led proposition to fail.

Marocco added that the split vote between S, T, and U showed that voters carefully read each one and voted accordingly.

“I like the fact that you saw a different result from S, T and U,” Marocco said. “It’s right and it’s not a carbon copy.  People can’t question its legitimacy. It’s legit and it’s the law.”

Interim Dallas City Manager Kim Tolbert told NBC 5 in a statement Wednesday that the city would continue to weigh its options while waiting for the final, certified results of the election.

Prop U doesn’t include a timing mechanism to specify how quickly Dallas police would have to increase the number of sworn officers from its current total of just under 3,100 to the required 4,000.

Bennett said the charter amendment was written that way by design.

“If it takes one year, OK, if it takes 200 years, it takes 200 years,” Bennett said. “And that was purposely done so that the city couldn't reasonably say that it would cause a cut in other services.”

A request for comment from the Dallas Police Association, which opposed all three Dallas Hero amendments on the first day of early voting, was not immediately returned Wednesday.