Fairfax County (VA) high school cafeterias will begin video surveillance this fall to cut down on lunch line theft, which totaled an estimated $1.2 million in losses last school year, reports the Washongton Post. The decision was made by the school board to stem losses that contributed to the system’s overall $150 million budget shortfall.
They approved a one-year pilot for cafeteria cameras to be deployed in six sites, all high schools and secondary schools. The $60,000 cost is being paid by the nutrition department, whose overall budget is around $74 million. An anonymous survey conducted last month by the department found that about one in 10 students admitted to taking food without paying.