On Monday the city of Greensboro, North Carolina agreed to pay Guilford County Schools $3 million in funds that the city's red light camera program had generated since 2001. The debt will be paid off over five years, beginning with a $113,900 payment.

A Guilford County Court earlier this year ruled that under the state constitution, monetary proceeds from public safety programs must go to the school system, not a private contractor. The city had paid $35 worth of each $50 fine to Peek Traffic which operated the camera program, but court precedent would only allow $5 of each ticket to go to such a contractor.

Greensboro has agreed not to appeal the decision, but it will stop paying the school system if the city of High Point wins its state court appeal of the Guilford County Court decision. After the litigation eliminated financial gain from the cameras, Greensboro turned them off in March.

Guilford County Schools attorney Jill Wilson said the school system thinks it is due the fines but doesn't intend to create an undue burden on the city. In exchange for spreading out the debt, the schools get an assurance that they won't have to battle the city if the courts rule against High Point.