The Region : Council OKs Partial Refund to LAOOC

The Los Angeles City Council voted to return $1.96 million to the Los Angeles Olympic Organizing Committee as part of a “partial refund.” Council members took the action because city costs to help stage the Olympic Games were less than anticipated. Mayor Tom Bradley must approve the refund. The city, which expects to repay the private Olympic committee another $3.5 million, has until June 1 to make a final accounting of its Olympic-related expenses. The city and the LAOOC held protracted negotiations last year over how much the city would be paid for protecting the Olympic villages and competition sites. The LAOOC accumulated a surplus in excess of $215 million from the Games.