Local News in Brief : Finn Calls for Toll-Free Line to City Hall for Constituents
San Fernando Valley residents should be able to reach out and touch City Hall without having to pay for the privilege, says northeast Valley Councilman Howard Finn.
Finn introduced a motion Friday in Los Angeles City Council calling for a study on providing toll-free direct dialing to City Hall for all residents of the city.
Now, residents of outlying areas of Los Angeles, including the Valley, are charged for a toll call when dialing City Hall. And they must go through an operator.
“Often, the operators are understaffed, and callers have had to wait through as many as 100 rings before they are answered,” Finn said.
“There are two distinct faults with the nonsense of the system,” Finn said. “First and foremost, residents in various parts of the city are discriminated against by being forced to either pay the toll or waste time waiting for understaffed operators to be connected.
“Second, as long as direct connection technology is standard and common, it is a waste of employee resources to require an intermediary to make such connections.”
Finn’s request was referred to the council’s Governmental Operations Committee for study.
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