Yaroslavsky Gets Boost in Bid for More Police

Mayoral hopeful Zev Yaroslavsky’s effort to prove he is the Police Department’s best friend received a major boost Thursday as the Los Angeles City Council tentatively approved his proposal to beef up the department by 150 officers.

The 150 would be in addition to the 400 that Mayor Tom Bradley called for last month in his $2.92-billion spending plan. Once all the officers are trained and assigned, the department’s sworn force would climb to a record 7,900, which is 1,000 more than just a few years ago.

The Westside councilman also appeared to be heading for a second police-related victory over Bradley. Many of Yaroslavsky’s fellow councilmen voiced approval of his plan to nearly double the $11 million in police overtime that Bradley had urged.

The 150-officer boost was approved several hours after the council began its annual budget deliberations. The vote was unanimous, a clear signal that any mayoral veto would be futile. Bradley has not indicated precisely how he will respond to major changes in police funding.

Assistant Chief Jesse Brewer said there will be 7,124 officers on the streets on July 1, while 376 others will be in training. Brewer said the remaining 400 officers in the projected 7,900-officer force would be in the field by June 30, 1989.

Taking Some Credit

As he has geared up for a likely run against Bradley, Yaroslavsky has tried in the past several years to show that he--rather than the mayor--has been in the forefront of beefing up the police force. Last year, over Bradley’s initial opposition, Yaroslavsky successfully pushed for 250 more officers.

Earlier this year, Yaroslavsky sponsored a plan to add another 150 officers by the end of the fiscal year. When Bradley called for funding that number of additional recruits, plus 250 more within the next year, Yaroslavsky wasted little time counter-proposing another 150. It was these 150 officers that the council endorsed Thursday.

Bradley has also proposed spending $11 million next year for police overtime that would be used on special gang and drug-trafficking task forces. The mayor said he would consider approving periodic requests during the coming year for more overtime funds as the Police Department sought them.

Yaroslavsky, chairman of the council’s Finance Committee, submitted a minority report contending that the department could plan better if it had $10 million more in overtime funds up front, for a total of $21 million. Bradley allies Richard Alatorre and Robert Farrell, who constitute the finance panel’s majority, proposed adding only $6.7 million.

Under procedures adopted for the budget deliberations, the council on Thursday had time to consider only the Finance Committee’s majority report. While the Alatorre-Farrell overtime pay suggestion was adopted by a 13-0 vote, several council members said they will vote later to approve Yaroslavsky’s $10-million overtime plan.

In another budget vote, the council tentatively approved Yaroslavsky’s plan to increase a pilot program of recycling household rubbish to 90,000 homes citywide, 40,000 more than Bradley had proposed.

Budget deliberations are expected to resume today.