Council Delays Debate Over Staff, Remodeling : Budget: San Diego city manager is told to find funds other than those for police to tap for mid-year requests.

The San Diego City Council Monday postponed debate on the politically sensitive issue of whether to spend about $300,000 to increase council members’ staffs and remodel their offices, telling City Manager John Lockwood to come up with a new way to pay for the expenses and $3.8 million in other mid-year requests.

In a Jan. 31 report to the council, Lockwood had suggested raising most of the $4.1 million needed by postponing the purchase of land for a police substation. Some council members suggested that the proposal was designed to embarrass them by making them choose between public safety and their own staff increases.

Councilwoman Linda Bernhardt, who called Lockwood’s proposal gamesmanship, asked him to come back Feb. 13 with a longer list of potential budget cuts to pay for the staff increases and other requests.

Although the staff-increase requests have received most of the political notoriety, most of the budget increases would go to City Atty. John Witt’s office.

Witt is asking for $1.5 million to pay outside attorneys and experts helping the city try to block the proposed merger of San Diego Gas & Electric and Southern California Edison. The funds would come on top of $2 million already allocated for those purposes and increased city staff during the current fiscal year.

Another $2 million would go into the fund used to settle lawsuits or pay victorious litigants. The fund, which started the fiscal year last July 1 at $12 million, is nearly exhausted with five months remaining.

As if to emphasize the size of the legal fees, Councilman Bob Filner asked for a detailed public accounting of the proposed SDG&E; payments, and Councilwoman Abbe Wolfsheimer asked for more information on the other $2 million in legal costs.

Mayor Maureen O’Connor responded that the SDG&E; expenditures have been discussed in closed session. City attorneys maintain that the council may discuss those expenditures privately because publication of the information would tip its strategy to SDG&E; and Edison.

Councilman John Hartley asked for a report on expenses related to the proposed new Civic Center, and Councilman Ron Roberts asked for a detailed list of budget cuts that the council made last year.

“We might bring in Gov. Deukmejian’s budget and the federal budget,” said Councilman Bruce Henderson. “We could get quite a stack of documents here before us.”

Wolfsheimer, Hartley, Bernhardt, Henderson, Filner and Councilman Wes Pratt have asked for staff increases, and Hartley and Bernhardt are remodeling their offices. Both said that Lockwood’s office approved the remodeling.