L.A. County Spending Priorities

After reading Joe Domanick’s commentary on “L.A. Turns Its Back on Its People” (Commentary, June 20), I was appalled to see the cuts our county Board of Supervisors are planning to make in vital humans services--closing down to more mental health clinics, in addition to the nine already closed; closing the only children’s hospital in the county system, the Pediatric Pavilion at County-USC Medical Center; eliminating all pediatric services from Martin Luther King Hospital; drastically reducing outpatient services and shutting down 41 public health centers.

By failing to supervise and discipline the Sheriff’s Department, the county has had to pay more than $8.5 million in judgments to victims of excessive force and brutality in the last three years. In the past year the County Department of Children’s Services has paid more than $18 million in settlements because it has taken children who were abused and neglected and placed them in foster homes where they were again abused, sexually molested, beaten and neglected.

The county’s problems are part of a larger problem that pervades our whole society and threatens to destroy our democratic system--a lack of responsibility. How can we expect our elected officials to act responsibly and serve the needs of the people when the people are sending the politicians the message that they don’t care enough about their government even to vote.

Recently, I went up to Sacramento to lobby the state Legislature for increased funding of our social programs--for education, health care, children’s services, etc. What I heard there was very discouraging. The state has a $3.6 billion shortfall in the budget, and funding for the social welfare programs will be cut rather than increased. Gov. George Deukmejian intends to leave this problem for the Democratic majority in the Legislature and the next governor to deal with. That way, the Republicans can demagogue the issue again and blame the Democrats for raising taxes or making drastic cuts in social services.

When I attempted to encourage legislators to show a little political courage and deal responsibly with our state’s problems, I was told that the people don’t care anyway. Look at the low voter turnout in this June’s primary election. It’s politics as usual in Sacramento.

There is a saying that people get the kind of government they deserve. But how about the abused and neglected children, the working poor with no health insurance, the mentally ill and the homeless? How about those of us who do try to exercise our civic duties by becoming informed voters, studying the issues and candidates’ records, writing to and visiting our legislators, etc. Is this the government that we deserve?

CAROL MILLER

Beverly Hills