Amendment G

Your editorial against Charter Amendment G (May 25) represents a flip-flop on a previous Times position. Your editorial of Feb. 7 said, “Should Los Angeles tilt toward U.S. firms--or, even better, local firms--whenever possible? Absolutely.” That’s exactly what Amendment G will do.

Amendment G will not allow any diminution of the quality of goods the city purchases. It will not create a new bureaucracy, any more than the city’s South Africa ordinance or small business preference ordinance has done. Any small increase in the price of city purchases due to Amendment G will be more than paid back through the retention of local industry, local jobs and the local tax base.

Amendment G would favor L.A. County or California firms over firms located in North Carolina or Maine. Amendment G would require a minimum level of domestic (U.S.) content in all city purchases.

Currently, over half the states and countless cities favor local suppliers in one form or another. The Federal Transportation Administration requires 60% domestic content in major transportation purchases. Amendment G will help us to help ourselves by spending our tax dollars here.

ZEV YAROSLAVSKY

Los Angeles Councilman