U.S. Riot Relief Plan Offers Little New, Critics Say

The presidential task force dispatched to Los Angeles in the wake of the riots has sent President Bush a long-term strategy for federal support, but the plan is being criticized as not nearly ambitious enough to play a meaningful role in recovery efforts.

The six-point action plan calls for the creation of one-stop government assistance centers, military-run “career academies” for at-risk youth and special incentives for small-business investment in the inner city.

But the task force proposes no additional spending in Los Angeles and appears mainly to repackage established programs, renewing calls for passage of such Bush Administration initiatives as enterprise zones, welfare reforms, public support for private education and home ownership for public housing tenants.

Federal officials say their plan is meant to assist the efforts of local communities and not dictate the course of recovery efforts.

“Our mission is to help the people of Los Angeles reach their goals,” says the report to the President. “We must direct our efforts to break down the barriers to the American Dream, and to play a new role in breaking the cycle of dependency.”

But critics see the plan as further evidence of the federal government’s unwillingness to commit substantial resources in the city’s fight to recover from the worst civil disturbance this century. Federal relief aid to Los Angeles is expected to top $1.2 billion, according to federal officials. But city officials have determined that much of the money was destined for Los Angeles even before the riots.

The plan, community activists charge, amounts to political posturing--a means to get the Bush Administration on record with a long-term program, but one that meets its conservative agenda of limited spending and a restricted federal role. The task force itself has also come under fire for falling short of its mandate to cut red tape and ensure delivery of crucial services to riot victims.

“The task force is trying to dress itself up for the President or whatever, but we are still at Square 1 and still needing help,” said Joseph Kung, leader of a grass-roots group representing riot victims.

Established by President Bush after his declaration of Los Angeles as a disaster area, the task force is chaired by David T. Kearns, deputy secretary of education, and Alfred A. DelliBovi, deputy secretary of Housing and Urban Development.

In its report, the panel says it has made “satisfactory” progress in meeting its initial objectives: re-establishing order and expediting delivery of emergency services. Now, it says, the federal government must determine how it can contribute to long-term economic recovery.

The task force’s recommendations include:

* Neighborhood opportunity centers. Patterned on the disaster application centers set up after the riots, the centers would bring together an array of federal, state and local agencies in one location. Officials say the centers will help cut red tape and make government more accessible.

But the plan offers no funding for administrative support and relies on localities to handle day-to-day operations. In addition, the availability of federal workers to staff the centers is questionable.

“People will be bouncing back and forth, so the schedules will be different at each (center),” said task force executive director David Beightol. “But we’d like for people to be there to answer the phones and set up appointments.”

* Business investment incentives. The Small Business Administration would consider, on a case-by-case basis, deferring loan repayments for up to 15 months for credit-worthy businesses that choose to reinvest in riot areas.

However, such an arrangement had already been agreed to before the task force got involved, according to Kung and other activists. In fact, the SBA already has the authority to grant such deferments for 18 months or more, according to Assistant Administrator Bernard Kulick.

Kung and Deputy Mayor Linda Griego contend that a more helpful action would be the suspension of credit requirements in consideration of the extraordinary circumstances of the riot. That step is not included in the task force plan.

“We would only defer if it makes economic sense, if the person has the ability to repay,” said Kulick. “We would look at it on a case-by-case basis.”

* Defense conversion. The Department of Commerce will provide $5.6 million to help local defense firms convert to non-military production and create jobs for workers who become unemployed as a result of defense cuts.

About $4 million of the fund would be used to establish a revolving loan fund for small businesses that want to diversify into non-military ventures. The remaining money would go to two locally based technology centers.

Critics questioned whether the proposal--directed toward an economic problem independent of the riots--belongs in a post-riot action plan. Federal officials argue that regional economic growth is essential if depressed communities hard hit by the rioting are to thrive.

In any event, this initiative is not new. The Department of Commerce announced the funding package in mid-June, along with a $3-million grant to Rebuild L.A, the private-sector recovery effort headed by businessman Peter V. Ueberroth.

* Career academies. The task force wants to establish military-run academies at existing schools that would combine leadership, vocational and technical training with intensive academic instruction. The concept--which targets inner-city youth at risk of dropping out or joining gangs--was launched in Philadelphia schools several years ago.

The academies would be funded by the departments of Defense and Education, and would require students to join a Junior Reserve Officers’ Training Corps program. Los Angeles school officials have expressed interest in the program, said Bruno Manno, acting assistant secretary of education.

But funding for the program is uncertain. Manno said a request to redirect $4 million in department funds to support such academies around the country was rejected by the House Appropriations Committee. The Senate Appropriations Committee is still considering the proposal, he said.

* Regulatory relief. The task force proposes to “work with state, federal and local authorities to coordinate regulatory relief, to cut through red tape and to facilitate technical assistance in order to maximize the impact of federal dollars.”

The success claimed by the task force in trimming red tape is a sore point for riot victims.

Beightol said the task force is relying on community input to identify regulatory snags, but says, “We have not gotten a response.”

Retorts Kung, chairman of the Union of Minority Ethnic Victims to Build a New L.A.: “They are still waiting for community response? He must be kidding. I thought it was their job to go out and tackle this. They have got to go out and meet people rather than wait.”

Carlos Vaquerano, an official of the Central American Refugee Center, which has worked closely with Latino riot victims, complained that the task force has made no effort at the community level to publicize its existence.

The task force, he said, has not solicited any input from his organization. He added that he has not seen the action plan.

“Any plan to rebuild has to consider the participation of community at the grass-roots level in all matters,” said Vaquerano, a member of the Rebuild L.A. board. “So I question if the plan is valid.”

* Coordinated relief strategy. The task force recommends that its other initiatives be integrated with existing programs and services and that it continue operating until November to coordinate the strategy.

Publicly, city officials have generally praised the efforts of the task force. Privately though, many say they are appalled at the lack of federal financial support for the city.

“I see (the task force) as a real resource for us,” said Griego. “I don’t think they came in with any preconceived ideas. They came in and asked how they could be a part of what we’re doing.”

Still, Griego called the action plan disappointing. “It isn’t enough in that you’d really like to see more financial resources,” she said.

And Griego said the task force seemingly has rejected an opportunity to assess whether various relief efforts--such as the emergency food stamp program--were working to help riot victims. City officials worry that the food aid ended too soon and did not reach enough people.

“I would have liked to have seen them address that in the report,” said Griego. “I did bring it up with them and the response was sort of ‘yes, it’s a problem’ but. . . .”

Kung, meanwhile, recounted being rebuffed in attempts to meet with task force officials. After trying for two months to get an appointment, he finally succeeding a day before the task force submitted its action plan to President Bush last week.

The meeting with Beightol, he said, proved frustrating.

“We asked if the task force couldn’t provide some overall coordination . . . but when I asked about some state and county matters he said he couldn’t handle those,” Kung said.

Kung said he presented a number of suggestions that would help thousands of riot victims like him who have been stymied in their efforts to obtain federal assistance. He advocated raising the SBA loan ceiling and exempting victims from business and income tax payments, but none of his proposals made it into the task force’s report, he said.

Beightol said he was not surprised by such criticism.

“We would certainly expect it in an election year,” he said. “Whether it is founded or not is another matter. . . . This is a living, growing document. We meet with groups all the time, and where they offer evidence of areas where we can be helpful we’re going to do everything we can.”

Task Force Recommendations

The Presidential Task Force on Los Angeles Recovery has asked President Bush to endorse a six-point plan of federal assistance in the long-term economic renewal of the riot-torn city:

1. Create “neighborhood opportunity centers.” These “one-stop shopping centers” for federal, state and local aid--to businesses and individuals--would be modeled on the disaster application centers that operated in the months immediately after the riots. One such center opened last week in Compton.

2. Provide incentives for business investment. The task force wants the Small Business Administration to defer loan repayment up to 15 months for eligible small companies that start up in the riot areas.

3. Help the defense industry convert to commercial activities. The Commerce Department is spending $5.6 million to promote domestic applications of aerospace technology, provide a venture capital fund for former defense workers and finance a revolving loan fund for small businesses harmed by cuts in defense spending.

4. Create military-oriented “career academies” for at-risk youth. The task force wants the Defense Department to take the lead in developing programs at inner-city schools providing leadership, vocational and technical training along with intense academic instruction for children most likely to drop out. Students would enroll in the Junior Reserve Officers’ Training Corps.

5. Cut red tape. The task force wants to stay in existence another four months to offer regulatory relief and technical assistance to state and local officials.

6. Coordinate a strategy to support Los Angeles. The task force recommends that its proposals be coordinated with existing federal programs, services and agencies.