Decision ’93 / A Look at the Elections in Los Angeles County : Los Angeles City Council / 11th DISTRICT : Q AND A

CONTENDERS

Marvin Braude, 72, of Brentwood was elected to the City Council in 1965. He holds a bachelor’s degree in political science from the University of Chicago. Before entering public office, Braude was a businessman.

John B. Handal II, 39, of Brentwood owns two restaurants in Brentwood. He studied business at Loyola College of Baltimore and is currently president of the Brentwood Village Chamber of Commerce. He has never before run for public office.

Daniel W. Pritikin, 27, of West Los Angeles is an attorney specializing in family law. He holds a bachelor’s degree in political economy of industrial societies from UC Berkeley and is a graduate of Loyola Law School. He is a cousin of Nathan Pritikin, founder of the Pritikin Longevity Center. This is his first bid for public office.

Significant Problem

Q. What do you believe is the most significant problem facing the district? How would you solve it?

Braude: Crime. The very real threat to our personal safety is the most significant problem facing our community. In addition to authoring the measure, which passed on the November ballot, to rescue our badly outdated 911 emergency system, I am the author of the measure on the April ballot to hire 1,000 additional police officers.

Handal: We have two major problems: (1) Police protection. (2) Overdensity. To solve these problems, I would hire 4,000 policemen. To do this, I support leasing LAX. Additionally, I am calling for an outside audit of every agency in our city government. Money freed up from the audit would be used for additional ground-level personnel. Regarding overdensity, I would call for a complete investigation into the planning department and its zoning and variance processes.

Pritikin: I think crime is the most significant problem facing our city because it is not only a safety issue, it is an economic and an education issue as well. I would place 4,000 new police officers on the street to halt crime in the short term. I would actively recruit new business to the city for the medium term. I would advocate the breakup of the school district into smaller, more responsive districts for the long-term solution. A well-educated population with high-paying jobs will mean fewer people faced with crime as their only hope for survival.

City Services

Q. Do you believe the San Fernando Valley gets its fair share of city services?

Braude: The Valley--like the rest of the city--is understaffed when it comes to police. We have fewer police officers per capita than any major city in the nation. We all have the right not to live in fear and to expect a certain basic level of police protection.

Handal: I believe that in general, nobody in this city, based on the revenues of this city, gets their fair share. Too much money is spent on the upper level of government. I would, in asking for an outside audit, ensure all areas of “fair share” services.

Pritikin: No, I do not believe the San Fernando Valley gets its fair share of services. According to a police officer I spoke with, there are only 15 officers on patrol at any one time in the West Valley Police Division. The best defense is a good offense. The Valley has also been shortchanged when it comes to capital improvement projects like street repair and improvement.

Government Efficiency

Q. Do you believe there is any city department that is doing an inadequate job of delivering services?

Braude: I believe city departments can do better at providing services and increasing their productivity with the same number of employees or fewer.

Handal: I believe that Public Works should be eliminated and merged with Engineering. I believe that tree trimming, sanitation and street maintenance should all be overhauled. Further, I believe that the Building and Safety Department should be streamlined, as should their processes.

Pritikin: In addition to the concern with the lack of police, I would say that the other “department” doing an inadequate job of providing services is the City Council itself. There is too much bickering and Balkanization going on. Council members set themselves up against one another to the detriment of the city as a whole.

Privatization Possibilities

Q. Do you support privatization of some city services?

Braude: If we are going to provide basic city services without raising taxes, we must explore all options of financing available. For instance, the passage of Proposition K, which I supported, opens the door for airport revenues to be used for police, fire and paramedics. Leasing the airport is another option we are also exploring.

Handal: Yes. The first department would be trash collection. I would look at each and every department and analyze their productivity versus a private concern, at what cost to do so.

Pritikin: Yes, I support privatization of some city services. The most obvious one that comes to mind is garbage collection. I want to examine the budget firsthand to see what other areas can be privatized. More accurately, we should be condensing some departments and eliminating others.

Charter Reforms

Q. Do you believe in the need for City Charter reforms?

Braude: The charter was adopted in 1925. It is obsolete and should be substantially revised.

Handal: Yes. Our charter is not written for the 21st Century. I would appoint a task force to reform the charter within my first term.

Pritikin: Yes, I support charter reform because I believe that as a city grows and expands it needs to rethink the way it does things. We need to give the mayor more authority to create public policy and to terminate employees who are no longer effective. This would come at the expense of the power of the City Council but we have to think of the good of the city as a whole.

Term Limits

Q. Do you favor term limits for elected city officials?

Braude: I share voter frustration with City Hall gridlock. It’s why I ran for office in the first place. Every four years, the voters have the opportunity to enact a term limit on an elected official. I favor this system.

Handal: Yes. Two terms maximum.

Pritikin: I support term limits 100%. New blood, new ideas and new energy bring vitality and excitement to city government. I favor two elected terms of four years each. Councilmen who have already served longer than that should step aside.

Business Climate

Q. What can City Hall do to improve the business climate in Los Angeles?

Braude: Unless our streets are safer, no business will want to locate here. Put more police officers on the streets, implement community-based policing, and I think our community will once again become an attractive place for business to locate.

Handal: We need to streamline the permit process. We also need to have leadership and proper guidelines within departments so that conflicting information isn’t given to business people who are attempting to open in Los Angeles. Additionally, by increasing police protection and helping to eliminate the homeless situation, business can be brought back to Los Angeles. I also believe that the city needs to provide incentives to business to remain in Los Angeles through tax breaks and grants.

Pritikin: The best thing City Hall can do to improve the business climate is to show leadership to city employees. The mentality at the top can be seen through all departments. If we can overhaul the process, turn it upside down and reinvent the way we process applications for new business, we will have taken the first step to shoring up an eroding job base. The very least we can do is to have one-stop permitting, coordinated inspections, computerized applications and city employees who understand that business is not the enemy.

Illegal Immigrants

Q. Do you believe illegal immigrants have any impact on crime or on the downturn in the Los Angeles economy?

Braude: I strongly believe that illegal immigrants who commit nonviolent crimes should be deported immediately, and violent offenders should be dealt with swiftly by our police and the courts. I believe our laws regarding health, safety, vandalism and trespassing should be strictly enforced.

Handal: Yes. Every day we pay social services for illegal immigrants.

Pritikin: I think illegal immigrants are a slap in the face to those who struggled through the proper process to be here. Illegal immigrants were the first to feel the downturn in the economy but are by no means the cause of it. They have had the same impact on crime as anyone unemployed who has chosen crime as an alternative. When you’re not well-educated and jobs are scarce, your options are limited. But our resources as a city are limited and the tough choice that has to made is to help those who are here legally and have paid into the system.

Police Officers

Q. Do you favor a proposal on the June ballot to increase property taxes to pay for 1,000 new police officers?

Braude: Yes, I authored it. There were more than 1,000 homicides in Los Angeles and we are engaged in a losing battle against criminals and gang members who are armed to the teeth. We must have at least 1,000 more officers to make our neighborhoods safe once again. Six dollars a month is a small price to pay for peace of mind, the safety of our loved ones and to create a climate that will encourage businesses to expand and create more jobs.

Handal: I do not favor the proposal. We have to stop asking the homeowners to continue to pay for services for the whole city. We need to audit our current departments, eliminate waste, then hire more police. But for immediate relief, the leasing of LAX would gain us 3,000 police at once. Additionally, I support the proposal to rehire retired but fit LAPD officers who want to come back on the job.

Pritikin: No, I do not favor new taxes for police protection. First of all, the tax would fall disproportionately harder on Valley and Westside residents. Second of all, we should maximize use of facilities like LAX and the convention center before we raise taxes. A Lockheed study shows we can raise $125 million to $700 million a year in revenues just by renegotiating the contract for the airport.

Police Complaints

Q. Do you believe complaints against the Police Department are handled properly?

Braude: I believe the reforms passed by the voters in Measure F established procedures to better handle these problems.

Handal: I support a civilian complaint review board. I believe that the current setup of our Police Commission is ineffective and its reporting process to the mayor is also ineffective. I would propose that the police chief be directly responsible to the mayor, who is accountable to the City Council.

Pritikin: I think that complaints against the Police Department are handled in an adequate manner but we need to refine the system to make it more responsive to the concerns of the citizen. Low morale and low pay is not a license to violate the trust we place in a police officer.

Sensitivity Training

Q. Do you believe police officers need racial sensitivity training?

Braude: This is already being done, consistent with the provisions of the voter approved Measure F and the recommendations of the Christopher Commission. But more important, I believe we need more cops on the street.

Handal: No.

Pritikin: Any type of training that improves job performance should be used whether it is for police, business, education or any other profession. The LAPD should take racial sensitivity training upon themselves as a gesture to the community that they are seeking to renew the bond of trust that has been severed.

Improving Relations

Q. What have you done to improve race relations?

Braude: I have always fought for equal opportunity for all groups.

Handal: As a member of the Rotary Club, the Knights of Columbus and the Alzheimers Assn., I have continually worked to bring all groups together and to give to the underprivileged and needy. I recently chaired a fund-raiser for Alzheimers and am the co-chair of the association. Our goal is to build an Eldercare Center in South-Central Los Angeles, where there is none.

Pritikin: My work tutoring students at Malcolm X Elementary School and the 10th Street Elementary School has allowed me to help others gain an education that is the basis for good relations. In my work with a program in assisting non-English speaking residents to complete California and federal tax forms, I have “unlearned” many of the stereotypes I acquired over the years about immigrants from Central and South America. But it is my work with organizations such as the Jewish National Fund and American Israel Public Affairs Committee that has given me the understanding of how important communication is between people. “No one is born a bigot,” but it is our job to prevent others from being educated that way.

District Breakup

Q. Do you believe the Los Angeles Unified School District should be broken up?

Braude: I favor more local control and accountability in our school system. If, after careful study, this means breaking up the district into several smaller units, then I would support this effort. In any case, I favor decentralized control and more involvement by parents.

Handal: Yes. I believe in the LEARN program, which advocates decentralizing the Los Angeles school district. I also believe that small clusters of schools as a school district will be more responsive to the community needs, rather than one big district that cannot take into account all of the various community needs and special circumstances.

Pritikin: Yes. Our school system is too large and unresponsive to the diverse needs of our children. First, we need to break up the school district into districts of no more than 100,000 students. Then we have to rework the funding mechanism so we can be assured that every school receives the same amount of funding. Then we need to implement a school choice program that will allow students to attend any school in the city.

School Attendance

Q. Do your children attend private or public schools?

Braude: Both of my daughters attend public school.

Handal: Private.

Pritikin: I’m unmarried and have no children.

Elevated Rail

Q. Do you support an east-west elevated rail line over the Ventura Freeway, as approved by the Los Angeles County Transportation Commission?

Braude: No. I support the rail proposal endorsed by the coalition of major homeowner and business groups in the Valley. Monorail is an ill-conceived and unsound proposal that is unworkable and will never be built.

Handal: I believe that the environmental damage caused by the rail line far surpasses its need. I believe there are better ways and places to have mass transit implemented.

Pritikin: No, I am in favor of a less intrusive subway system that will better serve the residents of the Valley and create fewer traffic problems on the only corridor we have--the 101.

Campaign Financing

Q. Are you satisfied with public financing of election campaigns?

Braude: In light of the city’s fiscal condition, I have chosen not to accept public funds in my race. However, I supported Measure H--the campaign reform measure passed by city voters. I support the concept of public financing as a mechanism to decrease the influence of special interests in City Hall.

Handal: No. I believe that it is contradictory to set limits, then allow an individual to put a vast amount of personal money into a campaign, and the only benefit the challenger gets is to have to raise more money, with slightly higher limits.

Pritikin: No, the current public financing of election campaign systems works only in favor of incumbents and others who already have an established base of financial support. What we are doing is reinforcing the effect of special-interest dollars. Perhaps we should instigate a system that gives challengers $1 of public money for every $2 raised by incumbents and other elected officials.

Liquor Stores

Q: Do you believe a ban on liquor stores is an effective way to reduce crime?

Braude: Yes, this is an appropriate regulation.

Handal: No. I believe that if anyone wants it, they can get it.

Pritikin: The better question to ask is: “Will replacing liquor stores with businesses that create more jobs be effective in reducing crime?” The answer to that is obviously yes. Only when you have a good mix of businesses providing good jobs will you get a stable economy and a low crime environment.