LOS ANGELES COUNTY : Official Defends Record of Post-Riot Aid Program
Los Angeles County’s top mental health official Tuesday defended her department against accusations that a federally funded counseling program was mismanaged and failed to deliver services to many needy residents in the wake of the 1992 riots.
County supervisors Deane Dana and Mike Antonovich had asked that Mental Health Director Areta Crowell report on the status of the counseling program after The Times reported that millions of dollars in unspent funds were returned to the Federal Emergency Management Agency six months after the riots because of organizational problems.
Crowell acknowledged that nearly half of the $5.9-million grant had to be returned to FEMA because the county failed to spend it on time, but said that more than 100,000 residents received counseling during the same period.
“Should we have planned for less? Should FEMA have approved less? I guess it would have looked better for us,” Crowell said. “But I believe we should be proud of our mental health community for accomplishing so much.”
The supervisors took no action on the issue after Crowell’s comments.
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