Obscenity Panel Receives 2-Year Extension

The Los Angeles County Commission on Obscenity and Pornography was saved from extinction Tuesday when the Board of Supervisors voted to extend its life for two more years.

Supervisor Mike Antonovich had vowed to save the obscure 15-member group after the county’s Audit Department recommended it be disbanded because of lack of activity.

But while the county is attempting to eliminate some of its more than 180 commissions to save money, Antonovich said the pornography commission was the wrong target.

“This group operates at no cost to the county,” Antonovich said. “They do good things and should be given a chance to prove it.”

The commission, formed in 1942, has been criticized recently because it has not met since March or advised the board about issues in the county. The commission is supposed to meet once a month.

During Tuesday’s meeting, the commission was the center of debate between Antonovich and Supervisor Gloria Molina.

“I see little or no value in continuing this commission that has had little or no impact in the past four years since I have been on the board,” said Molina, who has refused to appoint members to the 15-member commission. “They have not helped me try to stop prostitution in East Los Angeles or to stop some of the adult bookstores that are moving in there.”

But Antonovich pointed out that several years ago, the commission published a book on the signs of child abuse.

“What we need is to have all the supervisors appoint members to it,” he said.

Molina responded, “I will not appoint anyone to a commission that doesn’t work.”

In the end, the board voted 3 to 2, with Antonovich, Deane Dana and Yvonne Burke in favor and Molina and Zev Yaroslavsky opposed.