Assembly Approves Closer Oversight on Sheriff’s Budget
A bill calling for tougher fiscal scrutiny of the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department has passed the state Assembly and is now on its way to the Senate.
The legislation--by Assembly Majority Leader Antonio R. Villaraigosa (D-Los Angeles)--calls for rigorous fiscal controls over the department, subjecting it to more periodic audits and requiring closer accountability to the county Board of Supervisors. It passed the Assembly by a 44-30 vote.
Villaraigosa said he decided to seek more control of the sheriff’s budget after reading a series in The Times in November detailing millions of dollars of potentially wasteful spending.
“This will be the first time a full-scale performance audit has ever been done on the Los Angeles Sheriff’s Department,” Villaraigosa said. “I believe it will help the sheriff run the department in a more efficient, effective manner.”
Sheriff’s officials have said they remain neutral on the legislation.
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