Budget is cut for anti-bias office in Fire Department

A Los Angeles Fire Department unit formed to better investigate employee discrimination lawsuits is getting its budget cut, raising questions about whether officials will be able to counter a wave of payouts that have cost taxpayers millions of dollars.

The city had earmarked $360,000 for the Professional Standard Division, but $241,000 will now be used to help offset a multimillion-dollar budget shortfall, officials said Tuesday.

The unit was a key reform launched earlier this year in response to city audits that found the Fire Department had failed to properly document and track allegations of harassment, retaliation and discrimination. Previously, there was no uniform standard for handling such cases.

On Monday, a jury awarded $1.6 million to two white captains who were suspended without a formal investigation after a black firefighter under their command had his spaghetti dinner spiked with dog food as a prank.

“It doesn’t make sense to cut something that is so overdue and is needed to stem the bleeding of lawsuits,” said Controller Laura Chick, who released an audit two years ago documenting problems with the department’s disciplinary system. “It’s not a smart way to run the second-largest city in America.”

Her auditors are conducting a follow-up report that is expected to be released in April.

Officials in Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa’s office acknowledged the budget cut Tuesday but said the money would be restored in July after the start of the new fiscal year. It was unclear whether the unit would be given additional money under the proposed budget that the mayor will release in April.

Villaraigosa spokesman Matt Szabo said the mayor was committed to funding the new division “to the greatest extent possible during this tough budget year. . . . It is a priority for his administration.” The city’s current budget shortfall is roughly $400 million.

In the latest judgment against the city, Capts. Chris Burton and John Tohill alleged they were unfairly targeted in the racially charged case involving Firefighter Tennie Pierce, whose food was tainted four years ago at a Westchester firehouse. So far, the bill from that incident -- including $1.5 million to settle a lawsuit filed by Pierce -- has totaled $4.5 million. The rest of the money was paid in legal fees.

Since July 2005, taxpayers have paid $7.3 million to settle Fire Department retaliation, harassment and discrimination allegations, according to figures released Tuesday by the city attorney’s office.

That total does not include Monday’s award or a $6.2-million jury award last summer to a female firefighter who alleged that she was harassed off the force because she is black and a lesbian.

According to a spokesman, Fire Chief Douglas L. Barry was unavailable to speak about cuts to the department’s new investigative division. Barry has previously said that he expected the unit to improve the disciplinary process.

The $360,000 allotted for the division was to help pay for an assistant chief and a staff of civilian and uniformed investigators. The only money used so far this year was $119,000 for the chief position, according to report released in late January by the city administrative officer.

Currently, five people work in the division, including two part-time civilian investigators responsible for overseeing harassment and discrimination complaints. Two uniformed fire personnel, who are juggling other duties, are investigating other complaints involving improper behavior, department spokesman Capt. Armando Hogan said.

The unit is supposed to bring more consistency to the disciplinary process by investigating complaints in a similar manner. Its chief reports directly to Barry.

Chick and others credited Barry on Tuesday for launching the division, saying the use of civilians was a step in the right direction. However, they questioned the effectiveness of the unit given its budget cutbacks.

“It absolutely needs funding,” said Steve Tufts, president of United Firefighters of Los Angeles City, which represents more than 3,500 rank-and-file members.

Attorney Nana Gyamfi, who represents three African American firefighters who have filed discrimination complaints, said that she was dealing with the division and that its ability to investigate allegations is being undercut by staffing issues.

“It’s taking a long time for any investigation to be done,” she said. “I don’t see much changing.”

robert.lopez@latimes.com