Police Response Time Increasing
Hampered by budget cuts and a shortage of officers, the time it takes for L.A. County sheriff’s deputies to respond to public calls for help is increasing. Since 2002, average response times to emergency calls have grown 4 percent, to five minutes, in cities that contract with the department. In unincorporated areas, average response times have increased 3 percent to 6.4 minutes, the Daily News of Los Angeles reported. The time it takes deputies to respond to “priority” calls for such things as robberies and domestic violence has increased 19 percent in contract cities to 11.1 minutes and 17 percent in unincorporated areas to 12.9 minutes. The increasing response times come as the Board of Supervisors cut $200 million from the Sheriff’s Department budget in 2002 and as the department has struggled to boost its ranks.
DWP Pays to Drink Sparkletts
Despite spending $1 million in the last two years to assure Los Angeles residents that their tap water is not only safe to drink but also top quality, city officials spent $88,900 in public money during that time on bottled water from private firms. The Department of Water and Power, which supplies the city’s water and promotes it, spent the most on bottled water, paying $31,160 to Sparkletts. “I am stunned,” said City Controller Laura Chick, whose office compiled the bills in response to a Public Records Act request from the Los Angeles Times. The city’s use of bottled water comes despite a 1995 directive by former Mayor Richard Riordan that said, “The city’s tap water satisfies most needs, and bottled water should not be provided ordinarily at city expense.”
Lawyer in L.A. Seen as Pick for SEC Post
Brian G. Cartwright, a Los Angeles corporate lawyer who began his career as an astrophysicist, is expected to be named general counsel of the Securities and Exchange Commission today, the Los Angeles Times reported. Cartwright, 58, has served as global chairman of the public company practice of Latham & Watkins, the same firm where SEC Chairman Christopher Cox practiced law from 1978 to 1986. Cartwright would succeed Giovanni Prezioso, who is returning to private practice. Prezioso announced his departure Nov. 30. The general counsel is the SEC’s top lawyer, responsible for overseeing court actions and advising commissioners and employees on a broad range of matters, including enforcement decisions.
Refuse Future Hinges on Bill
The future of L.A.’s trash policy could be decided in Sacramento, where legislators are set this month to consider a bill that could make it easier to build trash-to-energy plants. City and county officials are studying “conversion technologies” that lessen dependence on landfills by turning trash into gas or electricity. City Councilman Greig Smith has proposed building plants in Los Angeles by 2010 to alleviate the need for Sunshine Canyon Landfill, the Granada Hills dump that currently takes the city’s residential trash, but said he needs a change in state law to allow it, the Daily News of Los Angeles reported. Under current law, these technologies cannot generate any pollution, which makes it virtually impossible to build trash-to-gas plants in California.
CBS, Viacom Shares Watched on First Trading Day
Viacom Inc.’s separation into two publicly traded companies, one called CBS Corp. and the other retaining the Viacom name, went into effect Sunday. Shares of the two new companies began regular trading today. Just after the opening bell, shares of both Viacom and CBS rose, but Viacom quickly retreated, the Wall Street Journal reported. The split is widely viewed as a test of whether the days of the media conglomerate are numbered. Viacom’s splintering was the result of investor frustration over the company’s persistently weak stock performance. Viacom Chairman Sumner Redstone hopes the split will improve returns for shareholders. He retains a controlling stake in both Viacom and CBS.
