March 15, 2006
Another Analysis Requested For New LAPD Radios
The Los Angeles Police Commission asked Tuesday for another analysis before asking the city to foot the bill for new police radios.
"We all feel very strongly that this is an important tool that police officers need to carry out their work," commission President John Mack said. "But the real issue is boiled down to cost. We fully support this, but we're in a budgetary climate where things are very tight."
The commission directed Tim Riley, head of the LAPD's Information and Communication Services Bureau, to reconfigure cost estimates on the radios before the panel sends a letter requesting funds to the city's administrative officer.
According to initial estimates, it would cost $51 million for new hand-held and mobile radios. But a new report released this week by Riley showed a slight decrease in the estimate.
The new figures put the cost of 10,000 new hand-held digital radios at $36.7 million, with an additional $8.16 million for 1,500 mobile radios installed in police cruisers.
The revised pricetag was still too high for the Police Commission, which asked Riley to see where further reductions could be made.
City Administrative Officer William Fujioka has told the LAPD that funding isn't available to purchase new police radios for the fiscal year beginning July 1. The city faces a $295 million deficit in its $6 billion budget.
Commissioner Shelley Freeman questioned whether the LAPD needed 10,000 hand-held radios when there are 9,300 sworn officers on the force, some of whom are restricted to office duty or are on medical leave.
"With the current state of fiscal matters in the city of Los Angeles ... it's critically important that we ask for the number of radios the department truly needs in order to effectively carry out their jobs," she said.
Officers have used Astro radios by Motorola since 1994, and often run into "dead zones" while on patrol, meaning they are unable to communicate on the system -- particularly in parts of the San Fernando Valley, according to an LAPD report released last month.
Motorola last made the Astro radio in 2002, and will no longer make repairs to broken radios nor provide parts after June 2007, so the LAPD needs to purchase new equipment, according to the report. The typical lifespan of a police radio is 10 years.
Source: NBC 4 News
"We all feel very strongly that this is an important tool that police officers need to carry out their work," commission President John Mack said. "But the real issue is boiled down to cost. We fully support this, but we're in a budgetary climate where things are very tight."
The commission directed Tim Riley, head of the LAPD's Information and Communication Services Bureau, to reconfigure cost estimates on the radios before the panel sends a letter requesting funds to the city's administrative officer.
According to initial estimates, it would cost $51 million for new hand-held and mobile radios. But a new report released this week by Riley showed a slight decrease in the estimate.
The new figures put the cost of 10,000 new hand-held digital radios at $36.7 million, with an additional $8.16 million for 1,500 mobile radios installed in police cruisers.
The revised pricetag was still too high for the Police Commission, which asked Riley to see where further reductions could be made.
City Administrative Officer William Fujioka has told the LAPD that funding isn't available to purchase new police radios for the fiscal year beginning July 1. The city faces a $295 million deficit in its $6 billion budget.
Commissioner Shelley Freeman questioned whether the LAPD needed 10,000 hand-held radios when there are 9,300 sworn officers on the force, some of whom are restricted to office duty or are on medical leave.
"With the current state of fiscal matters in the city of Los Angeles ... it's critically important that we ask for the number of radios the department truly needs in order to effectively carry out their jobs," she said.
Officers have used Astro radios by Motorola since 1994, and often run into "dead zones" while on patrol, meaning they are unable to communicate on the system -- particularly in parts of the San Fernando Valley, according to an LAPD report released last month.
Motorola last made the Astro radio in 2002, and will no longer make repairs to broken radios nor provide parts after June 2007, so the LAPD needs to purchase new equipment, according to the report. The typical lifespan of a police radio is 10 years.
Source: NBC 4 News
