$5.9 BILLION SPENDING PLAN OK'D CITY COUNCIL MAKES ONLY MODEST CHANGES.

Byline: Rick Orlov Staff Writer

The City Council on Monday approved a $5.9 billion budget for the coming year, with initial plans to expand the LAPD, hire hundreds of workers for other departments and play a greater role in Los Angeles' public schools.

The council's 13-0 vote came with only modest changes from the budget proposed last month by Mayor James Hahn, who faces a tough re-election challenge today from Councilman Antonio Villaraigosa.

``This is a strong budget, but we still have to watch it closely,'' said Councilman Bernard Parks, who chairs the Budget and Finance Committee. ``We still are facing a $200 million structural deficit, but we have policies in place to control it.''

For instance, he said, each department will be reviewed monthly to ensure its spending is within budget.

``We are giving the general managers more freedom to manage, but they will have a responsibility to not spend more than they are allocated,'' Parks said.

Deputy Mayor Doane Liu said the council's quick action, taken after less than six hours of debate, shows the value of what Hahn had done during his first term.

``We had an improving economy, and we think the mayor should get credit for his policies that helped with that,'' Liu said. ``More importantly, we think the council finally understands the importance of priority-based budgeting and that the public is demanding more in the way of public safety.''

Liu also criticized Villaraigosa and Councilman Jack Weiss for missing the meeting. Weiss was accompanying Villaraigosa on a 24-hour campaign tour of the city.

``It's unfortunate the two of them decided not to represent their constituents,'' Liu said.

The Villaraigosa campaign, which noted that Hahn was also absent from City Hall on Monday and also had not been present when the budget was released, called the remarks ``a cheap shot.''

The newly approved budget is nearly 10 percent higher than this year's $5.4 billion plan and includes increases for all departments. The increase is funded by revenues from the improving economy, which also allowed the city to lift its hiring freeze and add 574 employees to its work force of more than 36,700.

The budget also calls for hiring an additional 720 police officers in the fiscal year that begins July 1. With about half of the new hires replacing retiring officers, that would expand the Los Angeles Police Department from its budgeted level of 9,241 to 9,611, the second-highest level in city history.

``The thing that concerns me is that people will see that figure of 720 and be placated,' Councilman Tony Cardenas said. ``What we need to do is make clear that we need to get to 10,000 officers or even 12,000 to deal with the crime we have on the streets.''

Police hiring has been a major issue over the past year as Hahn has faced re-election. He failed in an effort to get the City Council to approve a measure asking voters to impose a half-percent sales-tax increase to hire more police.

Officials were warned, however, that the LAPD would face competition for qualified recruits from neighboring cities and the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department. Personnel officials have estimated that they need to interview 15 people to get one person hired and that there is a dropout rate of 10 percent to 15 percent from the Police Academy.

The budget also calls for the city to play a greater role in governing the Los Angeles Unified School District.

It sets aside $500,000 to establish a joint commission with the LAUSD to look at how the two jurisdictions can work together, and to set the stage to ask voters to approve changes in how the district is governed.

Both Hahn and Villaraigosa have said the Mayor's Office should play a greater role in the district's operation.

Related to that, the council approved a $275,000 increase for the city Human Relations Commission for its work on school campuses.

Rick Orlov, [phone]

rick.orlov(at)dailynews.com

HIGHLIGHTS

Here are some of the allocations included in the $5.9 billion city budget approved Monday:

--The Fire Department's budget would be increased by $31.8 million, to $477 million, to recruit and train 120 more firefighters.

--Transportation funding includes $3.5 million for the Exposition Line; $2.5 million for the Gold Line Eastside expansion; $2.5 million for the Orange Line busway in the San Fernando Valley; and $1 million to study expansion of the Red Line subway along Wilshire Boulevard to the Westside.

--Some 200 miles of street construction are funded, as well as an additional 300 miles of slurry seal.

--Neighborhood councils, which each get $50,000 for local projects, also would receive a $100,000 credit for street improvements.

--The Griffith Observatory, which is scheduled to reopen next spring, would receive $3 million.

--The Cultural Affairs Department gets about $10 million for facilities and programs.

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HIGHLIGHTS (see text)