MAYORS: SHOW US THE MONEY ANTI-TERROR AIRPORT SECURITY, OTHER COSTS DRAIN CITY FUNDS.Byline: Bill Hillburg Washington Bureau WASHINGTON - Despite soothing assurances of future financial assistance, Southern California Southern California, also colloquially known as SoCal, is the southern portion of the U.S. state of California. Centered on the cities of Los Angeles and San Diego, Southern California is home to nearly 24 million people and is the nation's second most populated region, mayors urged federal officials on Wednesday to show them the money now and defray de·fray tr.v. de·frayed, de·fray·ing, de·frays To undertake the payment of (costs or expenses); pay. [French défrayer, from Old French desfrayer : des-, cities' mounting bills for the war on terrorism Terrorist acts and the threat of Terrorism have occupied the various law enforcement agencies in the U.S. government for many years. The Anti-Terrorism and Effective Death Penalty Act of 1996, as amended by the usa patriot act . ``It's great that we're partners in this effort,'' Los Angeles Los Angeles (lôs ăn`jələs, lŏs, ăn`jəlēz'), city (1990 pop. 3,485,398), seat of Los Angeles co., S Calif.; inc. 1850. Mayor James Hahn For the Iowa politician, see . James Kenneth "Jim" Hahn (born July 3, 1950) is an American politician from the Democratic Party. He was the Deputy City Attorney (1975-1979), City Controller (1981-1985), City Attorney (1985-2001) and Mayor of Los Angeles, California said. ``But we also need help, and we need it now.'' Hahn spoke after Tom Ridge Thomas Joseph Ridge (born August 27 1945 near Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania) is an American politician who served as a member of the United States House of Representatives (1983–1995), Governor of Pennsylvania (1995–2001), Assistant to the President for Homeland Security , director of President George W. Bush's Office of Homeland Security, told the U.S. Conference of Mayors that Bush will include outlays for local security in his proposed 2002-03 budget. Bush is expected to reveal more details of his plan today, when he will host Hahn and other mayors at a White House breakfast. Ridge, saying homeland defense ``is only possible through partnerships'' with cities, also cautioned that Bush's proposal ``won't cover all of your costs.'' Hahn, who chairs a mayors task force on airport security and later met privately with Ridge, noted that Los Angeles has already spent heavily on security. ``Every time the federal government issues a terror warning, we have to put the Los Angeles Police Department "LAPD" and "L.A.P.D." redirect here. For other uses, see LAPD (disambiguation). The Conference of Mayors has asked Bush for $2.6 billion in block grants to offset extra costs for police, fire departments and other agencies incurred by cities since the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks, as well as extra spending expected for the rest of this year. Noting that Bush's proposed budget won't take effect before Oct. 1, the mayors are also seeking immediate supplemental grants of federal aid. ``There has to be some relief immediately,'' said Long Beach Mayor Beverly O'Neill, chairwoman of the mayors task force on port security. O'Neill, whose city will spend an estimated $15 million on added security this year, was not offered much hope from U.S. Transportation Secretary Norman Mineta, who also spoke to the mayors. Mineta outlined a number of developments, including plans to hire and deploy federal baggage and passenger screeners and to inspect containerized con·tain·er·ize v.tr. con·tain·er·ized, con·tain·er·iz·ing, con·tain·er·iz·es 1. To package (cargo) in large standardized containers for efficient shipping and handling. 2. port cargo. He said that most of those programs will not be fully in place until late December. ``I'm glad that Mr. Ridge recognizes our needs,'' said Glendale Mayor Gus Gomez. ``But we still face a real challenge. We operate Burbank Airport along with Pasadena and Burbank, and we also have important entertainment industry sites to protect. We are going to need more help with all of that.'' ``Let's face it, we're all here looking for Looking for In the context of general equities, this describing a buy interest in which a dealer is asked to offer stock, often involving a capital commitment. Antithesis of in touch with. money for our communities,'' said San Bernardino Mayor Judith Valles. ``So far we've been able to handle the situation, but I am concerned about funding for our Police Department. While we're taking on these extra duties, crime seems to be creeping up.'' |
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