City Council approves 15 mph school safety zones, expands unarmed crisis workforce training and asks port to report on tariffs

The Los Angeles City Council on Wednesday approved multiple motions aimed at public safety, workforce development and economic oversight, including a directive to Los Angeles Department of Transportation (LADOT) to implement 15-mile-per-hour speed limits in newly designated school safety zones and a motion to expand workforce pathways for the city's unarmed crisis response pilot.

The votes were taken during the council's regularly scheduled meeting; most contested items passed with recorded tallies. Councilmember Eunisses Hernandez, who sponsored the school-safety motion, argued the change was “an urgent and necessary step” and cited crash statistics for children. The council recorded 15 ayes on the school-safety item.

Why it matters: The school-safety vote directs LADOT to move toward a lower speed limit near newly designated school safety zones — a low-cost, speed-calming measure the sponsor said can be implemented faster than some traffic-calming capital projects. The unarmed crisis workforce motion seeks to build the pipeline of trained social workers and mental health professionals to sustain the city's alternative response models.

Key actions and outcomes - Item 34 — School safety zones: Councilmember Hernandez moved and the council approved directing LADOT to implement 15 mph speed limits in newly designated school safety zones. Vote: 15 ayes. Hernandez noted that “traffic collisions are the leading cause of death for youth ages 2 to 14” and that the proposal uses a matrix to prioritize schools for the designation.

- Item 18 — Unarmed mobile crisis response education: A motion directing the Civil and Human Rights & Equity (HRE) Department and the Youth Development Department to report back on strategies to cosponsor workshops and develop career pathways into unarmed crisis response passed unanimously (15 ayes). Hernandez, co-chair of the ad hoc committee on unarmed crisis prevention and intervention, said the pilot’s first year shows “leading with care works.”

- Item 27 — Port tariffs: A motion calling for the Port of Los Angeles general manager to report on the local and broader economic effects of recently imposed tariffs passed 15–0.…