Council committee approves motion to study building non‑armed crisis response workforce

The Los Angeles City Council ad hoc committee voted 4-0 to approve a motion directing city departments to report on strategies to expand a non‑armed crisis response workforce, including options to co‑subsidize training, recruitment and public outreach.

The measure, introduced by Councilmember Mike Bloomenfield, tasks the Department of Civil Rights and Equity and the Department of Workforce Development (as amended) to work with the chief executive office, the Department of Mental Health and personnel offices to analyze how other jurisdictions support training pipelines and public awareness for non‑armed crisis teams. Councilmember Hernández offered a technical amendment to add the Department of Economic and Workforce Development; the amendment was accepted before the vote. The clerk recorded votes as Duberfield — yes; Hernández — yes; Roman — yes; Price — yes; Leah — absent.

The motion aims to bolster the local supply of clinicians and other personnel the city and county rely on for alternative crisis responses. Supporters at the meeting said the city and county need more trained workers and incentives to recruit clinicians, psychiatric nurses and licensed social workers into mobile crisis roles. Public commenters urged higher pay and clearer career pathways; one speaker, Carolina Goodman of the Unarmed Crisis Response worker group, said the group is requesting $12,000,000 for the municipal budget for UNSR (unarmed response) and noted an average response time claim of 28 minutes since March of last year (commenter figure).

Committee members framed the motion as a way to align city efforts with county programs that have expanded 24/7 crisis teams in recent years and to learn what incentives and scheduling models other jurisdictions use to hire hard‑to‑fill clinical positions. During debate, members emphasized outreach and public education so residents and dispatchers understand when to request non‑armed responses.

The motion directs city departments to return with a report that includes: analysis of workforce development strategies used elsewhere; opportunities to collaborate with county programs; possible incentives for recruitment and retention; and public‑awareness actions. No specific reporting deadline was stated in the motion as read into the record.

Next steps: departments named in the motion will prepare the requested analysis and return to the council with recommendations and implementation options.