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Torrance council directs staff to halt research on creating city health department
Summary
After hearing staff research and council discussion, the Torrance City Council voted to accept and file the report and to stop further work on proposing a city-run health department; councilmembers raised questions about costs, state authority and revenue neutrality of fee services.
The Torrance City Council voted to accept and file the staff report on a potential city health department and directed staff to stop further research on establishing such a department.
Councilman Kaji said the council should study smaller models used by nearby cities, noting the city of Vernon’s limited, business-focused approach and the capital intensity of Pasadena and Long Beach-style departments. "Perhaps we can look at the Vernon model and maybe learn from the types of limited services that it provides," Kaji said.
A staff member told the council that Pasadena and Long Beach carried public-health responsibilities during the pandemic but were required to follow state regulations in emergencies. The staff member added that their research shows fee-based services in Pasadena and Long Beach do not fully cover administrative costs and therefore are not revenue neutral.
The discussion centered on whether Torrance should pursue a limited-scope health department or abandon the effort. Councilwoman Lewis asked whether a limited local model would retain authority to make public-health decisions during an emergency; staff responded that, in the Pasadena case, local departments still had to adhere to state rules in emergencies and that information specific to Vernon was not available from staff’s Pasadena/Long Beach-focused research.
A motion to accept and file the report and to direct staff to halt research on proposing a city health department passed. The council recorded that Councilwoman Claudia Lewis, Councilmember Metucci and the mayor voted no; the motion otherwise carried.
Council members who supported the motion cited the administrative burden and expense of running a full public health operation and pointed to Los Angeles County Public Health’s existing capabilities as a factor in their decision. Supporters said the city could study limited-service models further if local needs changed.
No formal ordinance, resolution or commitment to create a health department was made; the council’s action was to accept the staff report and discontinue the city-led research effort.
