Public Safety Committee · Held
Los Angeles City Council Public Safety Committee meeting, August 12, 2026
From official records: On Aug. 12, 2026, the Los Angeles City Council's Public Safety Committee voted 4-1 for LAPD fireworks task forces and rising fines for repeat offenders, with Hugo Soto-Martinez opposed, and asked the City Attorney about limits on Phenibut sales and a ban on synthetic cannabinoids. It accepted $7.86 million in Fire Department Foundation donations and filed an LAFD report against buying Super Scooper aircraft.
As of October 2, 2026, outcomes for the August 12, 2026 meeting of the Public Safety Committee of the Los Angeles City Council come from official records posted so far, such as council files, recorded votes and filed statements. Some results may be missing until the full minutes are posted and read.
| Agenda | Official agenda (posted August 7, 2026) |
|---|---|
| Council Journal | Official Journal |
| Video | Recording |
Items are lettered A to K in council file order because the agenda was not available to us. Items L to Z were added Oct. 1, 2026 from 15 more council files that show committee action on Aug. 12; each committee report records a 4-0 vote with Park absent: two more $50,000 hit-and-run rewards (report; report) and a $75,000 reward (report); six grants and grant extensions for LAPD and LAFD (CF 24-1280; CF 25-0594; CF 26-0819; CF 26-0979; CF 26-1011; CF 26-1040); a second de-escalation grant that the Council adopted Sept. 16 on an 11-3 vote, with Eunisses Hernandez, Ysabel Jurado and Hugo Soto-Martinez voting no (report; CF 26-1012); an ordinance repealing Municipal Code Section 56.16 (report); reports on e-bike rules (joint report); a contract template for Official Police Garages (report); and two Boyle Heights warehouse fire motions (joint report; joint report). Committee members voting, per the committee reports: John Lee (chair), Curren D. Price, Tim McOsker, Hugo Soto-Martinez and Traci Park. Park was recorded absent on every item but fireworks. Items F and G were referred jointly; the committee concurred with the other committees’ actions (joint report; joint report).
A. City Attorney to update a 2016 draft ban on synthetic cannabinoids
- What it does: Asks the City Attorney for updated findings on a 2016 draft ordinance amending Municipal Code Section 46.20 to ban the sale, distribution, manufacture and possession of Schedule I drugs, their analogs and synthetic cannabinoid analogs, and for revised language if appropriate (committee report).
- Who brought it: Heather Hutt, who moved to reactivate the expired file, seconded by Imelda Padilla (motion; CF 16-0965).
- What happened: Report requested, 4-0; Park absent (committee report).
- What’s next: The Council adopted it Aug. 25, 14-0, as amended by Soto-Martinez and Hutt to drop possession and cover only sale, distribution and manufacture (CF 16-0965).
B. Fireworks enforcement: task forces, repeat-offender fines and response costs
- What it does: Tells LAPD to set up bureau-level task forces for illegal fireworks and report on resources; asks the City Attorney for graduated administrative fines for repeat offenders like Sacramento County’s, and for a framework to charge people convicted for the cost of the emergency response (committee report). The City Attorney notes all fireworks, including safe and sane ones, are illegal in the City (City Attorney report R26-0336).
- Who brought it: John Lee and Tim McOsker (CF 25-0065).
- Neighborhood council positions: For: Studio City and Harbor Gateway North. Against: Winnetka (committee report).
- What happened: Approved as amended, 4-1; Soto-Martinez voted no (committee report).
- What’s next: The Council adopted it Aug. 25, 13-1, with Soto-Martinez voting no and Park absent, adding LAFD to the task forces and a 30-day deployment plan (Council Action; Motion 24A).
C. LAFD report on Super Scooper aircraft
- What it does: Notes and files LAFD’s June 2026 report, which puts a new DHC-515 Super Scooper at $54 million to $60 million and a used CL-415 at $30 million to $37 million, and says ownership “is neither a fiscally responsible option” for the County “nor is it recommended for the City” (LAFD report).
- Who brought it: Motion by Tim McOsker, seconded by Traci Park (CF 25-0111).
- What happened: Noted and filed (CF 25-0111). No committee report with a roll call was posted as of Oct. 1, 2026.
D. Report on regulating Phenibut sales
- What it does: Asks the City Attorney whether an ordinance could limit Phenibut sales to people 21 and over, require risk warnings, bar sales within 1,000 feet of preschools, day cares and K-12 schools, and set penalties like those in AB 1088 (Bains) (committee report).
- Who brought it: Heather Hutt, seconded by Imelda Padilla (CF 26-0843).
- What happened: Approved, 4-0; Park absent (committee report).
- What’s next: The Council adopted it Aug. 25, 14-0, as amended (CF 26-0843).
I. $7.86 million in donations from the Los Angeles Fire Department Foundation
- What it does: Accepts purchases and in-kind donations valued at about $7,857,285 for equipment, programs and items at fire stations and LAFD sections (committee report).
- Who brought it: Board of Fire Commissioners (CF 26-1003).
- Money: No cost to the LAFD budget now; replacement or repair of donated items may fall to the General Fund (committee report).
- What happened: Approved, 4-0; Park absent (committee report).
- What’s next: The Council adopted it Aug. 25, 14-0 (CF 26-1003).
Every item
| # | Item | Outcome |
|---|---|---|
| A | City Attorney to update a 2016 draft ban on selling and making synthetic cannabinoids | Report requested, 4-0 |
| B | LAPD fireworks task forces, rising fines for repeat offenders, and charging violators for response costs | Approved as amended, 4-1 |
| C | Note and file LAFD report on buying or leasing Super Scooper firefighting aircraft | Noted and filed |
| D | Report on regulating Phenibut sales: 21 and over, warnings and no sales near schools | Approved, 4-0 |
| I | Accept about $7.86 million in equipment and items from the Los Angeles Fire Department Foundation | Approved, 4-0 |
| E | Accept $50,000 in wildfire protective gear for LAPD from the Los Angeles Police Foundation | Approved, 4-0 |
| F | Report on Port emergency response, local marine vendors and lessons from the ONE Henry Hudson ship fire | Concurred with Trade, Travel and Tourism Committee, 4-0 |
| G | Report on requiring most neighborhood council board members to hold LAFD CERT certification | Concurred with Arts, Parks committee, 4-0 |
| H | LexisNexis contract, up to $497,682 through 2030, for LAPD online crime reports | Approved, 4-0 |
| J | Accept a $500,000 in-kind donation for LAFD's Drone as First Responder Program | Approved, 4-0 |
| K | Pay a $50,000 reward in a fatal hit-and-run case | Approved, 4-0 |
| L | Pay a $75,000 reward in the shooting death of Aaron Shannon | Approved, 4-0 |
| M | Extend a federal grant for LAPD training on domestic violence and sexual assault response to Sept. 30, 2028, at no cost | Approved, 4-0; sent to Budget and Finance |
| N | Accept a $25,000 FEMA supplemental grant for LAFD's Urban Search and Rescue task force | Approved, 4-0 |
| O | Ordinance repealing Municipal Code Section 56.16 | Approved, 4-0 |
| P | Reports on regulating e-bikes, e-motos and electric mopeds | Approved, 4-0 |
| Q | Accept a $100,000 state agreement for LAFD hazardous materials response training | Approved, 4-0 |
| R | Pay a $50,000 reward in a fatal hit-and-run case (DR No. 2212-25981) | Approved, 4-0 |
| S | Pay a $50,000 reward in a fatal hit-and-run case (DR No. 21-01-04642) | Approved, 4-0 |
| T | Contract template for future Official Police Garage towing and storage agreements | Approved, 4-0 |
| U | Public information campaigns on City services and a report on an automatic emergency notification system | Concurred with Government Operations Committee, 4-0 |
| V | Reports on canceling parking citations and on towing during the Boyle Heights warehouse fire | Approved, 4-0 |
| W | Accept a $2,235,844 state Tobacco Grant Program award for LAPD through June 30, 2029 | Approved, 4-0; sent to Budget and Finance |
| X | Accept a $500,000 federal de-escalation training grant for LAPD, with up to $200,062 for a virtual reality system | Approved, 4-0 |
| Y | Accept a $320,000 federal de-escalation curriculum grant for LAPD, with up to $150,000 for artificial intelligence software | Approved, 4-0 |
| Z | Accept a $277,500 federal Port Security Grant for LAPD, with up to $230,000 for vessel repair | Approved, 4-0 |