The Los Angeles City Council voted 13-2 on two separate but related motions Wednesday to combat copper wire thefts impacting city infrastructure, including street lights, statues, and plaques.

The Copper Wire Task Force would address crimes affecting the 14th district, which includes downtown L.A., Boyle Heights, El Sereno as well as Lincoln Heights. Approximately $400,000 will be allocated to support the task force. The task force would involve the Los Angeles Police Department’s Central, Newton, and Hollenbeck divisions and the Bureau of Street Lighting.

The second motion aims to create a citywide reward program for information leading to the arrest and prosecution of those involved in copper thefts.

According to Councilmember Kevin De Le León, thefts have escalated at an alarming rate from just five years ago from about 500 to 600 cases to a staggering 6,842 cases costing the city over $20 million.

He added that Verizon recently reached out to his office to report some of their fiber optic cables had been ripped out of the ground, which could affect internet access. Thieves also took out a fire alarm system for a city warehouse near the L.A. River last weekend.

Council members Eunisses Hernandez and Hugo Soto-Martinez both voted against the motions.

“Rather than expend city efforts and resources on a reward program that does not intervene until after the damage is done and focuses on punitive measures, why aren’t we looking into how we can prevent the cycle together?” said Hernandez.

Hernandez further said the city is placing too much effort on fixing and catching up to the amount of damage already done.

“I hope that we can explore solutions, like the ones that my colleagues have brought up of transferring our system to a solar power system, rather than spinning our wheels with interventions that don’t actually address the root cause of the problem and just have us spending our money on solutions that are band-aids,” said Hernandez.

Traci Park, who represents the 11th district on the Westside, supported the motion. She stated the copper wire thefts are impacting every neighborhood, costing taxpayers 10’s of millions of dollars over time.

“This is actually putting lives at risk from disabled traffic signals at intersections and rail crossings to streets and sidewalks that are poorly lit. It’s also a stain on our city’s reputation when our iconic structures like the Sixth Street Bridge become a punch line across the country and on social media. Angelenos are fed up with this and the criminals that do this need to be held accountable,” said Park.

Photo by demarco-media