Brief

Councilmembers Bob Blumenfield and Eunisses Hernandez introduced a motion to formalize an Unarmed Model of Crisis Response (UMCR) pilot and create a Crisis Response Dispatch Working Group to coordinate alternative crisis response programs. The motion was referred to the Ad Hoc Committee on Unarmed Crisis Prevention, Intervention, and Community Services, which approved it in February 2026. City Council adopted the item as amended on February 24, 2026 by a 12-0-3 vote. The motion connects to earlier related filings on crisis response and community safety programs.

Full summary

This motion, introduced January 16, 2026 by Councilmembers Bob Blumenfield and Eunisses Hernandez with second by Marqueece Harris-Dawson, builds on roughly three years of alternative crisis response work in Los Angeles. The UMCR program, launched in 2024, dispatches city and county services rather than police to certain eligible non-violent calls for service, with law enforcement involved only when necessary. The motion reports that UMCR has handled more than 17,000 calls, over 96 percent of which were resolved without police involvement, freeing up LAPD patrol hours for serious and violent emergencies while connecting residents in crisis to mental health care, housing resources, and peer support. The program had been extended as a two-year pilot before this motion sought to make it permanent. The motion directs three specific actions. First, the City Administrative Officer is instructed to permanently adopt the UMCR pilot while preserving the county services tied to the program. Second, the CAO is directed to establish and coordinate a Crisis Response Dispatch Working Group bringing together LAPD, LAFD, CIRCLE (Crisis and Incident Response through Community-Led Engagement), UMCR, and all other alternative crisis response programs dispatched through 9-1-1, with the goal of centralizing dispatch, reducing fragmentation across separate Computer-Aided Dispatch systems, and improving response times. Third, the CAO and Chief Legislative Analyst are directed to report on the status of the proposed Department of Community Safety, which was included in the adopted FY 2025-26 budget, and to conduct a community engagement process involving residents, neighborhood groups, community-based organizations, service providers, and labor partners. The motion was referred to the Ad Hoc Committee on Unarmed Crisis Prevention, Intervention, and Community Services, which approved it unanimously on February 6, 2026, with one member absent. The full City Council adopted the item as amended on February 24, 2026 by a 12-0-3 vote. Community Impact Statements were submitted by the Los Feliz Neighborhood Council before the council vote and by the NoHo Neighborhood Council in May 2026. The file remains open through February 2028 as the CAO and CLA carry out the reporting and coordination directives.

Activity (7)

• 2026-05-14 Community Impact Statement submitted by NoHo Neighborhood Council.
• 2026-02-24 Council action final.
• 2026-02-24 Council adopted item, as amended, forthwith.
• 2026-02-20 City Clerk scheduled item for Council on February 24, 2026.
• 2026-02-20 Community Impact Statement submitted by Los Feliz Neighborhood Council.
• 2026-02-06 Ad Hoc Committee on Unarmed Crisis Prevention, Intervention, and Community Services approved item(s) .
• 2026-01-16 Motion referred to Ad Hoc Committee on Unarmed Crisis Prevention, Intervention, and Community Services.

Documents (9)

• 2026-05-14 Community Impact Statement submitted by NoHo Neighborhood Council · cis
• 2026-02-24 Council Action · council_action
• 2026-02-24 Amending Motion 48A (Rodriguez - Padilla) · other
• 2026-02-24 Report from Ad Hoc Committee on Unarmed Crisis Prevention, Intervention, and Community Services · report
• 2026-02-24 Speaker Card(s) · speaker_card
• 2026-02-20 Community Impact Statement submitted by Los Feliz Neighborhood Council · cis
• 2026-02-06 Communication(s) from Public · communication
• 2026-02-06 Speaker Card(s) · speaker_card
• 2026-01-16 Motion · motion