The Los Angeles City Council on a voice vote approved a 30-day extension of a transportation services contract and directed the Department of Transportation to work with the contractor to resolve outstanding vendor invoices before any further extension.

The extension followed public testimony from a vendor who said the transit contractor, Watts Labor Community Action Committee (WLCAC), owed his company $22,000 for propane supplied to WLCAC buses. "We have invoices going back as far as 09/15/99," said Steve Moore of Mutual Propane, who identified himself as a contractor for WLCAC. "We have given them first class service. We have no position on the contract extension other than to declare that WLCAC owes our company $22,000 which is long overdue and has given us no indication when or if we'll ever be paid."

Council members said they wanted to ensure service continuity while protecting vendors. Councilmember (title) Savornich asked the city attorney about making a contract amendment contingent on the Department of Transportation reviewing outstanding invoices; the city attorney recommended either holding the item for legal review or approving and instructing DOT to investigate. Jim Leffton of the Department of Transportation told the council the contract was in place "through the end of this month." Council members then voted to authorize a one-month extension and instructed DOT to resolve unpaid vendor issues before any additional extension would be considered.

At the meeting, DOT staff noted the contractor's circumstances were tied to reduced fuel economy in newer propane vehicles. DOT said it was discussing a contract "tweak" to cover higher fuel costs with affected contractors; DOT representatives also said they had discussed the unpaid-vendor complaints with WLCAC and were seeking adjustments in contractor payments that would enable vendors to be paid.

The council adopted the 30-day extension motion and approved a direction that DOT mediate and report back on vendor payment issues and whether other transit contractors faced similar problems.

The motion was approved by voice vote (recorded as 14 ayes).