City pressures banks

A Los Angeles city councilman on Tuesday called for leveraging the city's $25 billion investment portfolio to pressure banks into helping homeowners who are facing foreclosure.

Councilman Richard Alarcón, whose northeast San Fernando Valley district has one of the higher rates of foreclosures in the city, asked for a report on the feasibility of the city withholding its money from banks that are refusing to work with homeowners.

If the banks are not working with the homeowners, Alarcón said, he would recommend that the city divest itself of any relationship with the financial institutions.