Pay to Play

A San Fernando Valley youth sports league urged the Los Angeles school board Wednesday to reject a plan to charge youth groups that use district athletic fields and facilities.

The fees go into effect next year and would raise about $4 million, which officials say would help the district recoup a $95-million budget shortfall. The charges were approved in June as part of this year's $6.2-billion budget, but the fee structure was not put into place until several months later.

In a letter to the board secretary, an attorney for the nonprofit Valley Youth Conference Inc. said that the group cannot afford the fees, which can go up to $25.50 an hour, and asked the board to reject the program before Jan. 15. About 10,000 students and 7,500 families participate in the youth conference programs. District officials said that they have not seen the letter, but they have maintained that the charges are important to the school system's financial health.

--Jason Song