Members of the San Francisco Police Commission and Board of Supervisors said they will call on the Police Department to provide detailed statistics on violent crime in The City, arrest rates and staffing.

Demands for more information came in the wake of an Examiner report Friday that indicated that while homicides have increased, arrests have decreased since Mayor Gavin Newsom took office and appointed police Chief Heather Fong.

Since Newsom and Fong assumed their positions in 2004, The City’s annual homicide rate has averaged 90, while arrests have averaged 23.5 — an arrest rate of 25 percent. That’s down from an average of 65 homicides per year during Willie Brown’s administration, during which time arrests averaged 32 — a 49 percent arrest rate.

The new year has seen 12 homicides so far, as well as an officer-involved shooting that killed a Daly City man Friday.

Police commissioners Monday said they wanted more information about arrest rates for violent crimes other than homicide, the diversity and staffing levels in the department and the effect of the department’s discipline on its morale. The Police Commission is the civilian body that oversees Police Department policy. City supervisors indicated that they would examine the department’s financing and operations in committees.

“No matter how many fancy plans come out of City Hall for violence prevention or crime fighting, ultimately, this is about accountability. That starts at the top,” Supervisor Ross Mirkarimi, who heads the newly formed Public Safety Committee of the Board of Supervisors, said Monday. “Nobody’s going to get left off the hook, including ourselves at the Board of Supervisors.”

That sentiment was echoed by Commissioner Joe Alioto Veronese, who said the responsibility for running an effective department is Chief Fong’s.

“If the chief of police needs tools to do her job better, then she should be coming to us for those tools. If she’s not asking for them, if she’s not asking for the tools to prevent crime, she’s not doing her job,” Veronese said.

Commissioner Theresa Sparks said Monday that she would propose that the commission request crime rates by neighborhood, as well as more detailed statistics regarding arrests.

Sparks indicated that reporting crime rates by The City’s 10 police districts can be inaccurate if crime is concentrated in certain neighborhoods within the districts. She also said the department should provide detailed statistics indicating which investigations had resulted in arrests, and what arrest trends appear to be.

Commission Vice President David Campos said he would like to see a report on the diversity of the staff of the Investigations Bureau. Police have indicated that, without witnesses to testify against suspects, they cannot bring cases to the District Attorney’s Office for trial.

Campos indicated that a large part of people’s willingness to cooperate with police “depends on whether the community feels a connection with the people who are investigating the crimes. Part of it is, do the investigators represent the diversity of San Francisco?”

Supes to review SFPD spending

The Police Department’s budget has increased since 2000, as the department’s homicide arrest rate has fallen and violent crime is on an uptick.

The increased spending prompted Supervisor Chris Daly to call for a hearing in the Board of Supervisors’ Budget and Finance Committee on Wednesday to examine police spending.

The department’s entire budget has increased by $108.8 million since fiscal year 1999-2000, according to a report by the Controller’s Office to be discussed at Wednesday’s meeting. The report found a $64.2 million increase in salaries.

“Given the millions that we’ve given the Police Department since 1999-2000, I wanted to look at where that money is going and how effective are the appropriations on reducing crime, making us safer, etc.,” Daly said Monday. “They’re our tax dollars and what are they buying?”

The City’s memorandum of understanding with the San Francisco Police Officers Association, which represents the department, is up for renewal this year. Union President Gary Delagnes said salaries would play a major role in the negotiations.

“We’re substantially behind Oakland and San Jose in total compensation. We’ll be looking to certainly gain parity with those two cities in terms of salaries,” Delagnes said.

amartin@examiner.com