Critics of the merger of the two units - one now focusing primarily on subway graffiti and the other on above-ground scrawls - contend it could "lead to more graffiti in our neighborhoods."

But Assistant Chief Edwin Young said the consolidation will see more cops being assigned to anti-graffiti efforts. Testifying before the City Council's Public Safety Committee, he estimated that the added personnel represent "a $1 million initiative, if not more."

Young, the executive officer for the Chief of Department, will supervise the consolidated unit, which will be launched next month and called the Citywide Vandals Task Force.

It will assume functions now performed by the Transit Bureau's Vandals Unit and the Special Operations Division's Anti-Graffiti/Vandalism Unit.

The consolidated unit will have 76 cops - 13 more than now assigned to the two separate units. Young said the staff breakdown would be three lieutenants, 13 sergeants and 60 police officers.

"We're going to be doing a better job," he insisted. "That's the goal of this and that's what we'll be measuring ourselves against."

After the hearing, Councilman Peter Vallone Jr., chairman of the Public Safety Committee, commented: "I think that potentially this could be a step forward in the fight against graffiti, but we'll need to continue to monitor this merger to make sure that the primary purpose [of fighting graffiti] does not become diluted."

The committee also heard testimony on a bill that would punish residential property owners with civil fines of as much as $300 if they refuse to remove graffiti from their buildings after being given a 30-day notice. The bill also would authorize the city to remove the graffiti on its own if building owners do not comply.

Commissioner Jonathan Greenspun of the Mayor's Anti-Graffiti Task Force testified that the bill poses enforcement and cost problems for the city. It also could "unfairly penalize" responsible property owners, he said.

Frank Ricci of the Rent Stabilization Association, the city's largest landlord group, said landlords often have to hire contractors to remove graffiti and would need more than a 30 days' notice. He also said some landlords fear the measure could be used to generate revenues in times of budget shortages.

Vallone said revisions of the bill will be made before it is brought to a vote.