WASHINGTON (AP) — D.C. Councilman Phil Mendelson says he wants the city to spend $100,000 to study the number of officers needed on the streets.

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Police Chief Cathy Lanier warned earlier this year at a D.C. Council hearing that there would be trouble if the number of officers dipped below 3,800. D.C. Councilman Jack Evans has proposed a bill that would require the city's police force to stay above 4,000 officers, while Mayor Vincent Gray's budget calls for adding 170 officers.

Mendleson tells the Washington Examiner that he wants to pay an outside firm to conduct a six-month study on how many officers needs to protect the public's safety.

The department has been losing about 15 officers each month to attrition.