The Board of Supervisors voted 5-0 Tuesday to tentatively approve a $47.9 billion recommended by the Los Angeles County CEO that includes 3% budget cuts for some departments to “offset extraordinary budget pressures,” officials said.
CEO Fesia Davenport’s recommended budget is $1.3 billion less than the current spending plan and includes over $1 billion in costs related to the deadly January wildfires that devastated communities in Pacific Palisades, Malibu, Altadena, Pasadena and Sierra Madre.
According to a county statement, the budget also reflects “rapidly mounting financial challenges,” such as the possible loss of hundreds of millions of federal dollars and the tentative $4 billion settlement of nearly 7,000 claims of sexual abuse against county employees, mainly at probation camps and juvenile halls. Those claims were brought under Assembly Bill 218, known as the California Child Victims Act.
Another budget pressure is slower property tax revenue growth that’s partially because of a 41% decline in home sales since 2021 amid higher interest rates.
The pressures have prompted county departments to make 3% cuts in their budgets, targeting a total of $88.9 million while eliminating 310 job vacancies and more than $50 million in cost savings from cutting supplies, postponing equipment purchases and limiting the scope of some programs.
“Our revenue outlook is challenging, to put it mildly,” Davenport told the board during her presentation Tuesday. “The amount of new ongoing funding in this budget is at a five-year low.”
The transition from the Biden to Trump administrations will result in at least 13% of the county’s budget sourced from federal funding could be at risk, Davenport said. State budgets including California’s also risk losing federal funds, potentially impacting county finances and its ability to provide public services.
Davenport noted the recent federal proposal to rescind $45 million from the county Public Health Department.
“While a $47.9 billion budget may sound like a lot, it’s important to remember that Los Angeles County has a long list of responsibilities — especially when it comes to protecting and preserving the safety net services upon which our most vulnerable residents rely,” Board Chair and 5th District Supervisor Kathryn Barger said in a statement.
“This year’s budget recommendation reflects the reality of the moment,” Barger said. “We’re facing historic financial challenges, many of which are still developing. The destruction caused by the January wildfires, including the Eaton and Palisades fires, demands more than just short-term responses — it requires long-term investments to support impacted residents on the road to full recovery.”
Barger also highlighted county spending to address homelessness and provide mental health services, as well as a bigger payroll for additional sheriff’s deputies.
“The budget’s $102 million in one-time funding to expand interim and permanent supportive housing, along with 149 new Department of Mental Health positions, will strengthen our crisis response system and improve access to essential services for children, adolescents, and others in need,” she said.
I’m also glad to support continued investment in recruiting and retaining Sheriff’s deputies. It’s a vital step toward bolstering our public safety workforce and engaging qualified applicants right away so we can adequately hire to keep our communities safe.”
Supervisor Hilda Solis also commented on the budget challenges and provided spending highlights.
“The County has faced challenging economic times in the past, but not quite at this magnitude and not simultaneously,” she said. “It is in these trying times that it is critical that we continue to prioritize the well-being of our most vulnerable residents.
“Despite a constrained budget, we must continue to invest in programs that provide essential support, such as job opportunities for youth, legal representation for immigrants, and critical resources for those transitioning out of foster care. … I will continue to advocate for sustainable funding for these programs to ensure they can support our communities in the long term.”
Solis also noted proposed federal budget cuts that would reduce funding for Medicaid, CalFresh and other social-safety-net programs to the tune of $880 billion from Medicaid and $200 billion from CalFresh. The programs provide health care and food assistance.
The District 1 supervisor pointed to these outlays for key programs:
- $12.3 million for Youth at Work, which provides paid jobs for 10,000 foster youth, justice-involved youth, parenting teens and youth experiencing homelessness;
- $5.5 million for the Represent LA program, which funds legal representation for immigrants;
- $3 million for Self-Help Legal Access Centers, which helps people who don’t have legal representation navigate the court system;
- $3.4 million for the program known as Guaranteed Basic Income Expansion for Transitional Age Youth. The program offers monthly stipends and support services to help young people from the foster-care system transition into adulthood; and
- $125,000 for consultant services to maintain the Gender Impact Assessment initiative, which supports county departments in identifying and addressing gender disparities.
As Davenport detailed the possible impacts from reductions in federal and state financial aid, supervisors were generally supportive of the spending curtailments.
“We are in uncharted territory with these simultaneous pressures on our budget,” Davenport said in a statement Monday. “Any of these alone would be daunting, but taken together these challenges — the wildfires, the AB 218 (sex abuse) settlement, the threat of deep cuts in federal funding — are cause for great concern.”
The recommended budget is the first step in the county’s budget cycle. The process continues with public hearings in May and deliberations for adoption in June, concluding in October with the supplemental budget to finalize adjustments.
