Harsh remarks were shared Thursday during the City Council’s review of Mayor Karen Bass’ $12.8 billion budget — with Councilwoman Monica Rodriguez blasting how money is being expended for gang-reduction programs without transparency.
Council members voted 12-3 in favor of an amendment to move $12.9 million in the unappropriated balance fund into the general fund to support the mayor’s Office of Gang Reduction and Youth Development. The money is in addition to a $30 million sum that is funding GRYD in the proposed budget.
Rodriguez had urged her colleagues to vote against the amendment — with council members Imelda Padilla and Kevin de León doing so — because of concerns regarding accountability. The councilwoman expressed her frustration with the fact that Bass’ office has not been forthcoming about GRYD funding, who nas been contracted and the work being done.
“But what troubles me is that every time we were promised a report, they (Bass’ office) blew us off,” Rodriguez said. “All this is the belts and suspenders that we have been exercising throughout all of this budgetary process, and to put these resources in the UB does nothing to obstruct the contracting for these individuals.”
The councilwoman argued that keeping $12.9 million in the UB would not impact any contracts with the GRYD nor disrupt the work of the service providers who organize Summer Night Lights, gun buybacks, intervention, juvenile reentry and violence prevention services.
Rodriguez had also flashed her anger over an email that had been sent out by the mayor’s office to GRYD contractors, which she said had explicitly called her out for wanting to move the $12.9 million in the UB.
“It was a really poorly miscalculated attempt to try and smear this council and me, specifically naming me in the email, as an individual that was obstructing their funding, which could not be farther from the truth.”
Councilman Bob Blumenfield, chair of the budget committee, who introduced the amendment, noted that he respects everyone’s position and didn’t disagree with most of what was said.
“The mayor’s office is pledging this very publicly here in this committee,” Blumenfield said. “I have talked to the mayor personally and have her personal promise that this is going to happen — to create trust, you’ve got to build it and I think this is a step in that direction.”
Matt Hale, deputy mayor of finance and innovation, explained that they are asking for the funding to be placed in the general fund to prevent any disruption in financing availability for these contractors. He said it would interrupt payments, and may cause issues for them when securing letters of credit, as they wait for billing from the city.
“This is designed to avoid any appearance that there will be any disruption in the city to support the livesaving work that GRYD contractors do,” Hale said. “We just don’t want to have there be any disruption in the buildings and the contracting that’s required, so that the nonprofits themselves can have smooth operations through the summer months.”
Hale also told council members that the mayor’s office would be reporting to the Public Safety Committee in June and provide details regarding GRYD funding.
The council is continuing their work to review proposed changes to the spending plan as recommend by the budget committee last Thursday.
Council members are going page by page to address any items called special. Any memos or items that would have a budget impact will be referred to the budget committee for further discussion.
The city council might approve the revised budget Thursday or call for further revisions before a final vote. Following the council’s approval, the revised spending plan would go to Bass for her signature or veto. The budget needs to be approved by the council and Bass before the start of the next fiscal year, which begins July 1.
Bass’ proposed spending plan represents a $323.3 million, or 2.46%, decrease from the 2023-24 budget of $13.1 billion.
In the current fiscal year, the city faces a $467 million deficit, composed of a revenue shortfall of $180 million below projections, and unexpected spending of about $289 million, mainly from liability payouts related to the Los Angeles Police Department, among other costs.
In a bid to address the $467 million deficit, city officials have taken steps, including dipping into the reserve fund, increasing fees for city services, reducing capital spending and implementing a priority hiring plan with the intention of eliminating 2,139 vacant positions from the city’s books.
Bass and top city officials have described the budget as a hitting a “reset,” and defended the spending plan as the city is geared to face a multiyear deficit. Matt Szabo, the city administrative officer, has said they hope to stabilize the city’s finances by fiscal year 2028-29.
Residents of the city criticized the budget for cutting social programs and vital city services.
City Controller Kenneth Mejia previously highlighted how several departments will see a decrease in operation funding — the Bureau of Street Services faces a decrease of $30 million, the fire department would see a reduction of about $22.9 million, funding for sanitation would decrease by $17.3 million, the city Controller’s Office would see a decrease of $2.5 million and animal services’ funding would also see a decline of about $1 million.
Cathie Santo-Domingo, assistant general manager of the Department of Recreation and Parks, told Ethnic Media Services that if the proposed budget cuts and staffing reductions move forward, it would “cut the core of the department’s operations and maintenance of city parks and threaten the safety and well-being of park visitors.”
Residents have also criticized Bass and the city council for allocating more money to the LAPD and have called for additional funding for unarmed or alternative response programs.