A former Los Angeles Department of Building and Safety employee has settled his lawsuit alleging that he was ousted in 2019 after raising concerns at the agency about overcharging of customers and other issues.
Steve Ongele, a former bureau chief with the department, filed a whistleblower retaliation suit in Los Angeles Superior Court in January 2021, alleging that his termination was aimed at inducing workers to avoid speaking out about alleged wrongdoing by the city and its employees if they want to keep their jobs.
Lawyers for Ongele and the City Attorney’s Office attended a mandatory settlement conference on Thursday with Judge Ruth Ann Kwan, where the case was resolved. No terms were divulged and it was not immediately clear if final approval is up to the City Council.
Ongele’s attorneys had previously obtained an order from Judge Christopher K. Lui advancing the scheduled trial date from Nov. 4 to June 3. In requesting the change, the plaintiff’s lawyers maintained that Ongele had had suicidal thoughts and other mental health issues. There was no opposition from the city. In light of the settlement, Kwan vacated the revised trial date.
In their court papers, the City Attorney’s Office denied Ongele’s lawsuit allegations, maintaining that they were barred wholly or in part by the statute of limitations and that the city has immunity against them.
According to his suit, in the fall of 2013 Ongele told then-LADBS Executive Officer Raymond Chan that the department was collecting more fees than it was spending and that he believed studies should be done to ensure that the city was not violating laws requiring that the fees be proportional to the costs of providing those services.
In late 2016, Ongele found out that several salaried department employees who were exempt from overtime pay had nonetheless been paid overtime for many years and he insisted to management that the employees refund the money, according to the suit, which further states that a year later, Ongele reported that the department had a surplus of more than $300 million in its enterprise fund due to severe overcharges of customers, including the federal government.
Ongele was subjected to retaliation, but his internal complaint was dismissed and he was terminated in October 2019, according to the suit, which additionally notes that before Ongele departed, Chan was named deputy mayor for economic development by then-Mayor Eric Garcetti.
In March, a federal jury found that Chan, 67, secured bribes for himself and for former Councilmember Jose Huizar as part of a sprawling pay-to-play scheme.