The Los Angeles City Council Thursday will review Mayor Karen Bass’ proposed $12.8 billion budget for fiscal year 2024-25 and may look to adopt the plan that is intended to address a multi-year deficit.
The meeting will be continued from Wednesday, when council members heard about four hours from residents of the city. Public comment will be closed for the item.
According to Councilman Bob Blumenfield, who chairs the budget committee, their meeting will be scheduled until 7 p.m., but expects that they will get through their work earlier. The council will review proposed changes to the budget as recommend by the budget committee last Thursday.
Council members will go page-by-page and 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 may 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 City 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 LAPD, 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 multi-year 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 City Council for allocating more money to the Los Angeles Police Department and have called for additional funding for unarmed or alternative response programs.