LA City Council approves revised $13.9 billion budget after marathon session

LOS ANGELES (CNS) -- In a marathon session, the Los Angeles City Council Thursday approved a revised $13.9 billion budget for fiscal year 2025-26 -- one that is expected to slow down police hiring and curtail new spending while preserving core services and saving 1,000 jobs.

In a 12-3 vote, the City Council advanced a menu of changes to Mayor Karen Bass' original budget, which called for 1,647 layoffs and the elimination of 1,053 vacant positions that were intended, in part, to address a roughly $1 billion deficit. The deficit is a result of overspending, costly liability payouts, lower tax revenues, labor contracts and fire recovery, among other challenges.

Council members Monica Rodriguez, John Lee and Traci Park voted against the revised spending plan Thursday.

The City Council is scheduled to vote on a budget resolution next week, which would formally conclude its work with the budget. Bass is expected to consider the revised budget at a later date.

"The revised budget restores these services, ensuring we can: clean our streets, trim trees, fix more sidewalks and streetlights, and make streets more safe," Councilwoman Katy Yaroslavsky said Thursday.

A key provision of the spending plan is expected to reduce sworn hiring in the Los Angeles Police Department to 240 recruits in six classes of 40, down from Bass' proposed 480 recruits in 12 classes of 40, resulting in a savings of $13.31 million. City officials expect to restore about 133 of 403 jobs on the chopping block. Those restorations include specialized positions for investigations.

The spending plan does not allocate additional dollars for a new homelessness unit within the Los Angeles Fire Department. Overall, the fire department is poised to see a $46.7 million increase to its operational budget next fiscal year compared to the 2024-25 fiscal year. LAFD would also receive nearly $80 million in what are known as MICLA funds for helicopters and maintenance of fire vehicles and apparatus.

Rodriguez, Lee and Park opposed the revised budget on what they said was a lack of resources for public safety. They also did not support the plan to slow down police hiring, noting the city's preparations for international events such as the World Cup and Olympic Games.

"There are things that we are not leveraging to maximize the resources to ensure that we can fund the critical services that we know our residents demand," Rodriguez said.

Park added, "This budget does not reflect our priorities."

The police and fire departments overall will receive year-over-year increases to their operational budgets.

"But in a year with a very limited number of new investments, it is a meaningful and responsible step forward and one I hope we will continue to build on in the coming years," Yaroslavsky said.

The spending plan also reduced Bass' signature homelessness program, Inside Safe, by 10% and moved over half of interim housing dollars into the city's unappropriated balance. Council members took the action prompted by Los Angeles County's decision to withdraw more than $300 million from the Los Angeles Homelessness Services Authority as it establishes an in-house county homelessness agency. According to council members, the move will allow for additional oversight and flexibility to maximize their homeless dollars.

The council also took steps to establish a bureau for homelessness oversight.

Meanwhile, the Department of Animal Services is expected to receive $5 million from the unappropriated balance fund for the restoration of 62 positions and to ensure current service levels remain in the next fiscal year across all six city-operated animal shelters.

While elected officials noted some layoffs are inevitable, the revised budget would restore funding and position authority for the following departments:

• 22 positions in the Information Technology Agency;
• 77 positions in the Department of General Services for building maintenance, custodial services, fleet services and building decarbonization;
• 108 positions in the Department of City Planning;
• 63 positions in the Bureau of Sanitation, and funding for five days of CARE/CARE+ services to all Council Districts, and another 43 positions in the bureau to address illegal dumping;
• 67 positions in the Bureau of Engineering;
• 122 positions in the Department of Transportation, including 75 traffic officers; and
• 130 positions in the Department of Recreation and Parks.

Additionally, Bass called for the consolidation of the aging, economic and workforce development and youth development departments into Community Investment for Families -- a move the City Council recommended should be approached in a more gradual manner. Staff are expected to report in June about the consolidation and potential impacts.

The city officials are expected to finalize the budget by the end of the month, but have until the start of the next fiscal year in July to do so.