Mayor Karen Bass vowed Monday at her city address to rebuild in a record cut that took place in the Palisades Fire while also overcame horrific financial difficulties.
Bass’ appearance at Town Hall in front of an audience of about 250, has sparked hope, even if she admits that the city is under pressure in all respects: a decline in film and television production, an imminent trade war and a housing market that is unbearable for many.
Faced with a budget shortage of nearly $100 million, Bass released a budget immediately after the speech, demanding the elimination of more than 2,700 positions. According to city budget officials, about 1,650 urban jobs (about 5% of the workforce) are targeted for layoffs, and the rest are already vacant.
“I want to keep it straight with you,” Bass said in a speech directed to city workers. “Unfortunately, the budget I proposed includes layoffs, which is the absolute last resort.”
Bass portrays her city as soft and ferocious enough to hit the ball and bounce back stronger.
In her speech, Los Angeles had survived civil unrest, recession, earthquake, shouting and fire, she said in her speech that the address occurred 104 days after a wildfire crossed the Pacific Palisades, killing 12 people and destroying thousands of homes.
Bass celebrated the speed of fire recovery on Monday, saying the utilities’ recovery to the Pacific Palisade is much faster than the previous California fires.
“We know the faster we can rebuild, the faster we can heal. We still have a long way to go. For those who have lost their home, it's too long to have a day every day.”
She called on the city council to make it easier for residents to rebuild by abandoning the costs of allowing and inspecting the construction plan. Traci Park, a MP representing Palisad, proposed a policy in January, but the council is awaiting feasibility reports for several city departments.
Stuart Waldman, president of the Valley Industry and Business Association of the San Fernando Valley Business Group, said he thanked Bass for his comments on simplifying the city's licensing process.
Meanwhile, he accused city leaders of budget management, saying they were too generous when negotiating wages for the workforce.
“They did it themselves,” he said. “The city made a bad deal with city employees to give them a lot of pay raises, and now it's back to bite us.”
During his speech, Bass exaggerated double digits in the homicide and shooting.
She also highlighted the decline in street homelessness last year, a drop of more than 10%. She said the city has a further step to go because public safety ultimately depends on whether people feel safe to live.
“The state of our city is like this: Homeless people are lowered. Crime is lower,” Bass said. “These are tough challenges and they show that we can do more.”
Bass used her address to call on landlords to accept housing certificates from homeless veterans. She praised Los Angeles’ nonprofit mayor fund for linking Angelenos with resources for eviction and accommodation.
The mayor also pointed out remarks on the decision of the Los Angeles County Supervisory Board Committee “Establishing new bureaucracy is not change in itself. ”
Bass said it was expensive to face homeless people, “but leaving people on the streets comes at a huge cost,” affecting not only those who live outdoors, but also nearby businesses and residents.
She continued: “The cost of doing nothing is not only inhumane. It is also financially unsustainable.”
The mayor's annual speech came shortly before she released the budget proposal for the fiscal year 2025-26, which was cut to a wide range of urban institutions. These reductions are designed to address budget crises caused by spiral spending, economic weakness and rising staff costs, which are further driven by fires.
The mayor still hopes to avoid layoffs by ensuring economic relief from Gov. Gavin Newsom and the state legislature, or to convince the city’s employees to make financial concessions. However, success through both routes is far from guaranteed.
“Cities like ours are going through challenging economic times,” Bass said, planning to make cities work more efficiently by combining departments and reorganizing.
According to her budget proposal, bass will eliminate the committees involved in health committees regarding health, climate change, and efficiency and innovation. She will also combine some of the city’s smaller institutions into one entity.
Three sectors – Age, Youth Development, Economic and Labor Development – will be consolidated into community investments in the family sector.
Bass is seeking to eliminate more than 1,000 unfilled “ghost” positions. She said she had delayed some capital projects and reduced funding from the mayor's office.
Bass also stressed the importance of bringing tourism back to downtown Los Angeles and competed to win entertainment work after a lot of filming other cities and countries. She vowed to make it easier to shoot on city properties and simplify the film-enabled process of the city.
For bass, her speech was not just about reassuring a overwhelmed population and labor force. Her political future has been leading the way since early January. Her initial response to the fire sparked intense criticism, and she argued with the then fire chief and her own recovery czar.
The bass will be in contact next year, and it is not clear whether anyone will face serious challenges. Nevertheless, her discount rating has eroded severely in recent months. A recent survey conducted by UCLA Luskin School of Public Affairs found that nearly half of Los Angeles County residents have poor views on bass, compared with 32% last year.
She concluded her speech by touting the 2028 Olympics hosted by Los Angeles, saying the city attributed to the next generation winning the world stage.
The city council must make changes to the mayor's budget by the end of May and then approve it. By then, city officials should have a clearer understanding of whether the state will rescue.
“The speech was great, but the budget details were better,” said Councilman Monica Rodriguez after the speech. “I think when we look at the budget details, we'll know the mayor's priorities and whether this will be a city that sticks to the interests of all Angelenos, or just a few.”
