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LA WATCHDOG - There is a lot of action at City Hall involving the upcoming budget, the Structural Deficit, the lack of charter reform, measures to raise taxes, and a primary election.
Mayor Bass will submit her budget for next fiscal year (2026-27) on June 20th to the City Council. The first question is how she will balance the budget by overcoming the $263 million deficit that was detailed by the City Administrative Officer. The second question is how she intends to eliminate the Structural Deficit over the next four years when accounting for the upcoming new labor agreements with the unions representing the police, firefighters, and civilian workforce.
The Mayor will balance her budget like the way she balanced this year’s budget (2025-26). This will include the continuing neglect of the City’s streets, sidewalks, parks, street lights, and the rest of the City’s infrastructure; the underfunding of public safety (the Police and Fire Departments); layoffs and furloughs of City employees; and the elimination of basic City services.
What we will not see is how the General Fund relies on the City’s special funds to pay General Fund employees (including some in the Mayor’s office) and how the City is relying on the Department of Water and Power to fund the $200 million Solar Street Lights Initiative and the $300 million renovation of seven city parks in the Valley.
We should also expect to hear how she intends to eliminate the Structural Deficit that will average over $150 million over the next four years when taking into consideration new unsustainable labor agreements with the City’s public sector unions.
Unfortunately, the Charter Reform Commission did not address the Structural Deficit and its impact of public safety, the City’s infrastructure, and City services. But then again, budget reform was an afterthought based on its marching orders (or lack thereof) from the Mayor Bass and Councilmembers Harris-Dawson, Blumenfield, and Yaroslavsky. This is because our elected officials did not want to antagonize the campaign funding bosses of the City’s public sector unions who want to continue feasting on our taxpayer dollars.
The City’s budget and financial issues and the failure of the Charter Reform Commission to address reform of the City’s budget will also influence our votes in the upcoming primary election on June 2nd where Mayor Bass is running for reelection against a crowded field. There are also three ballot measures designed to raise an additional $150 million by increasing the hotel tax and taxing unregulated pot shops.
The linkage of the budget, the Structural Deficit and the lack of budget reform, the three ballot measure to raise $150 million, and the primary election is a referendum that gives us the opportunity to send a message to the Mayor and the City Council that our elected elite need to clean up their acts and represent the best interests of all Angelenos, not those of the special interests and union bosses.
(Jack Humphreville writes the LA Watchdog column for CityWatch, where he covers city finances, utilities, and accountability at City Hall. He is President of the DWP Advocacy Committee, serves as the Budget and DWP representative for the Greater Wilshire Neighborhood Council, and is a longtime Neighborhood Council Budget Advocate. With a sharp focus on fiscal responsibility and transparency, Jack brings an informed and independent voice to Los Angeles civic affairs. He can be reached at [email protected].)
