Editorial: Mayor Bass goes big on homelessness spending proposal
1 year, 8 months ago

Editorial: Mayor Bass goes big on homelessness spending proposal

LA Times  

It should be no surprise that in her first city budget proposal, Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass went big on homelessness. As a candidate last year and now as mayor, Bass has been almost exclusively focused on helping ease the crisis and her $13-billion proposed spending plan reflects that by allocating $1.3 billion for existing and new homelessness programs — a record amount, her office said. That includes $250 million for Inside Safe, the mayor’s ambitious initiative to clear encampments by moving people into motels and hotels temporarily while setting them on a path to permanent housing. Bass rightly recognizes that the city’s homelessness and housing crisis is so deeply entrenched that it will take long-term funding and structural changes to prevent people from ending up on the streets.

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History of this topic

Nearly half of L.A.’s record homelessness budget went unspent, city controller finds
1 month ago

Nearly half of L.A.’s record homelessness budget went unspent, city controller finds

LA Times  

Mayor Karen Bass, left, chats with Jawonna Smith before Smith was moved from a tent to a motel under the Inside Safe program. Nearly half of Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass’ record $1.3-billion homelessness budget for fiscal 2023-24 went unspent, an analysis by the city controller found. According to Mejia, the city spent or encumbered only about 30% of its …

Trump takes a hard line on homelessness. Why L.A. Mayor Karen Bass hopes to find common ground
1 month ago

Trump takes a hard line on homelessness. Why L.A. Mayor Karen Bass hopes to find common ground

LA Times  

President-elect Donald Trump has promised to arrest thousands of homeless people sleeping in American streets and move them to large tent cities on “inexpensive land,” one of several planks of his agenda that would upend a national strategy that focuses on finding people housing on a voluntary basis. But Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass, who is trying to combat one …

Amid a serious budget crunch, L.A. faces pressure to pay more for homeless services
1 month, 2 weeks ago

Amid a serious budget crunch, L.A. faces pressure to pay more for homeless services

LA Times  

Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass, pictured in June, vowed to keep the city’s interim housing sites open to serve the city’s homeless population. The Greater LA Coalition on Homelessness, which represents dozens of homeless service providers across L.A. County, said those nonprofit groups have not been getting paid for the full cost of the services they provide at the city’s …

Gov. Newsom joins local officials in unveiling a new round of homeless funding
1 month, 3 weeks ago

Gov. Newsom joins local officials in unveiling a new round of homeless funding

LA Times  

Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass, right, joins California Gov. Gavin Newsom at a press conference at the Downtown Women’s Center to announce new state funding to confront the homelessness crisis in Los Angeles. Gavin Newsom came to Skid Row Tuesday to announce new state funding that will bring $380 million to the Los Angeles region for homeless housing, shelter, rental …

Editorial: L.A. is broke. And the budget crisis is self-inflicted
2 months ago

Editorial: L.A. is broke. And the budget crisis is self-inflicted

LA Times  

Los Angeles is teetering on the edge of a fiscal emergency, with its finances in “dire” condition and no money to cover unplanned expenses after a series of lawsuit payouts blew a hole in the city’s already-tight budget. So if you were hoping this would be the year that City Hall, in preparation for the 2028 Olympics, would get moving …

The under-the-radar proposal to end homelessness in Los Angeles for $20 billion
3 months, 1 week ago

The under-the-radar proposal to end homelessness in Los Angeles for $20 billion

LA Times  

A homeless man waits for transportation to housing as Mayor Karen Bass’ Inside Safe program employees along with the Sanitation Bureau clean up homeless encampments along Hollywood Boulevard and Gower Street in Hollywood in August. It would cost $20.4 billion to end homelessness in Los Angeles in a decade, a price tag requiring local, state and federal governments to more …

Bass vows not to bus homeless people out for 2028 Olympics. But what will L.A. do?
4 months, 1 week ago

Bass vows not to bus homeless people out for 2028 Olympics. But what will L.A. do?

LA Times  

In Paris, the French government packed homeless people and migrants onto buses and sent them out of the city as the Summer Olympics approached. Mayor Karen Bass’ Inside Safe initiative went to Hollywood Boulevard on Thursday, moving about three dozen people indoors. Mayor Karen Bass’ Inside Safe program senior director Annetta Wells, right, coordinates with the Los Angeles Sanitation Bureau …

Faced with community complaints, Mayor Karen Bass retools her affordable housing strategy
5 months, 2 weeks ago

Faced with community complaints, Mayor Karen Bass retools her affordable housing strategy

LA Times  

During her State of the City address in April, Mayor Karen Bass touted her ED1 initiative, which has accelerated the approval of affordable housing. When Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass launched her reelection bid this week, she made sure to highlight her success in speeding up the approval of new affordable housing. “The chipping away of the program shows that …

Karen Bass: Mayor of the city of the eternal future
6 months ago

Karen Bass: Mayor of the city of the eternal future

LA Times  

The mayor of Los Angeles was exhausted. Their first instinct is to correct me, or to think that it’s weak,” she said in December while sipping a mug of Throat Coat tea on the couch in her City Hall office. Inside Safe — Bass’ signature initiative that has been moving unhoused Angelenos into hotels, motels and other facilities — has …

Editorial: Mayor Bass has no more excuses for delaying Venice Dell homeless housing
6 months, 3 weeks ago

Editorial: Mayor Bass has no more excuses for delaying Venice Dell homeless housing

LA Times  

Now that some of the most vocal opponents to the much-needed Venice Dell homeless and low-income housing development in Venice have lost their lawsuit to block the project, will this be the last hurdle it has to face in a long and unnecessary obstacle course set by Los Angeles city officials? For more than a year, the project was slowed …

L.A. City Council approves Mayor Karen Bass’ budget, cutting 1,700 vacant positions
7 months ago

L.A. City Council approves Mayor Karen Bass’ budget, cutting 1,700 vacant positions

LA Times  

The Los Angeles City Council signed off on Mayor Karen Bass’ $12.8-billion budget on Thursday, cutting 1,700 vacant positions and engaging in a back-and-forth over police spending. “There’s no sugarcoating the reality that we face next year,” said Councilmember Bob Blumenfield, who heads the council’s five-member budget committee. In a statement, he said the mayor’s office would “continue the urgent …

Bass budget would reduce homelessness funding, scale back LAPD hiring goal
8 months ago

Bass budget would reduce homelessness funding, scale back LAPD hiring goal

LA Times  

Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass delivered her second State of the City Address at City Hall last week. Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass proposed a $12.8 billion budget on Monday that would reduce spending on homelessness initiatives, scale back an effort to hire more police officers and eliminate more than 2,100 vacant positions. The mayor’s team said her proposed budget …

Mayor Bass’ ambitious housing program calls on L.A.’s wealthy. Can she pull it off?
8 months ago

Mayor Bass’ ambitious housing program calls on L.A.’s wealthy. Can she pull it off?

LA Times  

Philanthropic and real estate leaders reacted with hope and skepticism to the initiative, LA4LA, which Mayor Karen Bass unveiled Monday during her State of the City address. “People are a little less cynical, because she has shown that things can be done,” said Bojarsky, pointing to Bass’ executive order speeding up affordable housing construction and other programs led by her …

Mayor Karen Bass urges L.A.’s wealthy to fund homeless housing
8 months, 1 week ago

Mayor Karen Bass urges L.A.’s wealthy to fund homeless housing

LA Times  

L.A. Mayor Karen Bass delivers her second State of the City address at City Hall on Monday. “And now we must prevail on the humanity and generosity of the private sector.” The pitch comes as Bass is working to break a logjam that has limited the city’s ability to move homeless Angelenos out of interim housing, such as hotel and …

One year on, has the mayor of LA finally put a dent in homelessness?
11 months, 3 weeks ago

One year on, has the mayor of LA finally put a dent in homelessness?

The Independent  

The latest headlines from our reporters across the US sent straight to your inbox each weekday Your briefing on the latest headlines from across the US Your briefing on the latest headlines from across the US SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. open image in gallery The Palm Tree Inn …

Editorial: Mayor Bass kickstarted more affordable housing in L.A. by cutting red tape. Now the council should make it the law
1 year ago

Editorial: Mayor Bass kickstarted more affordable housing in L.A. by cutting red tape. Now the council should make it the law

LA Times  

Mayor Karen Bass signs an ordinance intended to accelerate the building of affordable housing by eliminating the site plan review process for those projects at L.A. City Hall. In the city of Los Angeles, where affordable housing is desperately needed and the process of building it is notoriously slow, Mayor Karen Bass came into office last December determined to speed …

Mayor Karen Bass spells out new ethics rules for the nonprofit Mayor’s Fund
1 year ago

Mayor Karen Bass spells out new ethics rules for the nonprofit Mayor’s Fund

LA Times  

Good morning, and welcome to L.A. on the Record — our City Hall newsletter. Conway Collis, who joined the Mayor’s Fund as its chief executive earlier this year, said in an interview that the new rules are intended to align more closely with city campaign finance rules. Bob Stern, who helped draft the city’s ethics laws in the early 1990s, …

L.A.’s mayor declared a homeless emergency. A new lawsuit says it should be repealed
1 year, 2 months ago

L.A.’s mayor declared a homeless emergency. A new lawsuit says it should be repealed

LA Times  

Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass appears with Councilmember Traci Park in January at a community reception where attendees thanked them for their work on homelessness. A Westside-based nonprofit group filed a lawsuit Monday that seeks to strike down Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass’ declaration of a local emergency on homelessness and housing, calling it a “vast and illegal expansion of …

Editorial: Are L.A. leaders trying to sabotage homeless housing in Venice?
1 year, 4 months ago

Editorial: Are L.A. leaders trying to sabotage homeless housing in Venice?

LA Times  

Rebecca Dannenbaum, 48, and her dog Pop-Tart live in a pedestrian tunnel, to the left, where she and other homeless people have been living. So why is she silent as the city attorney slow-walks, or possibly sabotages, a project for homeless and affordable housing on a city-owned parking lot in Venice? After competitively scoring the applicants, the City Council and …

The Mayor’s Fund gets a new mission: Helping Bass fight homelessness
1 year, 5 months ago

The Mayor’s Fund gets a new mission: Helping Bass fight homelessness

LA Times  

Good morning, and welcome to L.A. on the Record, our City Hall newsletter. Mayor Karen Bass briefly mentioned the nonprofit’s new homeless initiative at an event Thursday, where local leaders announced a 10% rise in homelessness in L.A. compared with the previous year. Conway Collis, who joined the Mayor’s Fund as its chief executive several months ago, said the Mayor’s …

L.A. Council approves Bass’ $13-billion budget, greenlighting plan to hire 1,000 cops
1 year, 7 months ago

L.A. Council approves Bass’ $13-billion budget, greenlighting plan to hire 1,000 cops

LA Times  

The Los Angeles Police Department’s downtown headquarters, shown last year. The Los Angeles City Council signed off on Mayor Karen Bass’ plan for expanding the Police Department on Thursday, approving a budget that calls for the hiring of about 1,000 officers over the next fiscal year and record spending to fight homelessness. Councilmember Eunisses Hernandez cast the lone opposing vote, …

Bass’ $250-million budget proposal for homelessness program clears a key council hurdle
1 year, 7 months ago

Bass’ $250-million budget proposal for homelessness program clears a key council hurdle

LA Times  

People living in tents behind the Academy Museum of Motion Pictures were moved into a motel in February under Mayor Karen Bass’ Inside Safe program. Mayor Karen Bass’ first citywide budget cleared an important hurdle on Friday, with a five-member committee paving the way for her to spend $250 million on Inside Safe, her strategy for combating homelessness. The City …

Karen Bass wants to spend $1.3 billion to address homelessness. Here’s how
1 year, 8 months ago

Karen Bass wants to spend $1.3 billion to address homelessness. Here’s how

LA Times  

On Tuesday, Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass announced that $1.3 billion of her $13 billion proposed budget will go to address homelessness. According to documents released by the Los Angeles city Mayor’s office, the money is distributed across 31 departments and funds that address homelessness and housing, including funding for police department homeless services and the Los Angeles Homeless Services …

LA mayor wants $1.3B for homeless crisis, hotels for housing
1 year, 8 months ago

LA mayor wants $1.3B for homeless crisis, hotels for housing

Associated Press  

LOS ANGELES — Democratic Mayor Karen Bass, who was elected in November after promising to take on the city’s out-of-control homeless crisis, announced Monday she would recommend spending what she called a record $1.3 billion next year to get unhoused people into shelter and treatment programs. Bass’ challenge is in plain sight in just about any neighborhood: homeless people living …

Mayor Karen Bass’ first budget: more cops, more hotel rooms for L.A.’s homeless population
1 year, 8 months ago

Mayor Karen Bass’ first budget: more cops, more hotel rooms for L.A.’s homeless population

LA Times  

Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass, surrounded by her deputy mayors, presented her first proposed budget at City Hall on Tuesday. Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass released the first budget proposal of her administration on Tuesday, calling for more police and greater spending on homelessness, anti-gang programs and the city’s struggling animal shelters. The mayor, speaking to reporters, said those retirees …

Mayor Bass seeks $250-million expansion of homelessness program in first State of the City speech
1 year, 8 months ago

Mayor Bass seeks $250-million expansion of homelessness program in first State of the City speech

LA Times  

Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass delivers her State of the City address at Los Angeles City Hall on Monday. In her first State of the City speech, Mayor Karen Bass announced a dramatic expansion of her signature program to move homeless people indoors, while also pledging to create “a new L.A.” Bass said she intends to propose $250 million for …

Editorial: Mayor Bass didn’t end homelessness in her first 100 days. But she made a good start
1 year, 8 months ago

Editorial: Mayor Bass didn’t end homelessness in her first 100 days. But she made a good start

LA Times  

Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass chats with Jawonna Smith in February, before Smith was moved from her sidewalk tent to a motel under the Inside Safe program. She declared an emergency her first day on the job, ordered city agencies to fast-track reviews of affordable housing projects and launched Inside Safe, an ambitious initiative to move people from encampments into …

L.A. strongly approves of Mayor Bass but skeptical about fixing homelessness, poll shows
1 year, 9 months ago

L.A. strongly approves of Mayor Bass but skeptical about fixing homelessness, poll shows

LA Times  

On the eve of her 100th day in office, Mayor Karen Bass enjoys strong approval ratings among Angelenos — a reservoir of goodwill that will be crucial for the new mayor during uphill battles ahead. Half of Angelenos approve of the job Bass is doing so far, while just 14% say they disapprove, according to a Suffolk University/Los Angeles Times …

Mayor Karen Bass says the city will house 4,000 homeless people during her first 100 days
1 year, 9 months ago

Mayor Karen Bass says the city will house 4,000 homeless people during her first 100 days

LA Times  

Mayor Karen Bass, left, chats with Jawonna Smith, 33, who had been living in a tent on a sidewalk behind the Academy Museum of Motion Pictures. Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass said Wednesday that she expects the city will have housed more than 4,000 homeless Angelenos by the time she reaches her 100th day in office. Bass said the Inside …

Mayor Bass orders list of vacant city properties where homeless housing could be built
1 year, 10 months ago

Mayor Bass orders list of vacant city properties where homeless housing could be built

LA Times  

Mayor Karen Bass walks with Kevin Murray, center, president and chief executive of the Weingart Center Assn., and Jeff Olivet, executive director of the U.S. Interagency Council on Homelessness, as they tour the Hilda L. Solis Care First Village. Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass ordered city officials on Friday to prepare a list of the city’s surplus and unused properties …

Editorial: Yes, it really will take billions of dollars a year to solve homelessness in California
1 year, 11 months ago

Editorial: Yes, it really will take billions of dollars a year to solve homelessness in California

LA Times  

Gavin Newsom has said that addressing homelessness is his top priority. The Corporation for Supportive Housing put out a report last month estimating that the state needed to invest $8.1 billion a year over 12 years to solve homelessness in California. The League of California Cities last month wrote a letter to the governor asking for “a permanent funding stream …

L.A. Mayor Karen Bass on housing and homelessness
1 year, 11 months ago

L.A. Mayor Karen Bass on housing and homelessness

LA Times  

When she was running for mayor of Los Angeles last year, Karen Bass spoke often about how the homelessness crisis is what prompted her to leave a safe seat in Congress and “come home.” It was the crisis of our time, and now, weeks into her tenure running the country’s second-largest city, she spoke at length on “Gimme Shelter: The …

Mayor Bass’ program to move homeless people indoors to launch Tuesday
2 years ago

Mayor Bass’ program to move homeless people indoors to launch Tuesday

LA Times  

Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass on Tuesday will launch a city program to move people living in tents on streets into hotel and motel rooms, she said Sunday during an appearance on NBC’s “Meet The Press.” “Now it’s not going to address everybody, but it is going to address hopefully a significant number,” Bass told “Meet the Press” host Chuck …

Bass’ emergency homelessness declaration approved during tumultuous City Council meeting
2 years ago

Bass’ emergency homelessness declaration approved during tumultuous City Council meeting

LA Times  

Embattled City Councilman Kevin de León sits alone at the horseshoe in Los Angeles City Council chambers on Tuesday. The Los Angeles City Council approved Mayor Karen Bass’ declaration of a homelessness emergency at a fraught four-hour meeting Tuesday, giving the new mayor a potentially critical tool for addressing the city’s humanitarian crisis. Protester Greg Akili demands that council members …

New LA mayor Bass declares homeless emergency as term begins
2 years ago

New LA mayor Bass declares homeless emergency as term begins

Associated Press  

LOS ANGELES — Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass began her first day in office Monday by declaring a state of emergency to grapple with the city’s out-of-control homeless crisis, bidding to move swiftly to get thousands of unhoused people off her city’s streets. Despite more than $1.2 billion in spending for homeless programs in the current city budget, there is …

Karen Bass will make history as L.A. mayor. Then the hard work begins
2 years ago

Karen Bass will make history as L.A. mayor. Then the hard work begins

LA Times  

When Karen Bass is sworn in Sunday, she will make history as the first woman to serve as mayor of Los Angeles — completing a political journey that took her from South Los Angeles community organizer 30 years ago to elected office in the Legislature and Congress, then to the top job in the nation’s second-largest city. “I don’t want …

Editorial: Measure ULA is the best gift Karen Bass could get as mayor
2 years ago

Editorial: Measure ULA is the best gift Karen Bass could get as mayor

LA Times  

Here are two heartening things that happened in the past few weeks: the passage of Measure ULA, which will provide hundreds of millions of dollars annually to build affordable housing and prevent homelessness, and the election of Karen Bass, a smart, experienced leader, as the next mayor of Los Angeles. According to a just-released survey, city voters have given the …

L.A. voters approved more money to fight homelessness. Now they want to see results
2 years, 1 month ago

L.A. voters approved more money to fight homelessness. Now they want to see results

LA Times  

A generous but demanding electorate put Karen Bass in the mayor’s office with the tools they believe she needs to reduce homelessness. But more than 60% said they would support a recall if the new mayor “fails to effectively address homelessness within their first two years in office.” “What we’re hearing from Angelenos is we’re supporting the next leadership to …

Jeffrey Katzenberg donates $1 million to support Karen Bass’ bid for L.A. mayor
2 years, 2 months ago

Jeffrey Katzenberg donates $1 million to support Karen Bass’ bid for L.A. mayor

LA Times  

Hollywood executive Jeffrey Katzenberg, shown in 2019, donated $1 million this week the mayoral campaign of Rep. Karen Bass. Rick Caruso’s self-funded mayoral candidacy has largely overshadowed how another wealthy local is shelling out historic amounts in support of the first-time candidate’s opponent, Rep. Karen Bass. Karen Bass deserves our support and needs the resources to compete with Caruso’s self-funded …

Bass and Caruso have talked big on homelessness. Now they’re offering some details
2 years, 3 months ago

Bass and Caruso have talked big on homelessness. Now they’re offering some details

LA Times  

The Los Angeles mayor’s race has been defined by candidates’ sweeping promises to get homeless people off the streets — with the most ambitious talk coming from the top two finishers in the June primary. Rep. Karen Bass, who leads developer Rick Caruso in polls, said she would place 15,000 people in tiny homes, motels, hotels, apartments and other forms …

Hollywood money begins to flow into committee backing Karen Bass in mayor’s race
2 years, 9 months ago

Hollywood money begins to flow into committee backing Karen Bass in mayor’s race

LA Times  

Katie McGrath and J.J. Abrams, shown in 2017, have contributed $250,000 to an independent expenditure committee supporting Rep. Karen Bass’ run for mayor. But supporters of Rep. Karen Bass have launched an independent expenditure committee to help the longtime officeholder compete with Caruso’s wealth. “We are committed to making Los Angeles a better place for all and firmly believe this …

Karen Bass is running for mayor as a progressive. But some L.A. leftists are frustrated
2 years, 9 months ago

Karen Bass is running for mayor as a progressive. But some L.A. leftists are frustrated

LA Times  

U.S. Rep. Karen Bass, seen at her mayoral campaign kickoff in October, is facing criticism from some who find her political stances too moderate. In their essay, Cullors and Abdullah argued that Bass’ public safety plan puts “targets on the backs of Black people” and “harkens to a 1994-crime-bill-style pro-police system.” Bass, who “grounded herself in womanism and revolution,” is …

Bass takes in nearly $2 million to lead mayoral rivals in early fundraising
2 years, 10 months ago

Bass takes in nearly $2 million to lead mayoral rivals in early fundraising

LA Times  

Rep. Karen Bass reported raising nearly $2 million in 2021 for her bid for L.A. mayor, outpacing her rivals. Rep. Karen Bass raised nearly $2 million after launching her campaign in the fall to become Los Angeles’ next mayor, demonstrating an early base of support and enthusiasm as she far outpaced her rivals in the crowded field. The $1.98 million …

If elected mayor, Rep. Karen Bass wants to house 15,000 homeless people in first year
2 years, 11 months ago

If elected mayor, Rep. Karen Bass wants to house 15,000 homeless people in first year

LA Times  

L.A. mayoral candidate Rep. Karen Bass calls for 15,000 homeless people to be housed in her first year in office. Bass unveiled a plan Friday calling for 15,000 people to be housed in her first year in office — though she didn’t specify exactly what proportion of those people would go into permanent housing, as opposed to interim housing such …

Rep. Karen Bass is planning a run for L.A. mayor in 2022, sources say
3 years, 3 months ago

Rep. Karen Bass is planning a run for L.A. mayor in 2022, sources say

LA Times  

Rep. Karen Bass intends to announce a run for L.A. mayor in June 2022, according to sources with knowledge of her plans. U.S. Rep. Karen Bass intends to launch a campaign for Los Angeles mayor, joining a field of candidates that has rapidly grown over the last week, according to three people familiar with her plans. If Bass enters the …

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