LOS ANGELES - The Los Angeles City Council voted today to adopt the Citys $11.8 billion budget for the 2022-2023 fiscal year. Budget and Finance Committee Chair Paul Krekorian won the Councils approval of a spending plan that restores fiscal stability after a tumultuous two years.The City and our budget have bounced back with a very strong recovery since the COVID pandemic devastated our finances, said Krekorian, who has chaired the Budget Committee for the last ten years. This budget addresses the publics top priorities by increasing public safety, effectively responding to homelessness, spurring economic growth and jobs, and restoring basic city services that have suffered severe cutbacks in recent years.
Recognizing the uncertain state of global events, the national economy and the pace of local recovery, Krekorian noted the importance of fiscal responsibility. In addition to restoring services, the budget maintains a reserve of over $650 million, which will continue to be an essential protection against devastating cuts and layoffs in the event of future downturns, he said.
Some highlights of the Budget Committees recommendations include:
Responding to Homelessness: The budget substantially increases funding for housing and services, including adding more CARE+ teams that clean around encampment sites and help the unhoused move to safer shelter or permanent housing.
Keeping the Public Safe: The LAPD budget increases by over 8 percent. The Budget Committees recommendations fully fund police overtime and allow police hiring to the maximum capacity that the Academy can handle. This will allow the department to grow beyond attrition and put more cops on the street, while also funding unarmed response reforms, community safety partnerships, and improved training. The recommendations also added an extra class of firefighters to ensure LAFD hiring remains strong.
Staffing Up for Better Service: Many departments are understaffed and services have suffered. The new budget beefs up the Personnel Department so it can fill funded vacancies faster. The budget also expands the wildly successful Targeted Local Hire program that gives unhoused people and others who have struggled to find employment an opportunity to prepare for entry-level public service career jobs working for the city. With the new budget, the City will have more crews for street cleaning, street lighting, tree trimming, sidewalk repair and traffic safety. More staff means faster response time to service requests.
Maintaining Fiscal Responsibility: At the same time, the new budget keeps more than $650 million in reserve to prepare for challenges the City could face in the coming year, including inflation, higher interest rates, international turmoil or another pandemic.