Bass proposes $14.9 billion LA budget with no layoffs

Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass on Tuesday unveiled a $14.9 billion budget proposal that includes no layoffs or furloughs, a sharp reversal from last year's plan that called for eliminating 1,600 city positions, according to ABC7.

The proposal, which still requires City Council approval, arrives as Bass faces three challengers in the June 2 mayoral primary. For OC residents who commute to or conduct business in Los Angeles, the city's spending decisions shape public safety and services across the broader Southern California region.

The budget maintains current firefighter staffing, hires 510 LAPD officers to replace those lost to retirements and departures, and increases spending on street, sidewalk and street light repairs, ABC7 reported. Bass cited upcoming major events as justification for expanding police capacity.

"In a few short weeks we're going to have the World Cup here and in another couple of years we will have the Olympics," Bass said, according to ABC7.

The mayor also addressed broader LAPD staffing levels. "For the nation's second-largest city, our force overall is relatively small, which is why we have the overtime hours and all of that," she said.

The proposal maintains the Inside Safe homelessness program at prior-year funding levels. ABC7 reported the program has contributed to reductions in street homelessness across the city.

City Council member Nithya Raman, a mayoral challenger, offered pointed criticism of the turnaround. "The mayor is required to provide a balanced budget, and last year she delivered a budget that had a billion-dollar budget deficit that then planned for 1,600 layoffs in order to balance that budget," Raman told ABC7. She also pointed to deferred infrastructure work: "It's why streetlights are taking a year to repair on average. It's why our road conditions are worse than they have been in years."

Two other candidates — tech entrepreneur Adam Miller and reality TV personality Spencer Pratt — are also competing in the June 2 primary, ABC7 reported.

The budget proposal now moves to the City Council for review ahead of the June 2 mayoral primary, where Bass's fiscal record is expected to remain a central issue.