Over the past few weeks, I’ve shared the tough fiscal reality our city is facing and the steps we’re taking to address it. With the Mayor’s proposed budget expected next month, my focus has been on aligning priorities across Council and City leadership so we’re prepared for the upcoming budget hearings.

As I shared last week, I introduced legislation to create an independent Budget Advisory Group made up of outside experts who can help us bring new tools and long-term thinking to our budget process. I also joined Council President Harris-Dawson in sending a letter to budget officials outlining our top priorities for this year’s budget: developing a multiyear budgeting plan and a long-term infrastructure investment strategy, rebuilding the reserve fund, reducing liability costs, making better use of city assets, aligning department staffing with operational needs, and strengthening our revenue base to make the city more resilient to economic downturns—all with the goal of focusing resources more effectively on core city services.

This week, I brought that message to Sacramento, joining the Mayor, Council President, and Councilmembers Blumenfield and Nazarian to meet with the Governor, legislative leadership, and key budget chairs. We made the case that Los Angeles needs—and deserves—a strong state partnership in this moment. We’re still recovering from the largest natural disaster in California history. We’re preparing to host the Olympic and Paralympic Games. And our regional economy accounts for a quarter of the state’s GDP. When LA struggles, the effects ripple across the entire state.

Following our visit, 23 members of the LA County State Legislative Delegation submitted a letter in support of our $1.893 billion request for fire recovery and resilience funding. I also raised the importance of liability reform. Every dollar we spend on legal settlements—most of which goes to lawyers—is a dollar we can’t spend on basic services, and limiting liability claims is one of the clearest ways the State can help relieve budget pressure without writing a check. We can use the money saved to fix sidewalks and roads, repair street lights, and any number of other core city functions that we currently can’t fully fund.

This work won’t be finished in a single year. But each step is about moving us toward a more stable and functional city government. If we can make the hard decisions now, we’ll be in a stronger position next year to reset, rebuild our reserves, and start moving forward with a more responsive, effective, and efficient city government.

This was my first time in Sacramento as a Councilmember, and it underscored just how much coordination it’s going to take to navigate this moment. I’ll keep doing everything I can to push for real solutions, and I’ll continue to keep you in the loop as we go.

All my best,
Katy

This week, the City Council and the Ad Hoc Committee on the Olympic and Paralympic Games approved the latest venue plan for the 2028 Games. LA28’s revised plan shifts several events out of Los Angeles—including swimming to SoFi Stadium in Inglewood, basketball to the Intuit Dome, equestrian to Temecula, and canoe slalom to Oklahoma City. While the vast majority of events will still take place in Los Angeles, these changes reflect an effort to keep costs down and reduce new construction by making greater use of existing venues.

I supported the changes with amendments focused on increasing public oversight. We called for an independent economic analysis of the revised plan, stronger commitments to cost transparency, and a clear reaffirmation of the City’s authority to review future changes. I also raised concerns about transit funding and urged LA28 to build in safeguards so Metro isn’t left to absorb costs if federal support falls short. Moving forward, my focus is on ensuring transparency, accountability, and local coordination with LA28 so the City has a clear understanding of the financial risks involved and can take all necessary steps to mitigate them responsibly.

This week, I voted to advance a series of actions that improve how the City supports immigrant residents—at work, in public spaces, and when interacting with City departments. These efforts will help ensure people know their rights, including protections against unlawful detention, how to avoid immigration fraud, and where to find legal and community-based support. We also directed City departments to improve how they handle U-Visa requests for survivors of violent crime, and to analyze how best to share enforcement-related information with workers and employers.

This week, Metro approved a motion I introduced to pilot a new station activation program focused on increasing safety in our stations. The pilot will bring programming like food vendors and other businesses, art installations, and partnerships with nearby cultural institutions to high-traffic stations, starting with the three new Purple Line stops—La Brea/Wilshire, Fairfax/Wilshire, and La Cienega/Wilshire—set to open this Fall. It also includes a request for more regular community updates and feedback sessions to those who live in the neighborhoods surrounding the new stations, a TAP card art contest to better connect riders to the system and calls for regular updates on the status of activation efforts so the Metro Board can track what works and make changes as needed. This is part of a broader effort to make Metro safer, more reliable, and more welcoming for the people who rely on it every day.