For the past few weeks, I’ve shared a lot about the financial crisis we’re facing as a City and how I’m approaching my work as Chair of the City Council’s Budget Committee. This week, I want to shift gears a bit and walk you through the process of how the City budget actually gets made, and where you can make your voice heard.

Tomorrow, the Mayor will release her proposed budget for the next fiscal year. She and her team have spent the past several weeks figuring out how to fund policy priorities, keep essential services running, and close a $1 billion shortfall. That proposal is the Council's starting point. From there, we will begin several weeks of hearings to review the draft, ask questions, and make changes.

We begin with two formal public comment sessions—one on April 25 in Van Nuys, and another on April 28 at City Hall. We scheduled the first one in the Valley to make it easier for folks who live farther from Downtown to participate. As I mentioned last week, my office is also hosting three Community Conversations across CD5 this week to hear directly from you. If you haven’t RSVP’d yet, there’s still time to join. What I hear in those conversations and during public comment will help inform how I approach this process at every step.

Here’s where things get more complicated. After public comment, we move into departmental hearings, starting April 29 and running through mid-May. Each day, my colleagues and I on the Budget Committee will hear directly from City departments about how the Mayor’s proposed budget affects their operations, staffing, and services. These conversations can get technical, but they’re essential to understanding how the Mayor’s proposed budget and any changes thereto would play out on the ground, and what changes are warranted.

After those hearings, the City’s Chief Legislative Analyst prepares hundreds of memos. Some recommend funding adjustments. Others dig into how a program works or evaluate the feasibility of moving money from one account to another. Once we’ve reviewed those memos, the committee votes on which changes to adopt. The CLA then works with the City Administrative Officer to produce a final report summarizing those revisions. That report comes back to the committee for approval, and then it heads to the full Council for a final vote. Per the City Charter, the Council must pass a budget by June 1, 2025. Once the Council finalizes the budget, it goes to the Mayor for her signature. 

There’s a lot of work ahead, and I know the process isn’t always easy to follow. I’ll do my best to keep you updated at each step and to make sure the decisions we’re making are clear and easy to track. I hope to see you at one of our conversations next week!

All my best,
Katy

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