Budget Woes Leave LA in Choppy Waters
Mayor Karen Bass may have drifted into office on a high tide of optimism, but after being rocked by wave after wave of public scrutiny, some are wondering if LA has been too quick to let her off the hook.
Facing a nearly $1 billion budget shortfall, LA’s finances are floundering in deep water—the proposed 2025–26 budget would net over 2,700 city jobs—about 1,650 of them through layoffs. While the Fire Department would be allocated new hires after the devastating Palisades fire, agencies like Animal Services, Transportation, and Sanitation would see their ranks gutted.
At the LAPD, more than 400 civilian workers are being thrown overboard, raising alarms that sworn officers could be pulled off the streets to swim through paperwork. Councilmember Katy Yaroslavsky called the plan “problematic,” suspecting it’s a tactic to pressure unions during ongoing labor negotiations.
Critics argue that while Bass continues to cast a wide net of initiatives across City Hall, the catch of the day is often less than palatable. Housing developments remain tangled in bureaucracy—snared in red tape that clings like a six-pack plastic ring to a struggling city budget.
And constituents trying to get ahold of her have found that Bass can be slippery when it comes to direct engagement—diving deep to avoid the bait of tough questions, delegating hard inquiries to spokespeople, or staying vague about controversial policies.
Supporters, however, claim the mayor is simply swimming upstream against entrenched political currents. They point to her preservation of library and recreation center hours, and her climate “cabinet” efforts as evidence she’s still fighting for the city.
Still, moves like axing the Climate Emergency Mobilization Office—established after years of advocacy from frontline communities—have left even her former allies hooked on hope, only to be cast aside into murky waters. Environmental justice leaders warned that deleting the office could cost the city a critical heat action grant and weaken LA’s climate resilience.
When Bass was a big fish in a small pond—back in her activist and legislator days—she was praised for her accessibility and grassroots passion. Riding a wave of community support, she built a reputation as a responsive, hands-on leader.
Now, at the helm of a sprawling city adrift in crises, Bass seems to be fishing for solutions in all the wrong ponds, leaving that earlier version of her a distant ripple.
Meanwhile, layoffs and service cuts threaten to leave Angelenos dead in the water. Councilmember Eunisses Hernandez warned it already takes the city 10 years to fix a sidewalk and five years to install a single handicapped curb—a timeline that’s sinking faster than a lead lure.
As Bass swims to Sacramento to lobby for state aid, critics wonder: are we reeling in real reform, or just getting fed the same old line while the big fish slips away?
For now, Los Angeles seems willing to let Bass off the hook. But unless bold solutions surface fast, voters may soon be angling elsewhere—hoping, finally, for some real Bass relief.
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If Republicans are thinking of running lying billionaire MAGA Rick Caruso against Bass again next year, then please enjoy another 4 years of Mayor Bass! 🌈
THe homeless encampments west of the old dollar store near La Brea are goe, The hinekss tents just north of Fountain in L.A. are gone. This hit piece is not West Hollywood news. It is right wing propaganda.
I’ve seen worse politicians than Bass be reelected based only on name recognition and intersectional status. Her race and gender alone increase her odds. Most voters pay no attention at all to the issues and will go to the voting booth having no knowledge of her record.
What does this have to do woh West Hollywood?
Her political career is over. Total and utter failure.