April 3, 2025

The Best Source of News, Culture, Lifestyle for Culver City, Mar Vista, Del Rey, Palms and West Los Angeles

LA County’s 2017-18 Budget Includes Spending to Reduce Homelessness

Los Angeles County’s $30 billion proposed budget for the 2017-18 fiscal year unveiled Monday includes $355 million in spending intended to reduce homelessness, nearly $100 million in criminal justice reforms and more than $1 billion in infrastructure spending, including progress on a new downtown jail.

The spending blueprint also includes funding to hire 220 additional social workers to reduce child welfare caseloads, Chief Executive Officer Sachi Hamai told reporters.

“It focuses on progress and people, expands the services to the most vulnerable, accelerates innovation in health care, advances criminal justice reforms and continues to commit to responsible fiscal practices,” she said.

Hamai warned that spending could shift due to uncertainties about funding at state and federal levels.

However, an anticipated $355 million in new revenue from voter-approved Measure H should give the county lots of running room on one of its most important priorities, reducing homelessness.

That money will go to fund 21 strategies to fight homelessness and is projected “to assist 45,000 families and individuals to escape homelessness, while preventing 30,000 others from becoming homeless in the measure’s first five years,” Hamai said.

Those numbers amount to getting 96 percent of those currently homeless into housing, while working to prevent an increase in their numbers.

A new five-year healthcare initiative, dubbed Whole Person Care, will focus on the “sickest, most vulnerable” Medi-Cal patients in the county, which could also include those living on the street. The budget includes $90 million to launch that program.

Mental health is also highlighted, with $3.7 million earmarked for a triage call desk and 19 new positions on mental evaluation teams within the Sheriff’s Department.

Criminal justice reforms include $90 million in spending on jail diversion and re-entry programs for mentally ill individuals and those with substance abuse problems. Hamai said those dollars went unspent last year.

However, the CEO was confident about the county’s ability to put Measure H funds to work and to hire 635 new county employees across various departments in the coming year.

Those new hires would include enough child welfare social workers to bring caseloads down to 19 children per employee, according to Hamai.

The Department of Children and Family Services is also poised to hire 107 support personnel and another 58 positions focused on improving mental health care for children in the system.

In all, the budget reflects an increase of $137 million over last year’s total, though Measure H adds more than 2 1/2 times that amount to county revenues.

Hamai called her department’s economic forecast “cautiously optimistic” in a letter to the Board of Supervisors, which will review the budget proposal Tuesday.

Property taxes are preliminarily estimated to rise roughly 5.8 percent, with statewide sales taxes forecast to increase by 3.5 percent.

At the same time, Gov. Jerry Brown indicated in his proposed budget that the state has and will continue to fall short of forecasted revenues, leading to a $1.7 billion shortfall for the 2017-18 fiscal year.

President Donald Trump is not expected to release his detailed budget proposal until May.

However, his blueprint calls for federal cuts of more than 10 percent to both health and human services and urban development, both of which would eliminate funding for a number of county programs.

Supervisor Kathryn Barger, in a statement later in the day, said she would propose additional strategies to ensure the board acts as “responsible stewards of taxpayer funds.”

Barger previewed a motion asking the CEO to work with county lawyers to evaluate additional safeguards in the budgeting process, including cost offsets for new funding proposals and an increase in the county’s “rainy day” fund.

“The board’s adherence to a conservative budgeting approach has helped the county weather fiscal crises and economic downturns — such as the Great Recession — without layoffs, furloughs, or extensive cuts in service provision,” Barger said.

“Although the county has recently enjoyed several years of economic growth, given the fiscal uncertainty and financial pressures currently facing the county, it is important for the board to evaluate whether there are additional best practices that could further strengthen the county’s financial position.”

Los Angeles County’s budget is larger than that of a majority of states, but roughly 40 percent of it comes from federal and state funding sources.

County departments have been asked to submit budget-reduction proposals in the event that federal and state dollars are cut.

“Although it our hope that budget reductions can be avoided, the county must, and will, be prepared to act, if necessary,” the CEO said in a statement.

Public hearings on the county spending plan are scheduled to begin May 17.

bn-homeless91616

Related Posts

Saijo Hand Roll Rolls into Culver City with Premium Japanese Ingredients

April 2, 2025

April 2, 2025

Binchotan-Fired Perfection: Saijo Rolls Out Premium Sushi in West LA A new destination for hand rolls and Japanese culinary craftsmanship...

(Video) Check Out Bernie’s, a New Pop Up at Citizen Public Market in Culver City

April 2, 2025

April 2, 2025

Made with fresh frozen fruit and a toasted merengue topping these flavors are irresistible. The pop up will be at...

From Cocktails to Coffee: U.S. Tariffs Threaten Imports, Jobs, and Your Grocery Bill

April 2, 2025

April 2, 2025

Major Price Hikes Expected for Coffee, Wine, Chocolate, and Butter  A sweeping new set of tariffs announced by former President...

Levain Bakery to Open Venice Location with Special Guests and Charitable Twist

April 2, 2025

April 2, 2025

Bigger Than a Cookie: Levain’s Venice Opening Is a Flavorful Fundraiser Levain Bakery, the cult-favorite cookie destination founded in New...

LAX Airport Server Finds Hate-Filled Message From Unidentified Diners

April 2, 2025

April 2, 2025

Waiter Says He Was Stunned by the Message Left by Customers Guillermo Ortiz, who works at Planet Hollywood inside the...

Sunset Strip Staple Le Petit Four Shuts Down After Landlord Pulls the Plug

April 2, 2025

April 2, 2025

End of an Era: Le Petit Four Forced to Close in West Hollywood In a stunning reversal to the upbeat...

Metro LA Pushes Back Sepulveda Transit Community Meetings

April 2, 2025

April 2, 2025

Environmental Review Delay Prompts Metro to Reschedule  Metro announced that community meetings scheduled for early April to discuss the Sepulveda...

County Board Approves New Homeless Agency, Redirecting Millions from Existing System

April 2, 2025

April 2, 2025

With Billions on the Line, LA County Moves to Centralize Homeless Response Los Angeles County is making a dramatic shift...

Put the Phone Down: LAPD and CHP Targets Distracted Drivers in April Crackdown

April 1, 2025

April 1, 2025

Hands-Free Law Violations Could Now Cost You More Than Just a Fine Throughout April, the Los Angeles Police Department will...

Five Arrested in Culver City After Attempted Carjacking and Vandalism Incident

April 1, 2025

April 1, 2025

Gun, Warrants, and Broken Glass: Culver City Police Tackle Two Crimes Police arrested four juveniles in connection with an attempted...

Kim Delaney, Partner Cleared After Weekend Arrest in Marina del Rey

April 1, 2025

April 1, 2025

Emmy-Winning Actress and Partner James Morgan Released Kim Delaney, the Emmy-winning actress recognized for her roles in NYPD Blue and...

(Video) Spending an Afternoon at Pacific Park on the Santa Monica Pier

April 1, 2025

April 1, 2025

Go To Pacpark.com For Tickets and More Information. Go To https://t.co/fDDgcY6b3e For Tickets and More Information.#amusementpark #rides #rollercoaster #summer #spring...

Matū Kai to Debut in Brentwood With Grass Fed Wagyu and Global Flair This Week

April 1, 2025

April 1, 2025

Farm-To-Fork Beef, Wood-Fired Flavors, and Sustainability Meet on San Vicente The team behind Beverly Hills’ acclaimed steakhouse Matū will soon...

Mid-City Freeway Death Under Investigation After Caltrans Workers Find Blanket-Covered Body

April 1, 2025

April 1, 2025

Woman Discovered on 10 Freeway Shoulder Identified; CHP Launches Probe Caltrans workers discovered a woman’s dead body around 9:00 a.m....

Community Support Saves Beloved West Hollywood Café from Closure

March 31, 2025

March 31, 2025

Packed Tables and Emotional Messages Helped Keep the Doors Open Le Petit Four, the popular Sunset Boulevard café known for...