BLUE CITY BLUES: LA mayor: $800M deficit, layoffs coming, seeking bailout.
“Cities like ours are going through challenging economic times across the nation,” said Bass. “Turmoil and uncertainty from Washington and a slowing economy are causing lower revenue projections.”
With 61,455 employees, 1,647 layoffs equate to a workforce reduction of 2.7%. With just over $8.3 billion paid out in payroll last year, the city pays its employees an average of $135,355 per year, or more than double the median citywide salary of $57,247 per year.
This means the announced layoffs would only cover about a quarter of the at least $800 million deficit.
During her State of the City address Monday, Bass said she is traveling to Sacramento to seek a state bailout, but if the state is either unwilling or unable to fund such a bailout amid falling sales and corporate tax revenue and employment, more layoffs could be necessary.
“The city attorney and I will be in Sacramento this week to meet with legislative leaders and advocate for resources while also working to manage the increasing liabilities,” said Bass.
City Controller Kenneth Mejia has been warning the city is “going broke” since the middle of last year — the city’s budget was in crisis even before the January fires.
Related: LA mayor brags about ‘fastest recovery’ in CA history, home permits down by two-thirds. “Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass bragged about the city’s post-fire recovery being the ‘fastest’ in state history, but data from Hilgard Analytics shows home permitting is down by two-thirds since 2022, when the city passed a major transfer tax on all real estate over $5 million.”
But the city’s revenue problems are somehow Trump’s fault, according to Bass.