With the City Council about 11 days away from entering its summer recess, members Friday agreed to provide the city attorney $250,000 to retain outside legal counsel and address litigation that may arise in response to federal action taken during their month off.
In a 9-1 vote, council members approved a request from City Attorney Hydee Feldstein-Soto, who asked for appropriate funding for outside counsel to assist in litigation, investigations or other activities based on actions by the federal government when the City Council is in recess.
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Council members Bob Blumenfield, Tim McOsker, Curren Price, Nithya Raman and Yaroslavsky were absent during the vote. Councilman Adrin Nazarian was the lone no vote on the matter.
The City Council approved the request, but capped such funding to $250,000 per an amendment introduced by Councilwoman Katy Yaroslavsky, who serves as the chair of the Budget and Finance Committee.
The amendment also requested the city attorney to consider legal firms willing to provide pro bono legal support. Additionally, outside counsel will be limited to representation of city employees or officials -- in response to federal action initiated between July 2 and July 30.
The City Council is expected to take summer recess during that time frame.
The city is facing mounting lawsuits from protesters and journalists, who alleged police brutality and violations of their rights under state and federal laws during anti-immigration enforcement protests.
A preliminary report from City Administrative Officer Matt Szabo estimated that the city incurred nearly $20 million in costs related to anti- immigration enforcement protests. Roughly $17 million is for costs related to the LAPD -- and of that about $11.7 million was tied to overtime.
The remaining $3 million comes from other city departments providing emergency response. The city has estimated an initial $1.4 million in damages to buildings, infrastructure and equipment, as well as graffiti.
Meanwhile, City Controller Kenneth Mejia estimated that figure to be closer to $32 million.
In a social media post, the controller said $29.5 million of 92% of that money relates to LAPD's response to protests against ICE including citywide tactical alert costs, and $1.4 million relates to clean-up and public property damage.
His estimate did not factor in potential lawsuits.
On Wednesday, the City Council authorized a $5 million loan from the reserve fund to partially cover overtime Los Angeles Police Department officers accrued while responding to anti-immigration enforcement protests in downtown.
Elected officials are expected to allocate dollars in the reserve fund for this loan, the only source of funding to address overtime concerns, according to the motion.
The loan is subject to Mayor Karen Bass' approval.
Amid economic challenges, the City Council and Mayor Bass recently approved an approximately $14 billion budget for the 2025-26 fiscal year, which cut spending in some areas and includes cost-saving measures to address a $1 billion deficit, but is larger than the $12.9 billion budget for the 2024-25 fiscal year.
The budget calls for slightly more than 600 layoffs, which are expected to begin at the start of the next fiscal year on July 1.
The deficit was partially caused by overspending, new labor contracts, and rising liability costs in connection with complaints filed against the LAPD. These settlements have prompted elected officials to dip into the reserve fund, a rainy day account for emergencies.
Some City Council members have expressed concerns about the LAPD's response to anti-immigration enforcement protests and the impacts overtime will have on the city's already constrained budget.
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