The city of LA has a Recall Petition Handbook. It’s time to use it.
Recall Petition Rationale
- The City of LA slashed the firefighters’ budget and sent firefighting equipment to Ukraine while inappropriately allocating $450,000 for ridiculous causes.
- L.A. Fire Chief Kristen Crowley noted in a December Report “These budgetary reductions have adversely affected the Department’s ability to maintain core operations, such as technology and communication infrastructure, payroll processing, training, fire prevention, and community education.”
- The cutbacks “severely limited the Department’s capacity to prepare for, train for, and respond to large-scale emergencies, including wildfires, earthquakes, hazardous material incidents, and large public events.”
- “Delayed maintenance, updates or repairs to critical systems jeopardizes the ability to answer 911 calls, endanger frontline firefighters’ ability to communicate, and compromises public safety during emergencies.”
- “Fire Prevention Bureau (FPB): Inability to complete required brush clearance inspections, which are crucial for mitigating fire risks in high-hazard areas.“
- “Reduction in residential dwelling (R1/R2) inspections, jeopardizing compliance with fire safety regulations in residential occupancies.”
- “The LAFD remains steadfast in its mission to protect the residents of Los Angeles; however, these reductions have compromised the Department’s ability to maintain essential 911 systems, fire and emergency medical communications systems, respond to emergencies, and provide specialized services.”
The LA fires will go down as the one of the biggest natural disasters in US history.
Budget Cutting Background
The Intercept provides the Budget Cutting Background.
In June, Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass signed an adopted $12.8 billion budget that cut the fire department’s funding by more than $17.5 million, or around 2 percent of the previous year’s budget of $837 million. It was the second-largest departmental operating cut to come out of the city’s 2024-25 fiscal year budget, which shaved funding from the majority of city departments — but not the police. The Los Angeles Police Department received a funding bump of nearly $126 million.
“What is currently happening and unfolding is what we have been warning about,” said Ricci Sergienko, a lawyer and organizer with People’s City Council LA. “The consistent defunding of other city programs in order to give the LAPD billions a year has consequences, and these elected officials do actually have blood on their hands.”
Gross Mismanagement of City Funds
While slashing funds for firefighters, the city spent hundreds of thousands of dollars for Gay Choirs, Trans Cafes and Social Justice Art
The City of Los Angeles cut funding for its fire department and allocated thousands of dollars to various progressive programs, including a “Midnight Stroll Transgender Cafe” and a Gay Men’s Chorus.
Los Angeles allocated $100,000 to the Civil + Human Rights and Equity Department for a “Midnight Stroll Transgender Cafe,” according to its 2024 to 2025 budget.
Similarly, the Cultural Affairs Department Special Appropriations budget allocated $100,000 for the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) Awards.
The budget also appropriated $8,670 for the “One Institute the International Gay and Lesbian Archives.”
The ONE Archives at the University of Southern California (USC) Libraries currently has an exhibit titled “Sci-fi, Magick, Queer L.A.: Sexual Science and the Imagi-Nation,” which focuses on the occult and “the LGBTQ movement.”
The budget also allocated $13,000 for “Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender Heritage Month Programs” and $14,010 to the “Gay Men’s Chorus of Los Angeles.”
Los Angeles’ African American History Month, American Indian Heritage Month, Latino Heritage Month and Asian American History Month Programs were each allocated $13,000.
The budget also appropriated $170,000 in total for “Social Justice Art-Worker Investments.”
Summation
- $100,000 for a “Midnight Stroll Transgender Cafe”
- $100,000 for the NAACP Awards
- $8,670 for the “One Institute the International Gay and Lesbian Archives” which currently has an exhibit titled “Sci-fi, Magick, Queer L.A.: Sexual Science and the Imagi-Nation,” focusing on the occult and “the LGBTQ movement.”
- $13,000 for “Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender Heritage Month Programs”
- $14,010 to the “Gay Men’s Chorus of Los Angeles”
- $52,000 total for the Los Angeles’ African American History Month, American Indian Heritage Month, Latino Heritage Month and Asian American History Month Programs allocated $13,000 each.
- $170,000 in total for “Social Justice Art-Worker Investments.”
That’s a total of over $457,000 while slashing the fire department budget by more than $17.5 million
Pull Out the Recall Handbook
Please Consider the LA Recall Handbook
The petition process empowers voters to propose City ordinances, City Charter amendments, the recall of City officials and Los Angeles Unified School District (LAUSD) Board Members, and other measures. A successful petition can place the issue in question before voters. The rules governing petition processes are set forth in the Charter of the City of Los Angeles (Charter) and the Los Angeles City Election Code (EC), as well as applicable provisions of the California Election Code (CEC) and California Government Code.
Recall Petition – Allows proponents to file a petition seeking removal of certain City officials and LAUSD Board Members. If a successful petition is filed, the question of removal is submitted to the voters along with a list of candidates nominated to succeed the person whose removal is sought. [Charter §§ 430-438].
Petition Circulation/Signature Gathering
The number of signatures required for initiative petitions is 15% of the total votes cast for all candidates for Office of Mayor at which a Mayor was elected prior to the filing of the petition. [Charter § 451(b)]. Multiple petition sections may be circulated but only one person shall circulate each petition section. The City Clerk will only accept the signatures which have been collected within 120 days of the filing date.
Any incumbent of an elected office, whether elected by vote of the people or appointed to fill a vacancy, may be removed from office by the registered voters of the City of Los Angeles, or the registered voters of the LAUSD in the case of removal of an LAUSD Board member. Certain appointed City officials may also be removed from office. The removal of the incumbent shall be known as the recall. [Charter §§ 430-440; EC §§ 700-704, 718-726].
Time to File a Recall Petition
O.K. Los Angeles, it’s time to file a recall petition.
Then you have 120 days to gather the requited signatures.
That shouldn’t be hard.
Think About Governor Newsom Too
@RobertMSterling explains “Basically, California voters passed a law in 1988 called Proposition 103, which made it way harder for insurance companies to operate in the state without getting their asses kicked.”
There’s much more in Sterling’s comment on X.
Kamala Harris blames the insurance companies for fleeing the state. State Farm pulled out of Pacific Palisades entirely.
But insurance flight can be blamed on the state.