Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors Meeting

relationships with Native peoples and local tribal governments, including in no particular order. Fernandeno Tataviam Band of Mission Indians, Gabrielino Tongva Indians of California Tribal Council, Gabrioleno Tongva San Gabriel Band of Mission Indians, Gabrielenio Band of Mission Indians Kish Nation, To learn more about the First Peoples of Los Angeles County, please visit the Los Angeles City-County Native American Indian Commission website at lanaic.lacounty.gov Thank you. And with that, this morning's invocation will be led by our very own Nicole Lee from the Executive Office followed by the Pledge of Allegiance which will be led by Arturo Garcia Ayala former E-Force Specialist United States Army from the 4th District. If you are able please join us and stand.

Good morning. Our Heavenly Father, we ask your blessing upon this Board of Supervisors today. We pray that all of the many decisions made today are with your guidance and blessing. We pray that a greater understanding of the problems of county government by the citizens of this county will result from this meeting. We ask these things in thy name. Amen.

Thank you. Pledge of Allegiance.

Good morning. Please face the flag. Place your right hand over your heart. If you're a veteran, you may render a hand salute and join me in the Pledge of Allegiance.

Thank you, Madam Chair. It's a pleasure for me today to welcome and honor and thank Arturo Garcia Ayala, a United States Army veteran for leading us in the Pledge of Allegiance this morning. Please give him another round of applause. I missed it. Did they thank you? Did they applaud? Okay, okay. I missed it. Arturo proudly served our nation from 2002 to 2009 as an infantry rifleman with the 4th Brigade, 10th Mountain Division and completed deployments in both Afghanistan and Iraq. During his service, Arturo earned numerous military honors including the Combat Infantry Badge, the Army Achievement Medal, the Army Good Conduct Medal And campaign medals for both Afghanistan and Iraq. Look at the medals that he is displaying on his jacket, very impressive.

And today Arturo continues to serve our community as a professional photographer. He has documented countless events and celebrations throughout San Pedro preserving the stories and memories that make our community so special. Arturo is also an ambassador for our San Pedro Chamber of Commerce and serves as the Veterans Liaison for the Korean Bell of Friendship, continuing his lifelong commitment to bringing people together and serving our community. Thank you, Arturo, for your service to our country, your continued dedication to the Harbor Area, and for joining us today to lead us in our Pledge of Allegiance. We are grateful for all that you do And on behalf of my colleagues here in the board, we wanted to give you this County of Los Angeles Certificate of Appreciation for joining us today.

All right, today June gloom is over and the dog days of summer are here. I want you all to meet Dinky a 10-month old Cane Corso boxer mix who was transferred from Palmdale to Agora in May and whereas Dinky is not dinky so you will He's coming, but believe me he will not. He's not dinky. But while he's walking in I just want to remind people I mean the Palmdale and Antelope Valley Lancaster seem to be where we're getting a lot of the dogs from and I'm really focused on spay and neuter But this is Dinky. He is very, very playful do not let his size fool you and do not be intimidated by him because he actually doesn't realize just how big he is and is the sweetest dog sits will shake hands And he is a helper dog at the shelter. He's a dog that they use to determine the temperament of other dogs that are brought in, and he gets along with everybody.

When he's not romping around the play yard, he's contempt cuddling by your side. He thinks he is a lapdog but he is definitely a keeper for someone Yeah, but he does get along with other dogs and again is the helper dog at Agoura right now. So when they have new dogs, he kind of figures out their temperament and welcomes them to the shelter. If you want to adopt Dinky, you can call the Agoura Care Center at 818-991-0071 to make Dinky yours. And again, sweetest, sweetest dog with a great temperament So please, if you will know this one really all of them but this one especially and then his coloring is tortoise shell. He's just absolutely a beautiful dog And now, please turn your attention to the screen for our pet from Palmdale.

Meet Blackie. He's half German Shepherd, half Alaskan Husky and 100% the social butterfly up in the Antelope Valley. This two-year-old pup has a great personality and really enjoys meeting new people. He loves playtime, the outdoors and most of all getting attention. Call the Palmdale Care Center at 661-575-2888 to make Blackie one of your new best friends. And there is a promotion still going on. The Dog Days of Summer Promotion is happening until July 31st.

Adoption fees are waived for all dogs at all seven care centers. Visit animalcare.lacounty.gov to find the one for you. Thank you, Madam Chair. And thank you, Dinky.

All right. Thank you. Yeah. Executive Officer, please call the agenda.

Good morning Madam Chair, members of the board. Today's agenda will begin on page 2 consent calendar Board of Supervisors items 1 through 8. On item 4 supervisor Solis requests that this item be held also this includes a revision as indicated on the supplemental agenda. On item 6 this includes a revision as indicated on the supplemental agenda. On item 7 supervisor Mitchell request that this item be held. On Item 8 supervisor Horvath would like to revise her motion to add supervisor Barger as co-author On page 10, administrative matters items 9 through 44. On item nine, Supervisor Mitchell requests that this item be revised to remove recommendation numbers 4 and 5. On items 23 and 24 on the motion to approve these items the board finds that the amendments further the purposes of chapter 2.190 of the Los Angeles County Code.

On page 32 special district agenda this is the agenda for the meeting of the Los Angeles County Development Authority items 1D through 3D On page 35, notice is a closed session item CS1 through CS5. On item CS1 this item was taken off calendar as indicated on the supplemental agenda. On item CS2 County Council requests that one case be continued one week to July 14th 2026 also this includes a revision as indicated on the supplemental agenda. On item CS5 this is an addition as indicated on the supplemental agenda On page 38, items continued from previous meetings for further discussion and action by the board. Item A1. On item A1, Supervisor Solis requests that this item be held.

The request for continuance revisions and items taken off calendar through A1 are before you. That completes the reading of the agenda Madam Chair.

Ladies and gentlemen, may I please have your attention. The meeting of the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors is about to commence. A code of conduct will now be read and we request that you comply with it to ensure the efficient administration of the meeting. Members of the public, it is your right to participate in today's board hearing and the Board encourages such participation. However, the right of the public to address the Board must be balanced with the need to ensure that public comment does not interfere with the orderly course of the Board's business.

All are reminded to abide by the following rules. Speakers must cease speaking immediately when their time has ended. Public comment on agenda items must relate to the subject matter of that item. General public comment is limited to subjects within the jurisdiction of the board. Public comment does not include the right to engage in a dialogue with board members or staff.

Please remain respectful of the forum and refrain from uttering, writing or displaying profane, personal, threatening, derogatory, demeaning or other abusive statements toward the board, any member thereof, staff or any other person. Members of the audience should be respectful of the views expressed by speakers, staff and board members and may not clap, cheer, whistle or otherwise disrupt the orderly conduct of the meeting.

Any person engaging in conduct that disrupts the meeting is subject to being removed from the board meeting. And finally, if you witness conduct or behavior by other members of the public that disrupts your ability to remain engaged or participate in this meeting, please notify the sergeant at arms or other county staff. Thank you for your cooperation.

And with that, today's meeting order will be the following. Public comment on items not held for discussion by the board including closed session matters followed by items four and seven then item A1 followed by general public comment and finishing up with closed session. Before we begin executive officer call please read the calling information and explain the speaking rules thank you

Good morning members of the public. If you wish to participate in public comment, you may do so in person or remotely. To participate remotely please visit our website at www.bos.lacounty.gov. To register and join the meeting or you may call 213-306-3065 and use access code 25342241284 and meeting password 2672026 You will have the opportunity to address the board throughout the meeting. For items not held by the board, you will receive one minute for one item and up to two minutes for two or more items. For items held by supervisors, you will have one minute to address the board and one minute to address the board on general public comment for a total of up to six minutes. When it is your turn to speak if registered on a computer or device, you will hear a beep and your name will be called.

Or, if joining by telephone you will hear your line is unmuted. Your area code and the last two digits of your phone number will be called. To ensure we hear from both in-person and remote speakers we will alternate between the two speaking cues. Members of the public who are in attendance when you hear or see your name displayed on the screen please come down to the front of the boardroom and staff will assist you. Please do not approach the podium until directed to do so. Also, for members of the public in attendance please note that we have a constituent assistance team that includes representatives from the Department of Mental Health, Public Social Services, Children and Family Services, LA Homeless Services Authority and Parks and Recreation in the audience should you need assistance from them.

At this time, we will hear from members of the public wishing to address the board on all items not held for discussion by supervisors including closed session matters. The consent items will be acted upon with one motion. For members of the public joining us remotely, to comment on these items please use the raise hand feature if you're online or press star 3 if on a telephone. Please indicate the agenda item numbers that you wish to address in the beginning of your comment for us to allocate the appropriate amount of time.

We will now call in-person speakers and while they are coming forward we will take remote speakers. This will be for all items not held by the board for discussion and closed session items. Cipriano Belser, Dana Coffey, Victor Tobar, Alcalina Soriano Verosa, Zachary Belsky, Cynthia Ayala, Brianna Maldona, Traz Koh please come forward. Arturo Garcia TNC your line is now unmuted please begin

Good morning. Can you hear me?

Yes, please begin

excellent dear cherished Lisa numbers the board. My name is Arturo Garcia and on behalf of the nature Conservancy Thank you for the opportunity to express support for the motion proclaiming July 2026 as parks make life better month as an organization dedicated to conserving the lands and waters upon which all life depends we see every day how parks provide far more than recreation.

Parks connect people with nature, improve community health and well-being, strengthen climate resilience and service critical gathering spaces during times of need. This motion appropriately recognizes the extraordinary role LA County Parks play in supporting residents not only through outdoor recreation and environmental stewardship but also through emergency response youth programming food assistance and community recovery efforts These services are especially important in ensuring that all residents regardless of zip code have access to safe welcoming public spaces.

We commend Chair Solis and the Department of Park and Recreation for highlighting the essential role parks play in both the good times and the hard times, and for their continued commitment to Los Angeles County communities. Thank you for your leadership.

Thank you. Elizabeth Decarteret your line is unmuted please begin. Hi, yes can you hear me? Yes please begin.

Okay thank you good morning Chair and Supervisors I'm speaking in opposition of item number four my name is Elizabeth Dicartere

Item 4 is being held for discussion you can get back in queue and have public comment when that item's discussed

Thank You Ben Reynoso your line is unmuted please begin

Hi, and thank you board for bringing forward item number 6. This is to permanently or secure funding for permanently funding the public health councils program as many of you know in some of the audience who may not. The public health councils program was created in partnership with the Department of Public Health and certified worker organizations back at the height of the pandemic in order to respond to the COVID-19 emergency.

Um, it has gone way beyond that. Now we started off with 5 industries being represented frontline essential grocery restaurants etcetera warehousing people who didn't get the opportunity to take work off and now fast forward we have 12 organizations 12 unique or not totalizations but on 12 unique sectors that are being served. And all of our friends and colleagues are here in the audience today, but I just wanted to thank the board for bringing this item forward. The infrastructure that's been created in partnership with Department of Public Health through the Office of Worker Health and Safety in partnership with the CWOs across LA County is invaluable and honestly a shining star for LA County and worker health and safety.

Thank you David Diaz your line isn't muted please begin.

Hi, good morning. My name is David Diaz. I'm the Executive Director of Active San Gabriel Valley. We're an environmental justice and public health non-profit headquartered in East Johnston County. We're calling to thank Supervisor Solis for putting forward the motion proclaiming July as Parks Make Life Better Month at LA County. As Executive Director of Active San Gabriel Valley, volunteer coach, and a parent of two kids under seven years old, I couldn't agree more that parks make life better and play such a vital role in well-being connection I want to give a big shout out to all the folks working at the Los Angeles County Parks and Recreation Department, and to Director Norma Garcia-Gonzalez for her leadership. Thank you again to Supervisors Feliz for putting this motion forward.

Thank you for your time and attention. Have a great week!

Thank you. Roy Humphries, your line is unmuted. Please begin.

Yes just a short and sweet here that the I believe it's item 8 on the child issues in your, the county's endeavors and expenditure on the child trafficking etc is abysmal and disgraceful disgusting. Thank you.

Thank You Claudia Cuadrino your line is unmuted please begin

Hi, good morning. My name is Claudia, Program Manager at the Los Angeles Neighborhood Land Trust. Our role as a non-profit is creating and stewarding parks and green spaces across LA County. So on behalf of LANLT we want to thank Supervisor Solis for introducing motion number three to recognize parks as essential public infrastructure not just amenities. Our parks are climate infrastructure cooling neighborhoods that face the worst heat Thank you.

Romeo Hebron, your line is unmuted. Please state the items you're speaking on and begin.

Good morning board I'm speaking on item six my name is Romeo Hebron executive director with the Filipino Migrant Center based in Long Beach. The Public Health Council's program has had an immense impact in being able to reach workers early on during the pandemic as well as beyond in recent years Most recently, we've been able to help residential care facility workers, caregivers fight a 2.3 and get and win a $2.3 million citation against their employer who was stealing their wages. We've also been helping trafficked caregivers as well in Lancaster, which ultimately led to the shutdown of the recruitment agency. And then most importantly or lastly this program has also helped us not just build other connections with worker centers but also build stronger and deeper relationships with LA County Department of Public Health and other county departments.

Thank you.

Thank you. Mary Nguyen, please state your name and the items you're speaking on and begin.

Hi, this is Mary Nguyen. I'm from the California Healthy Nail Salon Collaborative and I am the Policy and Research Manager at the California Healthy Nail Salon Collaborative which works with the Vietnamese licensed manicurists across California to support their safety health and livelihood in the workforce and their community. I am speaking on agenda item number six I would like to take a moment and ask the Board of Supervisors to continue Public Health Council program because it has supported our workers through COVID-19 and through the wildfires that happened in past year. We have been able to provide educational workshops and outreach as well as PPE for our members, especially in language So that they are aware of their rights and know how to advocate for themselves.

And also be protected and supported in the community, thank you.

Thank you. Speaker with phone number 3233 ending in 42, please state your name and the agenda item you're speaking on and begin.

Hi good morning my name is Amy I'm speaking on Item 6. I'm representing Edevska, a local worker center organization that works with day laborers and domestic workers. I'm also here in support of Supervisor Solis' request to find sustainable funding for the Public Health Council program which is led by L.A County's Public Health. So for Edevska this program has allowed us to have continued educational program and direct health services at our several day labor centers that are Throughout the city of L.A., through this program, we've also been able to provide pertinent health education to domestic workers on a monthly basis and this approach has allowed local CBO's to continue to partner with the local public health department to continue providing timely education and resources for these workers like vaccine clinics and outreach in burn zones.

Thank you.

Thank you. Daisy Gonzalez your line is unmuted please state the agenda item you're speaking on and begin Hi, can you hear me? Yes. Please begin.

Hi my name is Daisy Gonzalez I'm with the Garment Workers Center. GWC organizes LA's apparel workers in an industry of over 30,000 workers and it's also an industry known for high rates of public health violations We're a proud participant in the PHC program, and the PHC program is an innovative model for enforcement. It empowers low-wage workers recognizing them as subjects matter experts to identify and address workplace hazards and violations through training, uh, to be able to form worker councils for peer support and to file complaints with environment.

Through this program, GDBC reached over 406 factories and formed 22 public health councils This is an infrastructure and frontline that has been applied during COVID wildfires and federal enforcement in immigrant communities. The PHC program has been addressing enforcement gaps and helping employers come into compliance, and we urge the board to approve the two.

Near the program

thank you Madam Chair there are no other remote speakers to address the board or remote participation for these items is now concluded. We will go to in person speakers please begin

good morning esteemed My name is Cipriano Belser. I'm the co-executive director of the Southern California Coalition for Occupational Safety and Health, and I'm here to speak to item six. I first want to thank Supervisor Solis' office for putting this motion forward. Um...I'm here to support the continued and permanent funding for the L.A. County Public Health Council's program. I've worked on this program since its inception, and have seen something truly unique and powerful develop over these last five years, um, that being the partnership between frontline workers, worker advocates, These relationships are unheard of elsewhere.

And they've enabled fast, effective responses to protect our county from many threats that have happened to public health. It would be a devastating blow for the county's ability to support hard-to-reach working people if this program is allowed to sunset. So we urge the supervisors to identify funding to keep this program alive. Thank you.

Thank you. Next speaker please?

Hello, good morning Supervisors. My name is Victor Tobar and I'm here to speak on behalf of the Worker Empowerment Community Network. Item 6 as you guys have all heard we're all advocating here for permanent funding on the PHC program. You've heard it from all different industries. We serve the restaurant industry but the PHC program has been able to connect a full network to all frontline workers, not just the restaurant workers that we've been able to provide in time resources and much needed help to those communities that were not able to take breaks during pandemics and during the wildfires. So we do ask that you consider permanently funding the program to allow us to continue to bring this support to those communities in need. Thank you.

Thank you, next speaker please. Good morning my name is Dana Coffey I'm associate director of LOSH that's the Labor Occupational Safety and Health Program UCLA. I'm here to comment on item six that's permanent funding for the public health councils since the Public Health Councils inception LOSH has served as a training and technical assistance provider to support the DPH and the community worker organizations We've seen the evolution of the program from the response to COVID-19 to a wide range of public health issues in the workplace.

And in addition to its many accomplishments, the Public Health Council's program has become well known among public health practitioners nationwide. It is the gold standard for how to do meaningful engagement between public health departments and workers and community based orgs. I commend the Board of Supervisors for seeing the vision and investing in this program for several years. And, I simply wanted to offer this context and perspective as you consider future funding. Thank you.

Hi, my name is Akilina Soriano-Versos. I'm the Executive Director of the Filipino Workers Center. Good morning and thank you. I am speaking on Item 6 in support of the Public Health Council's further funding. The Filipino Workers Center has been a part of the Public Health Council since the beginning of the program. It's really established critical infrastructure that both gets More quickly and effectively the resources from the county to essential workers, but also has really informed the Department of Public Health about things that are happening on the ground. And it's really important. The health of the workers is also really critical for the health of the public. because they also have critical experiences that are helping to keep everyone safe.

For example, in the restaurants and in food packing and in residential care facilities those are the industries that PwC had been reaching out to and we have been able to vaccinate so many more people to keep everyone.

Thank you next speaker please

Good morning esteemed board members. My name is Cynthia Ayala, I will be speaking on item six today this morning. I would like to thank you for giving us the opportunity to speak today and also to our organizations and our colleagues on this matter basically what we spoke on last couple weeks ago it's very important for us to continue the PHC program it's flourished immensely from the beginning from COVID And as we see right now with the wildfires and what's going on with factories burning down and folks getting in the midst of their lungs being affected, I believe in this program immensely how we talk to workers one-on-one daily. I'm an organizer that goes into these stores and folks that are from undocumented families and they do not know their rights from the workplace or in the state of California as well so we inform them every day.

We go in With our hearts full and our minds full as well to speak on for them and help them out in these events. And so we really hope you take this in consideration to continue the funding for this wonderful

Thank you, next speaker please. Good morning my name is Brianna Maldonado and I'm a community organizer with the Los Angeles Alliance for a New Economy and I am here today to strongly support sustainable and permanent funding for the PHC or Public Health Council's program. I come today as an organizer but I was here five years ago drawing stick figures outside of this office because I myself knew as a worker that this was essential for people like us Every day our team is on the ground talking to non-union grocery and retail workers throughout LA County. Through our conversations it is clear that low wage and essential workers bear the heaviest burdens, not just from unfair labor practices but from the severe public health and environmental hazards Whether it's navigating workplace violence due to immigration raids, harassment from employers, cuts from federal funding impacting their Medi-Cal, respiratory threats or even the recent Boyle Heights fire.

These workers are on the front lines. I urge you to permanently secure funding to protect our essential workforce. Thank you.

Good morning, ladies and gentlemen. My name is Zachary Bilski here today on behalf of the North Hollywood Neighborhood Council. I just want to thank you all for this opportunity. I do want to stand in agreement with Ms. Salas regarding item number three, parks absolutely make life better. That's what I'm here to discuss today regarding the Alexandria Park Tiny Home Village. I know y'all can't see this but it is located within North Hollywood's Valley Plaza The initiative is known as Hope of the Wall. It is a beautification project.

What we would like to see, we want to propose a beautification project for the area including the residents of the tiny home villages. We want to start with litter cleanup and by doing that we would launch litter removal days so how do we get the residents involved in something like that? Throughout the year, you guys know that there are special holidays like World Heart Day, International Overdose Awareness Day. These are great days to take advantage of and get the residents to be a part of something along with the community. Then we clean up and we commemorate the day with what you're looking at here.

Thank you. Next

speaker

please. Hi everyone, my name is Traz Ko. I am representing APAIT, a non-profit organization based in Los Angeles. Thank you so much Supervisor Solis for putting this on the agenda and I appreciate Department of Health for all the support that we've been getting. As a frontline outreach worker, we've been providing essential services for community members of different backgrounds from providing immigration relief and legal aid to distributing hygiene kits in food and water for unhoused people of LA. We need this funding to be able to sustain our services. My outreach specifically are for Chinese massage parlor workers the discrimination aggression and violence that they face is concerning to say the least and horrifying at most Our service have been able to find them resources such as therapy, health care, food resources and more.

Now more than ever we need the support of this board by way of advocating for our continued funding to be able to continue these vital resources for the most vulnerable. Thank you next speaker please

Hi, good morning. My name is Lisa Fu. I'm Executive Director of the California Healthy Nail Salon Collaborative and I'm also here to speak about the promise and importance of the Public Health Council Program. We work with the Vietnamese nail salon workforce in LA County who are 80% immigrant and refugee women and low-wage workers And LA County has the highest number of nail salons and nail salon workers in the whole entire country. And throughout Public Health Council program, we've actually developed a unique model of working with nail salons as hubs. And so they reach out and re-share out the information that we're sharing with them. So reaching hundreds of workers and nail salon owners throughout every month During the height of the pandemic we were the only organization in the state, in the country providing in-language support and information specifically for nail salons in Vietnamese.

We were the trusted point of information and contact through the work that we've done with PHC with COVID.

Thank

you next speaker

please Good morning Supervisors. My name is Sally Garcia, Deputy Executive Officer with the San Gabriel and Lower Los Angeles Rivers & Mounds Conservancy or RMC. And we strongly support item 3 designating July 2026 as Parks Make Lives Better Month As an agency dedicated to expanding open space, watershed health and low-impact recreation across Los Angeles County we know firsthand that parks are not just amenities.

They are essential public infrastructure for health climate resilience and community well-being. We thank the board for its continued leadership in prioritizing equitable access to nature, and we look forward to working alongside county to ensure all of our communities can thrive in safe, vibrant outdoor spaces this July and all year long. Thank you.

Thank you.

Next

speaker please?

Good morning, Chichi Navarro from the TransLatina Coalition. I will be speaking on items six, five, and 13. So on item six, the program protects low-wage workers in garment warehouse food and restaurant industries by training them to monitor workplace health and safety and shielding them from retaliation. I'm raising this because transgender gender nonconforming and intersex workers are disproportionately pushed into precisely these low wage precarious industries due to well documented employment discrimination many TGI workers can't safely report unsafe conditions through formal HR channels Because doing so risks exposing their identity to a hostile employer or losing a job that they can't easily replace.

A worker-led model with strong anti-retaliation protections is exactly the type As you identify the 2.3 million in ongoing funding, I'm asking that the board to ensure public health council trainings include explicit guidance on protecting LGBTQ plus and TGI workers from retaliation tied to their identity, not just their health and safety reports. Transgender, gender non-conforming and intersex people experience intimate partner violence at significantly higher rates than the general population. Yet we are consistently underserved by mainstream systems, turned away from shelters, misgendered by providers or met with the services that simply weren't designed with us in mind. As you expand prevention efforts and reconsider how the Domestic Violence Council is structured, I'm asking the board to explicitly ensure that TGI survivors are named, counted and served.

That means TGI inclusive data collection, culturally competent training for providers and safe appropriate shelter access. Item 13 in particular removes a formerly recognized oversight body as DPH develops a new model please make sure that whatever replaces it does not lose the thread on TGI specific needs thank you

Thank you. Next speaker, please.

Hello. I could not more enthusiastically endorse July as Parks Month. I'm Lee Wallach. I am the director of a little organization in Palms, California. It's wonderful, wonderful little area and in large part to little things that you folks have done. We manage our farmers market, our community gardens. Pick up the trash, all kinds of programs. Because of this body we have a community garden. We have a garden at local school. We have all kinds of gardens around Palms. It changes our lives since before COVID which seems so long ago, we only had little Woodbine Park. You folks really changed that for us. I encourage you to do more, more creativity push LA as USD to have co-sponsored parks in our city

Thank you. Thank you. That concludes our time for public comment on these items.

I do want to thank the folks that came out today to speak on behalf of Park. So, I see you we hear you and thank you and also those that came out to speak on behalf of the Public Health Councils it's vitally important that the work continues and I appreciate you coming down today. That's all.

Madam Chair and members of the board, the following items are before you. 1 through 3, 5 and 6, 8 as revised, 9 as revised 10 through 41, 1D through 3D these items are before you

Thank you. Moved by Supervisor Hahn, seconded by Supervisor Barger to approve the items with the exceptions noted by the executive officer. Executive Officer please call the roll.

Supervisors Solis? Aye Supervisors Solis? Aye Motion carries we will now

Thank you, and first of all I want to thank Supervisor Ollie Mitchell for joining me on this very important effort before us. You know advancing a Community Opportunity to Purchase Act known as COPA for the unincorporated Los Angeles County is, I think a sensible approach for a potential also tenant opportunity to purchase act known as TOPA for our future. I want to thank DCBA Director Rafael Carbajal and LACTA director Emilio Salas and all of your teams and county council for helping us move forward with this motion.

I also want to thank other related departments, including our Chief Executive Office and Assessor's office who will be helping us with this important effort. Colleagues we all know That there's a big effort going on right now and an important one in our communities. And that what they're asking us to do is help them secure housing, affordable housing. Just take a look at some of the slides that you'll see before us today.

Colleagues I wanna bring your attention to some slides that were displayed as examples at eight sites across the county of Los Angeles that were purchased through the 2020 Los Angeles County Community Land Trust Partnership. By mission driven entities where affordability is preserved in perpetuity and properties are stewarded by tenants and community. takes it up a notch.

Back in 2021, when the board adopted my first motion to begin exploring ATOPA or COPA, the housing affordability crisis was very intense and we see it continuing today. Unfortunately conditions haven't changed that much or improved since that time housing affordability and in fact that's one of the main discussion items back in DC right now as well as here at our state. The county, as you know is facing rising displacement pressures as rents outpace incomes more than half of renters are rent burdened and you've heard the statistics 38% of homes are renter occupied and Including 9,000 mobile home spaces that are especially vulnerable. With residents representing our African American and Latino households which are most impacted.

Corporate ownership has increased post 2020. I'm sorry, 2008 with larger owners driving higher sale prices, aggressive rent increases and eviction practices. We need to fight and we need to have tools to keep people in their homes. COPA provides a mission driven organization including community land trust and non-profit developers to have a fair chance to buy buildings when they go up for sale. Preserving affordability in perpetuity, preventing that displacement and homelessness and promoting housing stability.

TOPA, if pursued in a future phase would build on the COPA framework by providing tenants and tenant groups with an opportunity to purchase their buildings either directly or in partnership with a qualified nonprofit or community-based housing partner. Back in 2023 DCBA and HRNA advisors released their report with recommendations for a hybrid TOPA and COPA framework Today's motion before us is advancing certain recommendations from that report.

Although a combined TOPA and COPA would be a strong complementary strategy for addressing displacement pressures in the unincorporated areas, my motion also recognizes the county's current budgetary challenges. Colleagues, the idea is to start small. My motion moves forward a thoughtful phased approach starting with an ordinance to implement COPA for unincorporated areas before implementing the TOPA program. And it also starts with the smaller universe of rental properties, specifically properties with five units or more in unincorporated areas. Where we typically see 30 to 130 sale transactions annually. And recognizes that not all transactions will result in COPA purchase, only those that are financially feasible.

The phased approach also allows us to establish foundational systems before evaluating whether and how to add TOPA in the future. A COPA would help households stabilize, prevent displacement and homelessness We've talked about that even before the pandemic. And now I see it as something even more essential with all the fires and displacements happening in the county as well as what we just experienced in East Los Angeles, where people were impacted even in their apartments and housing units because of the Boyle Heights fire. But before finishing my remarks and before I turn to my co-author, I did wanna ask some questions considering some of the comments that my office have received regarding this item. So my first question is for Director Carbajal.

Thank you for being here on your staff. Can you please describe the engagement on the initial study and how you plan to build on that, and what we are now asking you to do today.

Good morning Madam Chair and Board of Supervisors. Rafael Carbajal, Director of the Department of Consumer Business Affairs appreciate being part of this conversation as this discussion I'm going to ask Manuel Ruiz my colleague to take the first crack at the question he's been leading his effort since the onset of the initial evaluation

So good morning Supervisors. Manny Ruiz, Chief of the Public Policy Division at the Department of Consumer Business Affairs. As part of our 2023 TOPA assessment report we conducted a very extensive and robust engagement process Collected feedback from stakeholder groups to inform the recommendations that went into the framework. And so this extensive engagement that we conducted really targeted three key stakeholder groups, which included tenant leaders, tenant organizers, community land trusts, nonprofit, community-based organizations, property owners, real estate representatives.

That included also the apartment associations at the state and local level. In addition to affordable housing developers in the region, inclusive again of for profit and non-profit housing developers. And so we invited over 158 representatives from all these stakeholder groups that attended one of five virtual stakeholder sessions where we held two for the tenant advocates. Two for the property owner groups and real estate professionals, and one for the affordable housing developers. And so as part of that engagement process we saw representatives from over 35 different organizations attending which included the California Apartment Association, the Apartment Association of the Greater Los Angeles Area, The Los Angeles Realtor Association, the Marina del Rey Lassiz.

In addition to various community-based organizations such as the LA Tenants Union, Inquilinos Unidos, Trust South LA, Eastside Leeds and community land trusts like the Beverly Vermont Community Land Trusts. Genesis LA, the Coalition for Responsible Community Development Partners etc. So we plan to build on that very robust engagement process that we conducted three or four years ago.

We want to build on the strategies that were outlined in the report from three years ago while really focusing and emphasizing a COPA strategy. So, really focusing on how we will operationalize a COPA for the Los Angeles County region while also looking at other jurisdictions so that we could try to minimize any potential delays to the existing sale process.