The Los Angeles Fire Department is asking for a budget of more than $1 billion next year, arguing that more money is needed to prepare for wildfires like the Pacific Paisades in January.
The request, which represents an increase of more than 15% of this year’s budget, includes money for the new recruitment of firefighters and a second team dedicated to fighting wildfires, as well as Helitanker services to Battle Fires from the air.
In the immediate aftermath of the Palisode Fire, which killed 12 people and destroyed thousands of homes, top LAFD officials blamed lack of space and high winds for their failure to fight the flames.
Amalgamated Los Angeles City Firefighters Local 112, the union that represents the City’s firefighters, has long argued that the department has been undercut and receiving hundreds of millions, if not hundreds of millions of dollars a year.
Fire Chief Jaime Moore, who was appointed to his post earlier this month, wrote in a memo to the board of commissioners that runs through January 2025.”
Moore’s request is the first step in a long process to pass the city’s budget that needs to be approved by the City Council and the Mayor. This year, the city had to close a deficit of almost $ 1 billion caused mainly by labor costs, increased legal fees and a decrease in the local economy.
City Department heads often ask for much higher prices than they actually get. With the city in a budget crisis, the outlook for Lafd’s request is unclear.
“The budget process is in its early stages. Changes must continue to be implemented in the department and Mayor Bass is looking forward to the city’s emergency operations to strengthen the city’s emergency preparedness to strengthen the city’s emergency preparedness to strengthen Mayor Karen Bass.
Genethia Hudley Hayes, who leads the fire board of fire commissioners, said Tuesday that she had not seen the request but generally supports an increase in the LAFD budget.
“We need you,” she said. “The smart thing would be to let the public know what to do with that money.”
In the days leading up to Jan. 7, LAFD officials decided not to plan for firefighters to stay put for long — despite several wind warnings, life-threatening wind warnings, and weather warnings.
Then-fire chief Kristin Crearey said managers should have strategies with limited procedures while continuing to handle normal 911 calls.
An LAFD after-action report released last month cited “financial constraints” as a factor in pre-installation decisions.
The Times also learned that the Lafd Battalion Chief ordered firefighters to leave the site of the Jan 1 Lachman Fire, despite fire complaints that the ground was still smoking. That fire later reigned in the second fire.
Moore’s budget memo committed many of his requests to two fires.
The second Wildland Hand workers, including 32 positions at $2 million, will add to the group of workers formed this year, after the Palisades fire. The recruitment of 26 personnel, trained in wildfire fighting and management, established fire lines to stop the flames from spreading. Throughout the year, they brush permission around the city.
The rental of the Helitanker, costing a little less than $ 1 million, will support the air attack on the flames that are difficult for the personnel on the ground to reach.
Moore’s budget request includes the reinstatement of LAFD emergency responders, who help coordinate responses to fires — positions cut in the last budget cycle. The After-Action Report described the LAFD’s disorganized response to the Palisades Fire, revealing major operational and communication issues.
After the backfire, Lafd’s budget discussed the discourse of civil liberties, and some said it reduced it. The 2024-25 budget increased slightly after firefighters received a raise and the city invested in new firetrucks and other purchases. The budget increased again in 2025-2026.
Bass said he has made additional contributions to the fire department each year he has been mayor.
A half-cent sales tax proposed by the Firefighters Union will go before city voters as a bavot is estimated next November.
In 2050, the sales tax would raise at least $9.8 billion, at least 30 fire stations and new fire trucks, and President Doug, said the Council of UFLAC, and Councilmember Traci Park, in the district that includes the Pacific Palisades.
