Los Angeles City Council Meeting - February 14, 2025

The Los Angeles City Council met on February 14, 2025, at 9:33 AM, with Council President Mark Quisdaws presiding. Thirteen members were present, achieving a quorum. The meeting included presentations honoring retiring labor leader Jim Smith, postal worker Daniel Carrera Jr., and outgoing policy advisors, as well as a Black History Month celebration of Central Avenue. Major legislative actions centered on tenant protections for wildfire victims, domestic violence services, and a motion to halt hazardous soil acceptance at Sunshine Canyon Landfill.

Consent Calendar

• Approved the minutes of February 12, 2025.
• Approved commendatory resolutions.
• Confirmed liens for items one through three (recommended by the Los Angeles Department of Building and Safety).
• Adopted item three as amended by Councilmembers Padilla and Blumenfield.
• Approved items four, twelve, and fourteen (unanimously, 11-0).

Public Comments & Testimony

• Item 13 (Tenant Protections): Multiple speakers testified. Proponents included Augustin Cabrera of SCORE (grassroots organization), Christina Boyer (attorney and member of Keep LA Housed), and Sydney Hobson (musician and cultural policy consultant), who urged the council to pass protections for tenants who lost income due to the wildfires. They argued that delays were causing evictions and that the amended motion was a narrow affirmative defense, not a blanket moratorium. Opponents included small housing providers such as Layla Anderson, Fred Sutton (California Apartment Association), and a landlord who lost his home in Malibu. They argued the policy would be abused, harm mom-and-pop landlords, and discourage housing investment, and urged direct rental assistance instead of an eviction moratorium.
• Special One (Rule 23 motion - Sunshine Canyon): One speaker (a wildfire victim) opposed the motion, arguing it would delay cleanup and that EPA and FEMA experts should be allowed to work without interference.

Discussion Items

• Items 10 & 11 (Domestic Violence Services): Councilmember Yaroslavsky introduced two motions to make the largest investment in domestic violence services in LA history, including expanding shelter capacity by 13%, creating a domestic violence restraining order task force, and enforcing firearm removal from abusers. She noted that 15,851 survivors sought shelter last year but only 10% found beds, and 41% of unhoused Angelinos have experienced domestic violence. The items passed unanimously (13-0).
• Item 13 (Tenant Protections for Wildfire Victims): Extensive debate occurred over a motion originally introduced on January 14, 2025, to protect tenants who lost income due to the wildfires from eviction. Three amendments were offered: 13C (Councilmember Park) proposed using ULA funds for direct rental assistance but failed (5-7); 13B (Councilmember Hernandez) offered a compromise capping arrears at three months of fair market rent with proof of income loss but failed (7-4); 13A (Councilmember Hutt) passed (8-3) and was included. The council then bifurcated recommendations six and seven (which exempted “mom and pop” landlords); Councilmember Yaroslavsky recused, and those recommendations passed (10-0). The remaining item (13 as amended by 13A, without 6 and 7) failed (6-5) after a procedural vote. A motion to receive and file (effectively kill the item) initially passed 8-3, but a reconsideration motion changed the outcome, and the item was left on the desk (failed to receive and file, 5-6? Exact tally unclear; final result: item remains on the desk for the next meeting).
• Special One (Rule 23 motion - Sunshine Canyon Landfill): Councilmember Lee introduced an urgent motion requesting the city attorney to halt acceptance of potentially hazardous soil from wildfire burn sites at Sunshine Canyon Landfill. He cited reports that ash contains heavy metals, including lead, and that the landfill has a history of violations. The findings were approved (13-0), public comment was taken, and the motion passed (10-0).
• Presentations & Recognitions:
  • Honored Jim Smith (retiring political director of Teamsters Local 396) with remarks by Councilmembers Soto Martinez, Jurado, and others.
  • Recognized Daniel Carrera Jr. (retired USPS letter carrier, 40 years of service) by Councilmember Blumenfield.
  • Celebrated Black History Month with a presentation on the historic Central Avenue corridor by Councilmember Price and historian Dr. Allison Rose Jefferson.
  • Farewell to David Haron (environmental policy advisor) by Councilmember Blumenfield.
  • Recognized Laura Raymond (outgoing executive director of ACT LA) by Councilmembers Soto Martinez and Raman for her work on Measures ULA and A.

Key Outcomes

• Wildfire Tenant Protections (Item 13): Recommendations 6 and 7 (exempting small landlords) were adopted. The remainder of the item, as amended by 13A, failed to pass and was left on the desk, to be considered at a future meeting.
• Domestic Violence Investment (Items 10 & 11): Approved unanimously.
• Sunshine Canyon Landfill Motion (Special One): Approved 10-0; direction to the city attorney to seek halt of hazardous soil acceptance.
• Other Items: Consent calendar and remaining items approved.