Barger calls County Executive campaign premature as Horvath enters race
Los Angeles County Supervisor Kathryn Barger (R-Palmdale, Lancaster, Santa Clarita, San Marino, Pasadena, La Cañada Flintridge) said yesterday that campaigning for the county’s new elected County Executive post is premature, hours after Supervisor Lindsey Horvath announced she is running for the job.
Barger pointed to a demand letter from former federal Judge Stephen Larson, who argues on behalf of a county taxpayer that the office’s powers, including a veto over Board decisions, violate the state Constitution, and who has threatened to sue if the county doesn’t stop spending to set up the office by Nov. 18.
Last month, the Board voted 4-0-1 to pause key steps to create the office for 90 days. At that Oct. 20 meeting, Barger pledged not to run for County Executive and called on her colleagues to do the same, citing conflicts of interest since the Board wrote Measure G, the 2024 ballot measure that created the office. She estimated the job could pay about $558,000 a year, more than double the governor’s salary.
“I believe campaigning for the new County Executive position is premature when serious questions remain about whether the office itself is constitutional. A recent legal challenge raised by former federal judge Stephen Larson raises fundamental questions about whether California’s Constitution allows an elected County Executive to veto Board decisions, control County contracts, and assume powers that state law assigns to the Board of Supervisors. The legal challenge also questions whether taxpayer dollars can legally be spent preparing to establish an office whose authority is being disputed,” said Barger.
Horvath, a leading champion of Measure G, has rejected Barger’s pledge. “Pressuring others out of an election is political interference, no matter how many times she calls it ethics,” Horvath told the Los Angeles Times last month.
Horvath seeks legal options to free blocked fire recovery funds
Los Angeles County Supervisor Lindsey P. Horvath (D-Santa Monica, Beverly Hills, West Hollywood, Calabasas, Malibu, Pacoima) is asking the Board today to direct County Counsel and the Chief Executive Officer to report back in closed session on Nov. 17 on pending federal funding for wildfire recovery and possible legal action to recover money owed to the county and fire survivors.
Nearly two years after the January 2025 Palisades and Eaton fires, long-term federal recovery money has yet to arrive. Congress has yet to pass disaster supplemental appropriations for long-term recovery in the communities devastated by the Eaton and Palisades fires, including funding for affordable housing reconstruction and economic recovery programs.
California has requested $16 billion through the Community Development Block Grant Disaster Recovery program — $8 billion each for the Eaton and Palisades fires, and President Donald Trump did not include Los Angeles County wildfire relief funding in his administration’s budget request for Congress this summer. Last week, FEMA issued a final denial of California’s request for additional money to keep case managers working with fire survivors, as LACP reported.
The motion doesn’t specify which funds the county considers owed or how much, details expected in the Nov. 17 closed session briefing. The Palisades Fire burned through Horvath’s district.
Mitchell pushes Sheriff to publicly name deputy gangs
Los Angeles County Supervisor Holly J. Mitchell (D-Inglewood, Hawthorne, Gardena, Compton, Carson) is asking the Board today to request that Sheriff Robert Luna develop a framework to identify and publicly name deputy gangs, cliques, and secret subgroups within the Sheriff’s Department, without requiring criminal charges or convictions first.
The motion, pending since September, would request that the Sheriff create criteria for identifying such groups based on shared logos, tattoos and patterns of conduct; review every patrol station, jail and specialized unit, and publicly report what he finds; create an online system for the public to report suspected deputy gangs; and ban racist symbols and insignia from department facilities, property and uniforms.
It would also direct County Counsel to provide the Board a confidential list of suspected gangs and pending investigations, and to study whether an outside agency should investigate deputy gang allegations.
Deputy gangs have been the subject of years of lawsuits and oversight reports, and the motion directs the county to find ways to reduce the Sheriff’s Department’s legal payouts tied to them.
Rubio delivers $2 million for San Gabriel Valley food recovery
Assemblywoman Blanca Rubio (D-Baldwin Park, Covina, West Covina, Azusa, Glendora, Monrovia) secured $2 million in state funding for the San Gabriel Valley Council of Governments’ (SGVCOG) FRESH SGV program, which recovers surplus edible food from businesses and redistributes it to residents in need.
FRESH SGV, short for Food Recovery for Equity, Sustainability, and Health in the San Gabriel Valley, connects cities, businesses and nonprofits to send excess food to food pantries and nonprofits serving food-insecure residents. The program also helps the council of governments’ 31 member cities meet California’s organic waste and food recovery requirements, which require large food businesses to donate edible food rather than throw it away.
“Food waste and food insecurity are interconnected challenges that can be avoided with thoughtful planning and regional work. This investment will help San Gabriel Valley communities meet California’s climate goals while ensuring more nutritious food reaches residents who need it most,” said Rubio.
“Too much food goes to waste while families across the San Gabriel Valley struggle to put meals on the table. We are deeply grateful to Assemblymember Blanca Rubio for securing this crucial $2 million state budget investment, which strengthens our reach across the San Gabriel Valley and provides vital resources to expand FRESH SGV’s regional food recovery efforts,” said SGVCOG Executive Director Marisa Creter.
