By Los Angeles County Politics (LACP)
Chu votes ‘No’ on DHS funding, citing ICE violence
U.S. Rep. Judy Chu (D-Monterey Park, Alhambra, San Gabriel, Pasadena), and most, if not possible possibly the rest, of the Los Angeles County Congressional delegation, yesterday voted against H.R.4213, Department of Homeland Security Appropriations Act, 2026, citing the Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agency’s continued and unchecked violence and civil rights abuses
“Under President Trump and Secretary Noem’s watch, ICE has devolved into a lawless militia with no regard for the rule of law or the American people’s safety. Trump has enabled ICE to operate with impunity, violate civil rights, and arrest anyone they please, even for explicitly discriminatory reasons like their accent or ethnicity. I cannot support legislation that increases funding while delivering no accountability measures for an out-of-control agency that has brought violence to communities across the country, including my district in Southern California. People – citizens and immigrants alike – are living in fear,” said Chu.
“But Republicans advanced a Homeland Security funding bill that fails to include any oversight or accountability measures to curb ICE’s reign of terror and protect immigrants and U.S. citizens from the Trump administration’s mass deportation agenda. Because of Trump’s Big Ugly Law, ICE is already the largest law enforcement agency in the country. Congress should be reining them in, not expanding their resources.
“I will always fight to protect the rights of immigrants and all Americans who call our country home, especially as Donald Trump works to do the opposite. That is why I voted no against this bill, and will continue to work in Congress to hold ICE and the Trump administration accountable.”
Bass votes to build transit tunnel beneath Santa Monica Mountains
Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass, along with the rest of the LA Metro Board, yesterday voted to advance Metro’s Sepulveda Transit Corridor Project that will see a rail transit tunnel built beneath the Santa Monica Mountains going from Van Nuys to Sherman Oaks, pass through Bel-Air, and stop at UCLA, and ultimately end at the E Line’s Expo/Sepulveda Station.
“The Sepulveda Transit Corridor Project will be transformational for the L.A. region and represents one of the most significant transit projects in the entire country – one that is expected to improve mobility for Angelenos citywide, create jobs, slash commute times, cut pollution, increase housing access, and decrease traffic congestion along one of the nation’s busiest corridors,” said Bass.
“For decades, Angelenos have been asking for an alternative to the 405 freeway that does not force people to commute through neighborhoods and impact residential streets. Personally, when I lived in the City of San Fernando but worked at L.A. County Hospital Downtown and went to Cal State Dominguez Hills in Carson, the commute was about an hour and a half each way – it wasn’t easy.
“By investing in faster, more reliable transit connections, we don’t just move people more efficiently, we give students and working parents back time – including those commuting to and from UCLA and other colleges and universities throughout the region – we reduce financial strain for families, and we make it easier for Angelenos of all incomes to access education and employment opportunities that help them get ahead.”
The estimated cost of the project is between $9.4 billion and $13.8 billion, with a completion goal of 2033.
Hahn fights for Bell mobile home residents
Los Angeles County Supervisor Janice Hahn (D-Southeastern LA County including Long Beach, San Pedro, Bell, Diamond Bar, Whittier, Cerritos, Downey, Torrance, Redondo Beach, Hacienda Heights) yesterday sent a letter to City of Bell Mayor Ali Saleh expressing her strong opposition to a plan by the city to sell two city-owned mobile home parks to developers for conversion into mixed-use developments.
According to the city’s own records, the move would displace some 350 families living in the two parks.
“Mobile home parks are the last bastion of affordable housing, and I stand with the residents who do not want to be displaced from their homes and from Bell. Building new housing should not come at the expense of these residents who live in these parks, many of whom are seniors and single parents and have lived in these communities for many years,” wrote Hahn in her letter to Saleh.
In the letter, Hahn offered to facilitate a meeting between the city and the Los Angeles County Affordable Housing Solutions Agency (LACAHSA) to find solutions to support the residents of the existing parks.
LACAHSA is a regional intergovernmental agency tasked with accelerating affordable housing production, preserving existing housing, and preventing displacement.
Zbur introduces legislation to protect California’s public lands
Assemblymember Rick Chavez Zbur (D–Hollywood, Santa Monica, Pacific Palisades, Malibu) yesterday introduced the Public Lands Protection Act (AB 1624), bipartisan legislation designed to ensure that if federally owned public lands in California are ever sold or transferred to private ownership, those lands are preserved through California’s open space and conservation-oriented land use designation.
Sponsored by Environment California and Trout Unlimited, purchasers of federal lands would be required to seek state and local land-use approvals for development, ensuring that projects are consistent with the land’s environmental, cultural, scenic, and recreational value.
The legislation comes as the federal government has recently proposed the potential sale or privatization of large swaths of public land across the Western United States, including in California. While these elements did not move forward under the “Big, Beautiful Bill,” the federal government has indicated an intent to revisit similar proposals in the future.
To ensure that public lands in California are protected moving forward, AB 1624 takes a proactive, commonsense approach to reduce the risk that California’s most ecologically, culturally, and recreationally significant lands could be lost to irreversible development if similar proposals are revived in the future.
“California’s public lands belong to the people—not to the highest bidder,” said Zbur. “When federal protections are stripped away or federal lands are sold off, California must be ready to act. This bill ensures that our most cherished landscapes are protected from speculative development, environmental destruction, and irreversible harm. This bill doesn’t stop the federal government from making its own decisions, but it does ensure that if public lands are sold in California, they are held to land-use standards aimed at protecting environmental, cultural, scenic, recreational, and natural resources.”
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