County Approves Reimagine L.A., Funding Shift Measure Will Be on November Ballot

Third approval’s a charm. Today, the L.A. County Board of Supervisors voted their third and final approval for the Reimagine L.A. initiative. This puts the initiative to L.A. County voters in this November’s election. If approved by voters, Reimagine L.A. would permanently shift ten percent of L.A. County unrestricted funding away from law enforcement and to community services and programs.

Reimagine L.A. is one of a number of pushes locally to respond to Black Lives Matter protest demands to defund the police. Metro is taking steps toward shifting resources toward services and away from armed law enforcement. L.A. City and a few smaller cities have some initiatives that would also shift some funding.

Reimagine L.A. would shift about one billion dollars in locally-generated unrestricted county funding, though the shift would be phased in through 2024. Funding would be restricted from going to the broader law enforcement system, including the Sheriff’s Department, the District Attorney’s Office, County Superior Courts, and the Probation Department. Funding would shift to community counseling, mental health services, youth development programs, small businesses, job creation, and affordable housing.

As with last week’s vote and the week before, the item was approved by Supervisors Hilda Solis, Sheila Kuehl, Mark Ridley-Thomas, and Janice Hahn. Supervisor Kathryn Barger was the sole vote in opposition.