A leaked memo has revealed that Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass recently demanded an additional $49 million in budget cuts from the city’s Fire Department, on top of the $17.6 million already slashed in her latest budget.
The proposed cuts, coming just days before devastating wildfires swept through Los Angeles, would have led to the closure of 16 fire stations, significantly hampering the department’s ability to respond to emergencies, according to sources.
The memo, dated January 6—one day before the catastrophic Palisades Fire erupted—was obtained by DailyMail.com from an LAFD whistleblower operating under the pseudonym "LAFD Watchdog" on social media. The document was reportedly sent by senior Fire Department officials at City Hall to division chiefs and captains following a tense meeting between Mayor Bass and Fire Chief Kristin Crowley.
“The LAFD is still going through a FY [financial year] 2024/2025 $48.8 million budget reduction exercise with the CAO [City Attorney’s Office],” the memo states. “The only way to provide cost savings would be to close as many as 16 fire stations (not resources, fire stations); this equates to at least one fire station per City Council District.”
The memo emphasized that the plan was a “worst-case scenario” and had not yet been implemented, but the implications were clear. Sources claim the closures would have crippled the department’s ability to manage emergencies effectively.
Now, more than 54 square miles of Los Angeles are charred in at least five separate fires, with over 4,000 homes and buildings destroyed. The Pacific Palisades neighborhood, home to many billionaires and celebrities, has been nearly wiped out. The fires have left ten people dead and several others injured.
A senior firefighter with 25 years of service, who spoke to DailyMail.com on condition of anonymity, expressed frustration over the memo and its potential impact. “They did not want this out. It’s an internal memo not to be distributed,” the firefighter said.
The timing of the proposed cuts, coupled with the scale of destruction caused by the fires, has led to mounting criticism of the city’s preparedness and resource allocation.
