Los Angeles City Council adopts housing committee report, approves multiple legal settlements

The Los Angeles City Council on Wednesday adopted the Housing and Homelessness Committee report and approved several legal settlements and related motions during a lengthy session that included public comment and a closed-session verbal update.

The council voted to reconsider item 35 and then adopted the Housing and Homelessness Committee report on a recorded vote of 14 ayes, following a motion to reconsider. The council also voted 14-0 on item 37, a companion action brought up for consideration after the committee vote.

Why it matters: the housing and homelessness committee report had been earlier subject to committee consideration and public attention; the council’s reconsideration and subsequent adoption formalize the committee’s recommendations and direct city departments to the next steps identified in the committee report.

Council action and votes at a glance - Item 35 — Adopt Housing and Homelessness Committee report: Motion to reconsider offered and carried; motion to adopt the committee report then passed 14 ayes. (Outcome: approved.) - Item 37 — Related motion from the Housing & Homelessness Committee: Passed 14 ayes. (Outcome: approved.) - Item 51 — Council accepted a report on interim RV facility identification and related operations; the measure passed 13 ayes, 1 no. Councilmember Rodriguez cast the lone no vote and pressed for a detailed accounting of expenditures for the city’s Insight Safe operations, saying, “So when everyone asks, where's the money? We should be able to have a detailed accounting… I'm gonna continue to vote no because this report is incomplete.” (Outcome: approved 13–1.) - Items 55–66 and 68–71 — A set of routine and policy items were approved on a single roll call (13 ayes). Item 71 (a motion related to the council’s support for State Senate Bill 71 unless amended) was among those approved on that roll call. - Item 10 — Received and filed (lien matter). (Outcome: receive and file.) - Items 27 and 28 — Motion approved to waive late fees and interest for the two properties identified on the agenda. (Outcome: approved.)

Legal settlements approved (closed-session recommendations presented in open session) The council read recommendations for a series of settlements and then approved the related items. The city attorney presented the recommended amounts; the council approved the settlements as listed below (amounts are the recommended maximums cited in open session): - Robert Sarkisian v. Marvin Gonzalez et al. — up to $200,000 (item 73). (Outcome: approved.) - Sarkis Kolodian et al. v. City of Los Angeles et al. — up to $425,000 (item 74). (Outcome: approved.) - Matthew Perenti v. City of Los Angeles et al. — up to $349,999.99 (item 75). (Outcome: approved.) - David Quinones et al. v. Edwin Sanchez et al. — up to $340,000 (item 76). (Outcome: approved.) - Lija Ramirez et al. v. City of Los Angeles et al. — up to $895,000 (item 77). (Outcome: approved.) - Anthony Doyen v. City of Los Angeles — up to $1,150,000 (item 78). (Outcome: approved.) - Lee Newsom v. City of Los Angeles et al. — up to $2,811,353.56 plus accrued interest (item 79). (Outcome: approved.) - Mornek Cali et al. v. City of Los Angeles et al. — up to $120,000 (item 80). (Outcome: approved.)

Closed session and reporting Council called item 72 — a scheduled verbal update related to pending litigation (LA Alliance for Human Rights et al. v. City of Los Angeles) — into closed session. After the closed session the City Attorney told the council that “the closed session was for a verbal update only, and no action was taken and closed, and no action can be taken in open session at this time.” (No reportable action out of closed session.)

Discussion highlights and context Councilmember Rodriguez framed her no vote on item 51 as a matter of fiscal accountability for programs serving people experiencing homelessness, saying the council still lacks a detailed accounting for Insight Safe operations and related expenditures dating back to 2023. That concern echoed comments from some members of the public who pressed the council for clearer expenditure records and use-of-funds transparency.

Other agenda housekeeping Council approved a number of continuances and technical adjustments (for example, moving item 16 and scheduling date changes for other items), granted several requests to receive and file lien-related items, and set hearing dates and continuances as reflected in the official agenda.

What's next Several items were continued to later meetings as noted on the council record; items that require staff follow-up (including the committee-directed work on housing and homelessness) will proceed under the committee timelines and instructions adopted by the council during today’s votes.

(For details on specific council-file numbers and the full roll-call votes, see the official Los Angeles City Council minutes and council files.)