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CAO: street-damage fund shortfall narrowed to $13.5M; committee approves cuts to avoid general-fund coverage
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Summary
The City Administrative Officer reported a projected shortfall in the Street Damage Restoration Fee (SDRF) fund and recommended $13.5 million in reductions across several line items. Committees approved the CAO report and identified impacts including fewer access ramps and reduced slurry-seal lane miles.
Los Angeles— City Administrative Officer staff reported a revised funding gap in the Street Damage Restoration Fee (SDRF) fund and the Public Works Committee approved a package of reductions to avoid drawing on the general fund.
Felipe Viola Lee Chavez of the CAO—s office said the adopted 2024–25 budget originally projected about $63 million in SDRF revenues, but updated collections and a previously undiscovered payment processing error prompted a revision. "In spite of these findings, departments report that SDRF revenues are low compared to previous years," the CAO—s report states; the office now projects a $13.5 million gap for the fiscal year.
To close the gap without layoffs, the CAO and Bureau of Street Services (StreetsLA) proposed a set of temporary reductions totaling $13.5 million: a savings of about $574,254 from four frozen positions across General Services, the Bureau of Engineering and the Bureau of Contract Administration; $2,000,000 in reduced mobility-plan improvements; $4,500,000 in payment preservation/access ramps (impacting roughly 91 ramps); and $6,300,000 in construction expense reductions, which StreetsLA said would reduce slurry-seal work affecting approximately 230 lane miles.
StreetsLA assistant director Shirley Lau told the committee the bureau typically uses its own crews to build curb ramps and that the proposed reductions represent funds that would have allowed additional ramps or contracting out, not the elimination of the four in-house crews that currently complete about 200 ramps a year. "These funds were not used in prior years because we didn't have capacity to bring the funds in to do the work," Lau said.
Committee members pressed departments on whether the SDRF revenue decline stemmed from unpermitted street cuts or billing problems; the CAO identified a technical glitch that delayed an $8 million payment and said payment timing for the Bureau of Sanitation's Sewer Construction and Maintenance Fund contributed to lower-then-expected revenues. The CAO and StreetsLA said the cause of lower collections beyond those items remains under review.
What was decided: the Public Works Committee approved the CAO report and the reduction package; the CAO said the actions will eliminate the projected $13.5 million deficit for fiscal 2024–25 and avoid using general-fund dollars. The CAO told the committee the reductions would not result in layoffs. Committee members asked departments to provide clearer projections for next year and to work with council offices to prioritize which corridors and ramps should be built if funding is constrained.
Ending: Departments will monitor collections and refine next year—s SDRF projection ahead of the FY 2025–26 budget; the CAO and StreetsLA said they will continue to investigate underlying causes of the revenue decline and will work with council offices to prioritize ramp and resurfacing projects.
