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Council committee approves amended ad hoc report, seeks FEMA and DWP reimbursement for Palisades recovery work
Summary
The committee approved concurrence with the ad hoc LA recovery report as amended, including a direction for the CAO to pursue FEMA and LADWP reimbursement related to an $8 million AECOM task order for Pacific Palisades recovery planning; BOE said AECOM proceeded at risk while only $450,000 had been authorized to date.
The city committee voted to concur with the ad hoc LA recovery report as amended, adding a direction that the City Administrative Officer seek FEMA and Los Angeles Department of Water and Power (DWP) reimbursement and report back on submissions and recoveries before the end of the fiscal year.
Deputy Mayor Anna Hoa Sapien and Bureau of Engineering (BOE) staff told the committee much of the AECOM task order work focuses on resilience beyond the city’s public infrastructure — including fire-protection planning for private homes — which the CAO has advised may put portions of the scope outside FEMA public-assistance eligibility. Sapien said the mayor’s office will nonetheless submit elements that may be reimbursable and pursue other state or federal funds where possible.
BOE’s Alfred Mata described the procurement and task-order process: BOE ran the selection in parallel with funding decisions, set a contract ceiling, and has authorized approximately $450,000 from departmental accounts while AECOM proceeded “at risk” to provide urgent planning and recovery services. Mata said draft reports are under departmental review and will be shared with council offices before public distribution.
Council members pressed staff on whether DWP special funds could cover a pro rata share of planning tied to DWP-owned assets. BOE and the mayor’s office said they would explore that with the CAO; they emphasized the scope — which addresses regional resiliency and private properties as well as city-owned infrastructure — is the primary reason parts of the work may not qualify for FEMA reimbursement.
During the discussion Council members also asked whether the $8 million in planning would leverage larger capital investments. Presenters said CAO-submitted FEMA applications so far total just north of $1.5 billion in physical infrastructure needs, and the planning work is intended to inform and prioritize that larger body of projects. BOE clarified the task order will deliver plans and recommendations — an infrastructure restoration plan, a fire-protection plan and logistics planning — not construction-ready plans.
The committee’s amendment, adopted in the same motion, formally directed the CAO to pursue FEMA and DWP reimbursement and return with a report on what was submitted and what has been recovered prior to the end of the fiscal year. The ad hoc recovery report was approved as amended by roll call.
