Vape components and products on display at Smoke and Gift Shop in San Francisco on June 25, 2019.
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Justin Sullivan
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Getty Images
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Topline:
Gov. Newsom signed a law prohibiting the sale of disposable vapes, a measure meant to prevent lithium battery fires at landfills and recycling centers.
Fines: Retailers and distributors found breaking the law would be fined $500 for the first violation and as much as $2,000 for subsequent violations.
The backstory: About 12 million disposable vapes are sold nationally every month, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. In 2016, a lithium battery started a fire in a San Mateo County recycling facility, costing it $8.5 million and driving up its annual insurance cost by almost $3 million. In addition to anti-smoking and healthcare groups, waste management authorities and environmental advocacy organizations supported the measure.
Read on... for more on the new law.
Throwaway vapes will be illegal in California under a new law Gov. Gavin Newsom signed this week that’s aimed to reduce the risk of battery fires at landfills and recycling centers.
Retailers and distributors found breaking the law would be fined $500 for the first violation and as much as $2,000 for subsequent violations.
Assemblymember Jacqui Irwin, a Thousand Oaks Democrat, introduced the bill to curb the proliferation of hazardous waste — particularly the highly flammable lithium batteries inside e-cigarettes, which can ignite at trash facilities and put workers at risk.
The batteries “cannot easily be removed, so they pose costly and hazardous safety issues at every point in the waste stream,” she said during a June hearing. “We do not throw away our phones or our laptops after one week of use, and we should not treat other lithium devices any differently?”
About 12 million disposable vapes are sold nationally every month, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. In 2016, a lithium battery started a fire in a San Mateo County recycling facility, costing it $8.5 million and driving up its annual insurance cost by almost $3 million. In addition to anti-smoking and healthcare groups, waste management authorities and environmental advocacy organizations supported the measure.
“The growing vape crisis is posing an existential threat to our waste and recycling system,” said Nick Lapis of Californians Against Waste, a co-sponsor of the bill. “Even if managed responsibly, this is a staggering waste of the finite natural resources that go into making them.”
Residents also end up absorbing the cost of the fires e-cigarettes cause in garbage facilities, through higher garbage rates and taxpayer-funded cleanups, Lapis said.
Law enforcement groups, business groups including the California Business Roundtable and the California Chamber Of Commerce and an industry group representing convenience stores and gas stations opposed the measure.
Referring to a June report from Zurich Insurance UK, an insurance company, that found that fires originating from vapes are still rising in the United Kingdom despite a 2025 ban on disposable vapes, Alessandra Brichetto of the California Fuels & Convenience Alliance said that disposable vapes that are already illegal are the source of most of the litter and fires the measure attempts to curb.
Banning the limited number of legal disposable devices would also push consumers to buy illicit vape products, said Brichetto.
“That’s the fundamental flaw in this bill,” she said. “It assumes eliminating the legal market eliminates the problem. It doesn’t.”
Most Republican lawmakers also voted against the bill. In her opposition to the bill, state Sen. Shannon Grove said that the true issue is burning batteries, like the 2025 fire at the Moss Landing battery storage facility, which “cause catastrophic health impacts to communities.”
“We need to start to make a real difference in the issue of climate change, contamination in our air,” said the Bakersfield Republican during an August floor vote. "So let's take on real challenges, colleagues, and not just banning vapes.”
The Montana Ave. Art Walk goes down this Saturday in Santa Monica.
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Courtesy Montana Ave. Merchants Association
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In this edition:
David Lynch at Pace Gallery, the Pacific Air Show flies high in Huntington Beach, sword yoga, an all-Native American comedy show and more of the best things to do this week.
Highlights:
David Lynch helped to define modern-day Los Angeles through his influential films, his daily weather report on KCRW and his visual art in painting and photography. It’s that last part that’s explored at the Pace Gallery's new exhibit (their La Brea space is one of my favorite new galleries in the city), with a spotlight on the space between Lynch’s films, his photography and his paintings.
Whoosh! That’s the sound of dozens of planes flying high, doing Top Gun-style acrobatics overhead at the annual Pacific Air Show in Huntington Beach. Of course, it’s free to see the planes (they are in the sky), but snag a seat on the beach for direct vantage points, live commentary, access to food and drink venues and more.
Do you fantasize about being a swashbuckling hero in a swordfight? Or the maiden who gets rescued? It’s all as-you-wish in this romantasy-themed sword yoga class that blends elements of kung fu, yoga and sword fighting — props provided.
I yelped out loud twice this week; first while watching Jeopardy! — there was a clue comparing Shohei Ohtani to Babe Ruth (here for it!) — and the second while wistfully wishing I was in Dublin watching U2 serenade a crowd on Grafton Street when they launched into a tribute to the late Glen Hansard.
Closer to home, I checked out the new karaoke venue Mic Drop (in celebration of our Licorice Pizza host Lyndsey Parker’s birthday). Fun fact: The space used to be Larrabee Studios, which was originally owned by Carole King.
Here are the music picks from Lyndsey at Licorice Pizza. Don't forget that Saturday and Sunday there’s the big Neverender Festival at the Observatory Festival Grounds, featuring Coheed and Cambria, Circa Survive, Sunny Day Real Estate, Pup, Thursday, Destroy Boys and many more.
Through Wednesday, Dec. 23 Pace Gallery 1201 S. La Brea Ave., Mid-Wilshire COST: FREE; MORE INFO
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David Lynch
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Pace Gallery
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David Lynch helped to define modern-day Los Angeles through his influential films, his daily weather report on KCRW and his visual art in painting and photography. It’s that last part that’s explored at the Pace Gallery's new exhibit (their La Brea space is one of my favorite new galleries in the city), with a spotlight on the space between Lynch’s films, his photography and his paintings. Lynch understood the darkness and the light of L.A. like none other — do a Mulholland Drive rewatch and then head here.
The Longest Table
Sunday, Oct. 4, 12 p.m. to 2 p.m. Pampas Ricas Blvd. (between Sunset and Chapala), Pacific Palisades COST: FREE; MORE INFO
The Palisades is making its way back after the fires, and a big part of that is the community spirit that has always fueled the beach cliff enclave. Join neighbors at The Longest Table, a free community potluck at some VERY long tables with chairs and tablecloths on Pampas Ricas Blvd. between Sunset and Chapala. Bring your favorite dish to share and pull up a chair.
Hola México Film Festival
Through Saturday, Oct. 3 Various locations COST: VARIES; MORE INFO
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Roberto Girault Facha
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Hola Mexico Film Festival
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The 18th annual Hola México Film Festival includes films from across Mexico, including a closing night screening of the new rom-com Amarte outside at Plaza de Culturas y Artes, featuring a performance by Spaghetti Cumbia. The full film lineup is here.
Montana Avenue Art Walk
Saturday, Oct. 3 Montana Ave. Between 6th St. and 17th St., Santa Monica COST: FREE; MORE INFO
Art pop-ups, interactive displays, food, music and more will take over the swish Montana Ave. shopping district in Santa Monica. It’s all part of Santa Monica's celebrations commemorating the 100th Anniversary of Historic Route 66.
Sword Yoga with Weapon Up
Monday, Oct. 5, 7 p.m. Clark Building 861 Valley Drive, Hermosa Beach COST: $45.67; MORE INFO
Do you fantasize about being a swashbuckling hero in a swordfight? Or the maiden who gets rescued? It’s all as-you-wish in this romantasy-themed sword yoga class that blends elements of kung fu, yoga and sword fighting — props provided.
America(!) the Beautiful(?)
Saturday, Oct. 3, 8 p.m. The Ford 2580 Cahuenga Blvd. E.,Hollywood COST: FROM $35; MORE INFO
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Courtesy For Freedoms
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Art activism collective For Freedoms brings together a night of soul, jazz, hip hop and poetry exploring what being American means today (it’s complicated!). The night includes a DJ set by artist-storyteller Kai the Universe, Xochimilco recording artist and activist Xiuhtezcatl, curator Marc Bamuthi Joseph, and a performance by surrealist blues poet Aja Monet. This is one of six events developed by Joseph that aim to create “a shared story of who we are and who we are becoming.”
Joey Clift: We’ve Been Here the Whole Time
Saturday, Oct. 3, 7:30 p.m. to 8:45 p.m. Elysian Theater 1944 Riverside Drive, Silver Lake COST: $19.61; MORE INFO
Native American satirist Joey Clift is celebrating his new book — We’ve Been Here The Whole Time! A Not So Sacred Guide to All Things Native America — with an all-Native comedy show at the Elysian. The night features stand-up from Brian Bahe (Ghosts), Kristin Chirico (Buzzfeed), Jim Ruel (Showtime's American Indian Comedy Slam) and more — plus a live book talk between Clift and Julie Fiveash (The Froggy Librarian), moderated by Darrell Dennis (Just For Laughs). The show benefits ChapterHouse LA.
Laura Benanti: Nobody Cares
Thursday to Sunday, Oct. 1-4 The Wallis 9390 N. Santa Monica Blvd., Beverly Hills COST: FROM $53; MORE INFO
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Courtesy Nobody Cares Is a Comedy
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Broadway star Laura Benanti is mixing her big voice with a stand-up comedy show — and it works. If you follow her on Instagram, you’re already familiar with her hot takes on perimenopause, accompanied by song. The Tony-winning Supergirl actress performs at the Wallis this week, followed by a short run at South Coast Repertory in Costa Mesa from Oct. 8-11.
Pacific Air Show
Friday to Sunday, Oct. 2-4 5252 Bolsa Ave., Huntington Beach COST: FROM $20; MORE INFO
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Courtesy Pacific Air Show
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Whoosh! That’s the sound of dozens of planes flying high, doing Top Gun-style acrobatics overhead at the annual Pacific Air Show in Huntington Beach. Of course, it’s free to see the planes (they are in the sky), but snag a seat on the beach for direct vantage points, live commentary, access to food and drink venues and more.
Residents examine a model of the proposed Wilshire/Crenshaw development during a Sept. 23 community open house.
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Hanna Kang
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The LA Local
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Topline:
An empty lot at the southwest corner of Wilshire Boulevard and Crenshaw Boulevard could soon transform into nearly 200 affordable apartments.
More details: Abode Communities, a nonprofit affordable housing developer, is developing the Koreatown-adjacent project in partnership with Metro, which owns the property. The development would include 194 income-restricted apartments and two manager units for households earning between 30% and 60% of area median income.
Why now: Metro acquired the property in the 1980s for potential future transportation projects. It was later used for construction staging for the D Line subway extension. The development is now part of Metro’s effort to build 10,000 homes on agency-owned property by 2031, including at least 5,000 income-restricted homes.
Read on... for more on the plans for this housing development.
An empty lot at the southwest corner of Wilshire Boulevard and Crenshaw Boulevard could soon transform into nearly 200 affordable apartments.
Abode Communities, a nonprofit affordable housing developer, is developing the Koreatown-adjacent project in partnership with Metro, which owns the property. The development would include 194 income-restricted apartments and two manager units for households earning between 30% and 60% of area median income.
Construction is projected to begin in 2028 and continue through 2030, with apartments expected to begin leasing that year, according to the project’s current timeline.
The project will include 69 one-bedroom, 76 two-bedroom and 49 three-bedroom apartments, along with a 6,200-square-foot flex-use transit plaza connecting two bus stops, a shared community room, landscaped open space, a community garden, play areas and bike facilities.
The proposed 196-unit affordable housing development at Wilshire Boulevard and Crenshaw Boulevard.
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Rendering courtesy of Koning Eizenberg Architecture
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Plans also call for two bus shelters and extended bus bays. Residents would park along Crenshaw Boulevard, with more than 100 parking spaces planned in an underground garage.
The site is located in Windsor Village, within the Park Mile Specific Plan area, just outside Koreatown.
Rick Kim, Koreatown Youth and Community Center’s director of economic development services, said their organization will provide its knowledge of the surrounding community as a development partner. KYCC also plans to connect future residents with its programs as a service provider.
“We have services for kids and family services around a wide range of social needs — after school programs, preschool programs, mental health resources and personal financial literacy, so we figured it just all made perfect sense,” he told The LA Local. “We are trying to figure out exactly how and what type of resources would most benefit the residents.”
Metro acquired the property in the 1980s for potential future transportation projects. It was later used for construction staging for the D Line subway extension. The development is now part of Metro’s effort to build 10,000 homes on agency-owned property by 2031, including at least 5,000 income-restricted homes.
Metro received eight proposals for the property in 2025 before selecting Abode Communities to develop the site.
The project is subject to planning rules for the Park Mile area and additional historic-preservation review because of its location in Windsor Village, a designated historic district.
The buildings would be taller along Wilshire Boulevard and gradually get lower toward the single-family homes to the south, according to Troy Fosler, a principal at Koning Eizenberg Architecture.
At a recent community open house, residents left design suggestions, including requests for bulky item pickup, pet washing stations, additional setbacks near neighboring single-family homes and limiting the Wilshire frontage to six stories.
Tracy Park lives about two blocks from the site, which is currently an empty lot. For her, the development would bring new activity to a property she has watched for years.
Park, 43, attended the September open house at the Korean Resource Center with her husband and their two children.
Tracy Park, 43, and her husband, Ben Bowes, 49, at the Sept. 23 community open house for the proposed Wilshire/Crenshaw development.
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Hanna Kang
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The LA Local
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“I’ve been seeing that lot for a very, very long time,” she said. “I was really curious what was going to happen with it because it’s in such a prime location and it’s so central to our little community.”
“We want our children here to also see that there’s planning like this going on,” she added.
Park said she supports adding affordable housing to the area, which she described as densely populated. She sees a sharp contrast between the wealthier neighborhoods north of Wilshire and people experiencing homelessness along the boulevard.
“We see these rich, huge mansions right in Hancock Park, just north of Wilshire, and then walking along Wilshire every single night, we hear our homeless neighbors struggling or sort of asking for food or suffering in the heat,” she said.
Kim said more community meetings are planned before construction.
“We’ll continue to have more engagement sessions between now and the groundbreaking because we want everyone who lives and works in the area to be aware of the situation and have a say in how we can best move forward,” he said.
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How LAPD responds when someone is experiencing a mental or behavioral health crisis is getting a closer look. Last week, Mayor Karen Bass issued an executive directive ordering an independent review of the department’s response, including its policies, training and use of force.
Why it matters: LAPD officers fatally shot more than 60 people between 2021 and 2025, according to the most recent data the department reported to the California Department of Justice. All of those deaths will be reviewed.
Why now: “There is a severe shortage of mental and behavioral health care, and too many people in crisis have nowhere to turn,” Mayor Bass said in a prepared statement. “People cycle between the streets, emergency rooms, and detention facilities, and too often come into contact with law enforcement.”
What's next: The Los Angeles Board of Police Commissioners will need to retain an independent firm to conduct the audit and report back recommendations to the mayor’s office within six months. Bass said that the firm selected should be experts in constitutional policing and crisis response.
How LAPD responds when someone is experiencing a mental or behavioral health crisis is getting a closer look.
Last week, Mayor Karen Bass issued an executive directive ordering an independent review of the department’s response, including its policies, training and use of force.
“There is a severe shortage of mental and behavioral health care, and too many people in crisis have nowhere to turn,” Mayor Bass said in a prepared statement. “People cycle between the streets, emergency rooms, and detention facilities, and too often come into contact with law enforcement.”
The Los Angeles Board of Police Commissioners will need to retain an independent firm to conduct the audit and report back recommendations to the mayor’s office within six months. Bass said that the firm selected should be experts in constitutional policing and crisis response.
The review will determine how officers identify people in crisis, including those with intellectual and physical disabilities, and people who are under the influence of illicit substances.
LAPD officers fatally shot more than 60 people between 2021 and 2025, according to the most recent data the department reported to the California Department of Justice. All of those deaths will be reviewed.
The audit will also look into how the department tracks repeat calls about a person who is in crisis or needs help. Yong Yang’s case is one example. Yang was fatally shot by police in 2024, after his parents attempted to get him help during a behavioral health crisis.
His parents previously told The LA Local about how Yong Yang had nonviolent encounters with police before the encounter that ended in his death. They question why officers failed to de-escalate the confrontation before he was shot.
They’ve continued to call for accountability, even after LAPD closed its investigation into his death. Under Bass’ new directive, his case is one that would be reviewed.
The audit will evaluate:
Use of force: Incidents over the last five years of uses of force and arrests that resulted in death or serious bodily injury to determine if the person was experiencing a behavioral health crisis or had an intellectual disability.
De-escalation: Incidents over the last five years that did not result in death or serious bodily injury to determine how they were de-escalated.
Repeat calls: The department’s procedures for keeping track of people involved in repeated calls to police, including those who have a disability.
Training: The training officers receive about incidents with people experiencing behavioral crises.
Less-lethal options: What less-lethal force options are available to officers.
Custody and care: Uses of restraint and processes for medical treatment for people in police custody.
Officer wellness: Protocols for providing officers with mental health care after these confrontations.
Bass’ order comes about a month after the police department released graphic videos of men who died during police encounters. One video captured officers sitting on and restraining a handcuffed man for an extended period of time at a holding facility in the San Fernando Valley. The man, Jose Carlos Hoyos-Munoz, died soon after.
“When an encounter results in death or serious injury, we must rigorously examine whether our policies, training, tactics, supervision, and accountability systems are sufficient,” Bass said after the videos were released.
State audit says county health response fell short
Elly Yu
Elly Yu covers public health as part of her beat on early childhood.
Published September 30, 2026 5:00 AM
An aerial view of a truck driving through trash at Chiquita Canyon Landfill in Castaic on Feb. 22, 2024.
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Allen J. Schaben
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Los Angeles Times via Getty Images
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Topline:
Los Angeles County health officials neglected to consistently inform residents living near a landfill about air quality and possible implications to their health, according to a new state audit.
Why it matters: The report examines the L.A. County Public Health Department’s oversight of the Chiquita Canyon landfill — which has been emitting chemicals and odors for years.
The context: Residents in the area have complained about symptoms including headaches, nausea and respiratory problems. The 65-page audit found the county's public health department didn’t go far enough to help or inform the community about the nearby hazard. For example, the audit found that despite getting reports from the landfill operator about air quality that at times showed chemical levels exceeding state thresholds, the department didn’t inform the public nor could prove it consistently reviewed the data.
Read on... for more on the findings.
Los Angeles County health officials neglected to consistently inform residents living near a landfill about air quality and possible implications to their health, according to a new state audit.
The report examines the L.A. County Public Health Department’s oversight of the Chiquita Canyon landfill — which has been emitting chemicals and odors for years.
Residents in the area have complained about symptoms including headaches, nausea and respiratory problems. The 65-page audit found the county's public health department didn’t go far enough to help or inform the community about the nearby hazard.
For example, the audit found that despite getting reports from the landfill operator about air quality that at times showed chemical levels exceeding state thresholds, the department didn’t inform the public nor could prove it consistently reviewed the data.
Other findings:
The department didn’t have up-to-date information about symptoms residents in the community were experiencing, since most of the data it had was from nearly two years ago.
The department didn’t provide mental health resources, even though it had for another hazardous incident.
“This audit confirms what residents have been telling us for years: the response to this public health crisis has not matched the seriousness of what families are experiencing,” said Assemblymember Pilar Schiavo, who asked the legislature for the audit.
What does the department say?
While the landfill closed in 2025, officials expect the chemical reaction underground to continue burning for years.
In a statement to LAist, a spokesperson for the department said it was “disappointing that the focus of the audit largely evaluates Public Health’s actions in isolation and not as part of a response structure created by federal, state, and local agencies.”
The spokesperson said the department “proactively addressed the health concerns of the community” and its response “was iterative and evidence-based.”
In regards to why the department didn’t tell the public about elevated chemical levels in the air that exceeded a threshold, county officials told state auditors the level itself didn’t determine the potential level of health risk, and that they consider a variety of factors. The state auditor said the department still could have given word to the community.
“LADPH could have provided written comments to quarterly air quality reports or otherwise published its health assessment, even when it did not believe there would be any potential health and safety impacts,” the audit said. “We believe that the lack of communication from LADPH about specific exceedances resulted in residents not receiving timely and important information about their health and safety implications.”
What happens now?
The audit had other recommendations for the department, including making monthly health assessment updates related to elevated chemical levels, and periodically collecting information about health symptoms from residents.
The department did not agree to many of the specific audit recommendations, and said “LADPH remains committed to validating and responding to the community’s experience, communicating what the evidence shows and does not show, and using all appropriate public health and enforcement tools with its regulatory partners.”
In a statement, L.A. County Supervisor Kathryn Barger, who represents the community, said she believes in “letting subject matter experts lead, and Los Angeles County Public Health is working alongside state and federal agencies as part of a broader, multidisciplinary response.” She said she is focused on the county’s current lawsuit against Chiquita’s operators, which was filed in late 2024.
In the meantime, Assemblymember Schiavo said she will hold a hearing on the audit and look at implementing recommendations from the audit.
“Every day we don’t act, our community members suffer, and it’s time the health department and county make sure residents finally see real changes on the ground,” she said."
