The Brief

Following requests from L.A. Mayor Karen Bass and questions from LAist, federal officials on Monday granted one of the mayor’s biggest asks to help speed up the time it takes unhoused people to get into permanent housing.

The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) announced it is providing a new waiver that removes a key hurdle that Bass and homeless service providers have cited for delays in getting people into available long-term housing meant for them.

Instead of having to gather a variety of bank statements, tax filings and other proof of income before being able to move in, the waiver allows the city to move unhoused people in first and provide their paperwork later.

“I’m very excited about it,” Bass told LAist in an interview Monday.

“We're hoping that this will allow Inside Safe residents in motels to be moved into permanent supportive housing much quicker,” she said, referring to her motel shelter program. The program has struggled to place people in long-term housing, which is its ultimate goal, with just 8% moving in as of mid-August.

“This just, again, shows you the significance of the relationship of working with the federal government,” Bass said.

In an interview Monday, a top HUD official told LAist the agency had just notified the city about the waiver that day.

“We’re allowing, basically, the city to accept homeless residents —people that are in the system — and move them into permanent housing as quickly as possible, but then verify income within 60 days,” said Richard Monocchio, who oversees housing subsidies at HUD.

“Getting these units filled as quickly as possible is a top priority,” he added, saying the waiver will take effect immediately.

“This is a waiver that, in the past, hasn't typically been granted. But the way I looked at it was, in light of the seriousness of the issue — and the city and the housing authorities requested to please take another look at that particular waiver request — I decided it was in the best interest of the city of L.A., and within federal purview.”

Waivers were previously cited by L.A.’s top homeless services official, Va Lecia Adams Kellum, as the main policy change that would help unhoused people get housed.

“This decision by HUD is a game changer," said Adams Kellum, in an emailed statement to LAist that praised Bass' advocacy and HUD's decision. "People experiencing homelessness will be able to move into housing faster and vacant units will be filled more quickly."

The fast-tracking comes as Bass has expressed frustration with the slow pace of people moving from her Inside Safe motels program into permanent housing, while hundreds of apartments for unhoused people sit empty in the city. The mayor and homeless service providers have called for the federal document waivers to speed up the process of filling those units, which can take months of pulling paperwork together.

For weeks, Bass has been asking HUD for waivers that let people move in first and then submit documents by specific deadlines. On July 14, federal officials approved some of her requests — around social security cards and proof of disabilities — while rejecting the income proof waiver.

But on Aug. 4, the mayor renewed her request for the proof of income waivers, asking HUD to rethink their denial. The same day, LAist started asking HUD officials where they stand on the mayor’s requests.

The Palisades and Eaton Fires last year destroyed thousands of homes in Los Angeles County. Thousands more were left standing, but choked with toxic fire residue.

On Tuesday, Gov. Gavin Newsom signed a package of bills that will make California the first state in the nation to establish smoke damage testing and cleaning standards for insurance companies.

Assembly Bills 1642 and 1795 will require insurers to test for smoke damage, cover the cost of cleaning contaminants, and keep paying for a homeowner’s alternative living expenses until the home is found safe to reoccupy.

The California Department of Toxic Substances Control will have until the end of 2028 to develop testing and cleaning standards for lead and asbestos, and until the end of 2029 to set rules for heavy metals and other pollutants.

Reaction to the bill

According to the state Department of Insurance, property owners filed 13,000 smoke damage claims for standing homes after the January 2025 fires. While insurers have covered testing and cleaning in many cases, other homeowners are still unable to return home as they battle with insurance companies over addressing smoke damage.

In a news release Tuesday, the governor and an author of one of the bills praised the changes to state law.

“These new protections will make insurer obligations clearer and give homeowners more financial flexibility when they need it most,” Newsom said.

Assemblymember John Harabedian said: “Science, not an insurance company’s opinions, will determine whether a home is safe.”

Insurance industry groups had opposed shifting rules and regulation away from the state Department of Insurance and to the Department of Toxic Substances Control.

Altadena residents pushed for change

Testing efforts by a group known as Eaton Fire Residents United found that lead, asbestos and heavy metals were still present in homes even after they were cleaned by professional remediation companies. Jane Lawton Potelle is the group’s executive director.

“California is leading the nation in how to recover safely after an urban wildfire,” she said in a news release about the laws’ passage.

Public health officials said smoke from the L.A. County fires was particularly toxic because it emanated from urban areas. The structures that burned often had lead paint and asbestos insulation.

The fires also destroyed cars, appliances and other human-made materials. This created more pollutants than smoke from fires in rural areas, which mainly burn through vegetation.

LAist covered the push to change smoke damage policies in a recent episode of our podcast Imperfect Paradise, which breaks down what these changes could mean for insurers, homeowners and how California adapts to climate change.

For years, California lawmakers and transit leaders have requested billions of dollars from the federal government to temporarily double L.A.’s bus fleet and support public transportation for the 2028 Olympics and Paralympics.

Those calls have grown increasingly desperate in recent months, with Los Angeles Metro saying time is running out to execute its plans.

Now, the transportation agency says that if it doesn’t get a guarantee that the money is secured by the end of the year, it won’t provide the extra buses. Instead, it would leave private Olympics organizing committee LA28 to come up with a new plan.

Metro staff laid out the timeline in a report submitted to the agency’s board that will be reviewed at a special meeting Wednesday.

“Transportation capacity cannot be procured overnight,” Metro wrote in a statement to LAist.

A looming funding deadline

If federal funds don’t materialize in time, LA28 could be left with a major logistical and financial challenge.

Metro, the countywide transportation agency, has thus far led planning for the enhanced bus service, which was seen as the cornerstone of the region’s strategy to get people around Los Angeles during the summer of 2028.

The board report outlines that Metro has, as of May, secured commitments from 28 transit agencies to loan or donate over 1,000 buses and more than 300 personnel to support the enhanced bus service.

In total, Metro has said it needs $2 billion from the federal government for the Games. Approximately half that appropriations request would be used to obtain, operate and maintain 1,750 buses — on top of its existing fleet — for the Olympics network.

Metro said that any additional buses it provides will depend on the amount of money it locks down. The agency told LAist that it needs to make decisions based on concrete funding well before the Games in order to secure the buses, operators and facilities.

LA28 also does not appear to be ready to pay for a temporary bus system, should federal funding never arrive. Its $7.1 billion budget does not include a line item for transit.

This in turn puts the city of L.A. at risk because Los Angeles is the financial backstop for the Games. L.A. and the state of California will cover cost overruns from the Olympics and Paralympics, should they occur.

LA28 CEO Reynold Hoover told LAist on Tuesday that he was not alarmed about Metro's impending deadline.

"[Metro CEO] Stephanie Wiggins and I are working really close together to work with the administration to find the funding," Hoover said. "I'm pretty confident that the administration and the Congress will find funding that Metro needs."

When asked if the Olympics could be put on without a supplementary bus system, Hoover told LAist that a bus program for the Olympics would be a part of the Games "one way or another in some scale or form."

What did Metro and LA28 agree to?

Metro can exit its role orchestrating the Olympics bus system according to a memorandum of understanding with LA28 outlining the parties’ obligations for the 2028 Games.

According to the agreement, approved by Metro’s board in March, Metro is not required to provide additional services beyond its status quo if it doesn’t secure supplementary funding for its enhanced bus service.

The September board report that will be the subject of Wednesday’s meeting outlines that without “funding certainty,” its agreement with LA28 will expire.

“The organizing committee will need to seek another delivery partner for spectator and workforce transportation,” the agency wrote in the board report.

This summer, lawmakers included $875 million for Olympics-related transportation needs in a spending bill that still needs to move through the appropriations process. According to the Metro report, that funding would be covered by rescinding money for passenger rail projects in other parts of the country, meaning it has an uphill battle passing through the legislature.

Jacie Prieto Lopez, an LA28 spokesperson, said in an emailed statement that Olympics organizers were working with Metro to “jointly engage key partners on Capitol Hill and the White House as appropriations and budget decisions are made.”

The Hurricane Marie-fueled surf that hit Southern California last week was just a taste of the coastal damage El Niño could bring over the next several months, experts warn.

The destructive waves, driven by a weather system hundreds of miles away in the Pacific Ocean, reached 12 feet at times over Labor Day weekend.

The surf damaged beachfront homes from Malibu to Orange County and triggered evacuation orders for dozens more. It also threatened coastal roads and temporarily suspended service along the Pacific Surfliner railway between San Clemente and Oceanside. And coastal emergencies are still in place in Laguna Beach and Dana Point.

But there’s a good chance this was just the beginning.

The National Weather Service says there is a more than 90% chance this year’s El Niño will be very strong. Scientists also predict an alarming convergence of climate forces to come along with it that could push sea levels and surf to record highs this winter.

Coastal erosion from these atmospheric forces could come even sooner, however, with El Niño-related sea level rise expected to hit Southern California as soon as Oct. 1.

Here’s a look at the factors experts say are converging with potentially devastating effects.

Kelvin waves

First, let’s talk about Kelvin waves.

Kelvin waves are large masses of warm water that move across the ocean, driven by the same high water temperatures near the equator that are behind the wider El Niño climate pattern.

In this case, the wave first moved eastward along the equator until it ran into Central and South America, where the landmass forced it to head north. Now, it’s working its way toward Southern California.

Kelvin waves bump up the sea level about 6 to 18 inches over a large area. In the open ocean, they aren’t particularly noticeable to the naked eye. Scientists use specialized equipment to detect them.

But when pushed up against the coast, they can create much more substantial sea level rise, and scientists say this Kelvin wave is likely to reach the Southern California coast by early next month.

This graphic shows the sea surface heights over 45 days between August and September as the Kelvin wave hit South America, then began its journey north along the coast of Central America. These number are compared to the 1993-2025 baseline sea levels over 45 days between August and September.

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Dillon J. Amaya

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High sea levels push waves farther inland, where they crash against the shoreline with greater force, making erosion worse.

“ Boy, if you have enough water level to support those waves so they dump right on your coast, they're right there,” said Timu Gallien, a UCLA environmental engineering professor who studies coastal erosion. “Now they're coming through your window, now they're on your front porch, quite literally, for the beachfront homes.”

Scientists also say multiple Kelvin waves are likely to come in a sequence, become trapped against the coast and build up sea levels even more.

King tides

El Niño’s warm oceans cause elevated sea levels on their own because warm water takes up more space than cold water. When combined with natural high tides, levels are raised even higher, creating destructive king tides.

This year, by late fall and winter, tides are projected to be at their highest levels in 18 years due to the natural cycle of the moon and planets.

Sea-level rise from the nearly decade-high tides is likely to combine with El Niño’s surge.

“That rides on top of the tide,” Gallien said. “ You've got the tides that are going up and down, then you've got this El Niño signal that goes up and down on top of that tide.”

Storms

Warm El Niño waters also drive storms, and scientists are predicting some of the highest ocean temperatures ever recorded.

“We're going to be experiencing record-breaking water temperatures for many, many months on end on the top of what is already a record-breaking marine heat wave,” said Daniel Swain, a UC climate scientist, during a webinar on El Niño predictions last week.

Warmer seawater evaporates faster, adding moisture in the air that can turn into rain. El Niño also shifts the jet stream, pushing more moisture into Southern California rather than its normal path toward the Pacific Northwest.

Warm waters also create more tropical storms in the eastern Pacific, making them stronger and longer lasting.

Like Hurricane Marie, surges from these storms can travel hundreds of miles until they slam into the California coast.

The Los Angeles Dodgers marked their record-tying 14th consecutive trip to MLB’s postseason with a toast of bubbly after Monday night’s 4-1 victory over the Cincinnati Reds.

The bigger celebrations will come later.

“It’s hard to say it ever feels routine, but it is the expectation here,” third baseman Max Muncy said. “I always laugh whenever we clinch a postseason spot, we just do a nice little toast. The guys that haven’t been here, they kind of see that and they expect a little bit more. That happens when you clinch the division.”

The two-time defending World Series champions, who joined Milwaukee and Tampa Bay as teams who have secured playoff spots, cut their magic number to three for a fifth straight NL West title and 13th in 14 seasons.

Los Angeles tied the Atlanta Braves’ postseason run from 1991 through 2005. The Braves made five World Series trips during that span, but won only in 1995.

“Thankfully we’re doing a little bit better than that,” Muncy said of the Dodgers three titles and five trips to the Fall Classic during their run.

Tarik Skubal — who pitched seven shutout innings and allowed only three hits — said the way the Dodgers handled clinching a postseason spot was definitely different compared to clinching situations he encountered the past two seasons with Detroit.

“I think it just speaks to the people in this room and what they expect out of this team. That was cool. A little toast and move on. Forget it happened. We’ve got more to accomplish this season,” he said.

Dave Roberts, who is in his 11th season as manager, said his message during the toast was that the Dodgers have accomplished a lot to this point but haven’t come close to playing their best baseball yet.

“We go through a lot of players every year, and guys find a way to step up, and so that’s the thing I’m probably most proud of, is the consistency of winning over the long term,” he said. “Any team, any organization can win in a given year where things line up, but to do it every single year when you’re expected to do this says something about the entire organization.”

The Dodgers (91-59) currently are the second seed in the NL. They are 2 1/2 games ahead of Atlanta and trail Milwaukee by 2 games for the top seed.

A first-round bye is important any time but especially this year for the Dodgers, who are not at full strength. First baseman Freddie Freeman has been plagued by right knee soreness and two-time NL MVP Shohei Ohtani is on the 15-day injured list due to right biceps inflammation.

“Given where our guys are health wise, to get that week would be huge. We’ve still got to play well to finish out the season to get to that point,” Roberts said before Monday’s game.