Nick Gerda
is an accountability reporter who has covered local government in Southern California for more than a decade.
Published January 23, 2024 6:03 PM
Orange County Supervisor Vicente Sarmiento at the OC Board of Supervisors meeting on Tuesday, Jan. 23, 2024. He proposed a series of ethics reforms, up for approval at the meeting, in response to LAist's reporting on Supervisor Andrew Do awarding millions to his daughter's nonprofit group without disclosing the family connection.
The results of the vote: The ethics proposal deadlocked among the supervisors 2-to-2. That means the reform proposal was not approved, and is now officially dead. Do wasn’t present for the vote because he left the meeting early without explaining why.
The details:The proposal, which was authored by Supervisor Vicente Sarmiento in response to LAist’s findings, would have required supervisors to disclose immediate family connections to contractors they’re awarding money to. It also would have required supervisors to hold public votes when such connections existed.
What happens now that the vote has failed? Currently, county policies let any supervisor award money to organizations run by their adult child without having to disclose the relationship. Supervisors can also approve funds to their adult children without having to disclose the award on a public meeting agenda.
The backstory: LAist tallied $13.5 million in county funding that Do had a leading role in awarding to his daughter Rhiannon Do’s group. Most of the money was never listed on public agendas before — or after — it was approved. And Do did not publicly disclose his family relationship before directing the money, according to three of his fellow supervisors and the county’s chief executive.
The debate also featured disagreements on whether Orange County has a government corruption problem.
The nonprofit — run by Do’s daughter Rhiannon Do, who is a full-time law student — has not turned in required audits showing where millions in taxpayer dollars went, county CEO Frank Kim confirmed at Tuesday’s supervisors meeting. The first of the audits is over a year-and-a-half overdue, according to the timeline in a county contract with the group.
The ethics proposal deadlocked among the supervisors 2-to-2, with Vicente Sarmiento and Katrina Foley in favor, Don Wagner and Doug Chaffee against, and Do absent. That means the reform proposal was not approved and is now officially dead.
The empty chair of O.C. Supervisor Andrew Do at the supervisors' meeting on Tuesday, Jan. 23, 2024, as Father Denis Kriz of St. Philip Benizi Catholic Church in Fullerton addresses supervisors during public comments. Do left 45 minutes into the 3.5-hour meeting without explaining why, and didn't return.
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Nick Gerda / LAist
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Details of the failed proposal
The proposal, which was introduced by Sarmiento in response to LAist’s findings, would have required supervisors to disclose immediate family connections to contractors they’re awarding money to. It also would have required supervisors to hold public votes when such connections existed.
Currently, county policies let any supervisor award money to organizations run by their adult child without having to disclose the relationship.
Supervisors can also approve funds to their adult children without having to disclose the award on a public meeting agenda.
In government documents obtained through record requests, LAist tallied $13.5 million in county awards to Do’s daughter’s group, all of which Do had a leading role in awarding. Most of the money was never listed on public agendas before — or after — it was approved. And Do did not publicly disclose his family relationship before directing the money, according to three of his fellow supervisors and the county’s chief executive.
What happened at the meeting
At Tuesday’s meeting, Sarmiento said the goal of his proposal was “to have disclosures so that the public knows when we, as public servants, approve millions and millions of dollars in contracts that we are not enriching ourselves or our family members.”
“It doesn't require anybody to abstain. It simply requires you to disclose when you have a family member that's going to be receiving some sort of” benefit directed by a supervisor, Sarmiento added. “I would like to know, for better or for worse, if somebody has a sibling, spouse, daughter, anybody that's immediately related, as defined here, that could benefit from a contract that I am going to be supporting.”
Wagner and Chaffee pushed back, saying the proposed transparency and disclosure rules were unnecessary. Wagner called them “unconstitutional.”
“It is a moving of the goal posts in the law,” Wagner said. He argued that changes to county policies would be a “bill of attainder” — government punishment of someone for an alleged crime without a trial — and that the proposal would be retroactive against Do.
He added that Do’s granting of millions to his daughter’s group should not be questioned or challenged.
“There are no, nor should there be, questions or challenges as to that particular grant of money, because there's nothing illegal about what was done,” Wagner said.
Seeing that the reform measure was doomed, Foley asked if county staff could put in writing for public transparency what their process is for awarding contracts at the request of individual supervisors, which often happens outside public meetings as Do did.
That process — known as “district discretionary” funding — currently is “informal” without a written procedure, replied Kim, the county CEO.
Foley’s request got no support from Wagner or Chaffee and did not move forward.
Wagner told LAist in an interview last week that the nonprofit should not get additional county funding when it fails to submit required audits.
As for the nonprofit’s long-overdue audits showing where prior millions went, Wagner said that’s “a fair question.”
“The fact that later they don't comply [with the audit requirements] says, OK, next time we don't give you anything,” he said.
Asked if he was concerned that Do gave Viet America Society an additional $6.2 million after it failed to submit the federally required audits, Wagner said: “I think that's the question that needs to be asked and answered. And I don't have an answer to that.”
Debate on whether OC has a corruption problem
As he described his ethics proposal, Sarmiento said there's a corruption problem in Orange County — a statement that sparked pushback from Wagner.
"There is a lot of corruption that is happening in our county," Sarmiento said.
"Unfortunately, there are abuses of power, abuses of authority, and we know that that's something that's, um, that's unfortunately existed within these offices and in other government offices."
Wagner took exception.
"I resent it," Wagner said of Sarmiento's remarks.
"I am unaware of none in my office," he said. At least two audience members then laughed audibly.
"The good news is none of you can be heard on the microphone," Wagner said to them.
"The casual charge of corruption is, frankly, false," Wagner said of Sarmiento's comments.
Sarmiento said the public should be able to know about these kinds of close family connections.
"I want to make sure that I'm on record in supporting open government, transparency, good governance, and a good ethical standard," Sarmiento said.
"More sunshine is better than less, right? More light on something, more disclosure, more information for the public is always better than less."
Supervisor Do absent for the vote
Do wasn’t present at the ethics discussion because he left Tuesday’s meeting early — about 45 minutes into the 3.5-hour meeting, long before the reform proposal was discussed.
He didn’t explain why he left, and didn’t return for the rest of the meeting.
The editorial board of the O.C. Register, the county’s largest newspaper, has called three times for Do to resign since LAist’s reporting uncovered the details of the funding to Do’s daughter’s group.
Do has told other news outlets that he did nothing wrong when he awarded the money. He and Rhiannon Do have not responded to multiple interview requests from LAist.
During public comments, five people from the advocacy group VietRISE demanded that Do resign, and called for an independent audit of where the money went.
A message about LAist's coverage of O.C. Supervisor Andrew Do is displayed on a screen by a public commenter as they address the Board of Supervisors about an ethics proposal stemming on January 23, 2024. Do's chair (left) is empty because left the meeting early, without saying why.
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Nick Gerda / LAist
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“These allocations of funding need to be investigated, and the public needs answers to those backdoor dealings,” said Vincent Tran, organizing director at VietRISE.
“The lack of trust for our political institutions and elected officials stem from the decades of mismanagement, scandals, and corruption. And this is just another one of those blatant examples of corruption.”
Sarmiento said the lack of adopting the disclosure rules could come back to haunt the board.
That hesitance, he said, "unfortunately may bring us back sometime in the future to dealing with...some other issue in the future, where we might be saying we should have had this in place."
Yusra Farzan
has been covering the Rancho Palos Verdes landslide since 2023.
Published September 9, 2026 10:00 AM
A section of Narcissa Drive is closed due to landslide movement in the Portuguese Bend neighborhood of Rancho Palos Verdes as seen on Sept. 1, 2024.
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Brian Feinzimer
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LAist
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Topline:
Rancho Palos Verdes is drumming up support to lobby state legislators to offer an insurance plan for landslides.
How we got here: A portion of Rancho Palos Verdes sits on an ancient landslide. For decades, land movement was minimal. But above-average rainfall in 2022 and 2023 rapidly accelerated — up to 1 foot per week in some places — prompting Southern California Edison and SoCalGas to shut off utilities for hundreds of residents.
Why it matters: The city is looking at prior precedent: after the Northridge earthquake insurers only covered 50% of damages prompting the state to create the California Earthquake Authority. Now, around two-thirds of California’s earthquake insurance market is on the plan.
What happens now: City staffers will reach out to other cities and counties impacted by landslide damage to lobby state legislators in December to create an alternative plan.
Rancho Palos Verdes is leading the charge to create a new landslide insurance option for homeowners.
The effort brings together a coalition of city and county governments who say they need financial relief as they address ongoing issues like coastal erosion.
RPV's problems
A portion of Rancho Palos Verdes sits on an ancient landslide. For decades, land movement was minimal. But above-average rainfall in 2022 and 2023 rapidly accelerated the slip — up to 1 foot per week in some places — prompting Southern California Edison and SoCalGas to shut off utilities for hundreds of residents.
Roughly three years after above-average rainfall fueled a devastating landslide in Rancho Palos Verdes, the landscape has become almost unrecognizable. Around 20 homes, ripped apart by the land movement, have been red-tagged, meaning they can’t be lived in. Dozens have been yellow-tagged.
Landslide damage has closed dozens of trails in the Portuguese Bend area of Rancho Palos Verdes on April 04, 2026.
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Brian Feinzimer
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LAist
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The city’s eventual plan is to buy back some of these homes and turn them into open space, but trying to slow the landslide has pushed the city to the financial brink, with Rancho Palos Verdes spending on landslide mitigation as much as it takes to run the whole city.
Meanwhile, homeowners have had to put their savings — including their retirement — back into homes to repair landslide damage. Insurance companies haven’t helped. Generally, homeowners insurance does not cover landslides that aren’t caused by earthquakes.
In 2024, Rancho Palos Verdes surveyed residents who lived in the landslide area about their insurance coverage. None of the residents surveyed had insurance that covered landslides.
Other solutions haven’t panned out
An assembly bill to allow the governor to declare a state of emergency for landslides that aren’t caused by earthquakes, AB 986, failed.
RPV also dabbled with creating a joint powers authority where two or more public agencies come together to combine resources to coordinate services. Examples include clean power alliances like the Orange County Power Authority, and the California Community Housing Agency. But, under California law, JPAs cannot provide insurance options to private property owners.
Why the new effort matters
Rancho Palos Verdes is not the only city grappling with lack of landslide insurance for its residents. Cities mostly along the coast including Dana Point, Malibu, Laguna Beach and San Clemente have dealt with infrastructure damage due to coastal erosion over the years. San Clemente, a beach town reliant on foot traffic, has had to close public access to some of its beaches due to increased coastal erosion. Recurring landslides in the city have also disrupted coastal rail service.
Some counties including Santa Barbara, Ventura and San Diego also voiced their support for measures like the failed AB 986.
So what's the proposed solution?
Rancho Palos Verdes hopes to push state legislators to create a program similar to the California Earthquake Authority and the California FAIR Plan.
The state legislature created the California Earthquake Authority to provide optional earthquake insurance after the 1994 Northridge earthquake, which resulted in $20 billion in residential damages. Only half of the damages were covered by insurance. The CEA is a nonprofit that is managed by the state but privately funded through insurance premiums and represents about two-thirds of the residential earthquake market in California, according to Rancho Palos Verdes city staff.
The California Fair Plan was created in 1968 to offer insurance plans for homeowners who have trouble getting private insurance in areas that are prone to wildfires. It has grown to about 610,000 policies as of June 2025, a 154% increase since September 2021, as other insurance companies have canceled or stopped issuing new policies in California, citing growing wildfire risk. The plan is run by insurers who do business in the state but is not publicly managed.
Rancho Palos Verdes officials will be reaching out to other affected cities and counties to drum up support. They then plan to reach out to state legislators and the insurance commissioner by the end of the year.
The Los Angeles Department of Transportation said it would not enforce certain parking restrictions through Sept. 30 as part of a relief effort after the Lineage warehouse fire.
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Laura Anaya-Morga
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Boyle Heights Beat
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Topline:
Residents in parts of Boyle Heights may be eligible to have certain citations waived and benefit from relaxed parking enforcement through Sept. 30 following the Lineage warehouse fire.
Why now: The change comes after small business owners shared with elected officials that they’ve been struggling with low foot traffic after the fire. Councilmember Ysabel Jurado, in a statement, said she hopes the new parking guidelines can “reduce unnecessary burdens” and make it “easier for customers to continue supporting neighborhood businesses during the recovery.”
Where to get help with a citation: Residents who believe they received a citation in error may contact Jurado’s Boyle Heights field office at 323-526-9332 and ask for the small business liaison.
Read on... for a map and list on where parking relief applies.
Residents in parts of Boyle Heights may be eligible to have certain citations waived and benefit from relaxed parking enforcement through Sept. 30 following the Lineage warehouse fire.
The change comes after small business owners shared with elected officials that they’ve been struggling with low foot traffic after the fire. Councilmember Ysabel Jurado, in a statement, said she hopes the new parking guidelines can “reduce unnecessary burdens” and make it “easier for customers to continue supporting neighborhood businesses during the recovery.”
Rosie Echeverria, a representative for Council District 14, informed the Boyle Heights Neighborhood Council about the relaxed parking enforcement at its Aug. 26 meeting. She provided attendees with a map showing the original assistance area and an added expansion. (See the map below).
“You should not be getting ticketed for meters. You should not be getting ticketed for overnight parking. You should not be ticketed for limited parking. For example, if it’s a ‘two-hour parking only’ and you end up staying three hours, you should not be getting a ticket for that,” Echeverria said.
The Los Angeles Department of Transportation said it would not enforce certain parking restrictions through Sept. 30. Here’s what you need to know.
Where the parking relief applies
Relaxed enforcement applies to eligible violations in the designated fire-affected areas. Enforcement is relaxed daily from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m.
Original area (eligible for violations issued July 29 to Sept. 30)
A map shows relaxed parking enforcement areas.
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Jackie Ramirez made with Atlist
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The area bounded by:
Boyle Avenue
Cesar Chavez Avenue
Lorena Street
Olympic Boulevard
Expanded area (eligible for violations issued Aug. 17 to Sept. 30)
A map shows an extended area of relaxed parking enforcement.
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Jackie Ramirez made with Atlist
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The original boundaries, plus the area bounded by:
Soto Street
Cincinnati Street
Evergreen Avenue
Cesar Chavez Avenue
This includes Mott Street and Fickett Street, but excludes Forest Avenue
What parking enforcement is covered and what is not
Under this effort, the L.A. Department of Transportation is not enforcing parking restrictions related to:
Street meter parking
Residential street sweeping zones
Time limit restrictions, such as two-hour parking zones
Areas designating no parking between certain time frames
Overnight, oversize and preferential parking districts
The effort, however, does not suspend all parking enforcement, according to Jurado’s office. Areas that remain fully enforceable include:
Red zones
Bus zones
Handicapped zones
“No Parking Anytime” zones
“No Stopping Anytime” zones
All temporary “No parking” or “No stopping zones”
White curbs
Alleys and sidewalks
Where to get help with a citation
Residents who believe they received a citation in error may contact Jurado’s Boyle Heights field office at 323-526-9332 and ask for the small business liaison.
The L.A. Department of Transportation said that if someone believes a citation was issued in error and would like to contest it, they can contact the Parking Violations Bureau online or by phone at 866-561-9742.
L.A. Documenter Yliana Roland contributed to this story. L.A. Documenters trains and pays L.A. residents to take notes at local government meetings around Los Angeles. You can find meeting notes and audio at losangeles.documenters.org
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Celebrate Orange County's Latino communities at Santa Ana's Fiestas Patrias on Sept. 12 and 13.
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Courtesy City of Santa Ana
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A play looks back on 9/11, NFL season kicks off, a Mexican Independence day celebration in Santa Ana, postcards from Ukraine and more of the best things to do this week.
Highlights
NFL season is here again, and the Rams first game of the year is taking on our neighbors to the north, the 49ers. Head to the Regent for a free watch party.
There’s still plenty of good weather for a free outdoor Americana folk concert, and that’s exactly what’s in store at Santa Monica’s Gandara Park.
Celebrate Orange County's vibrant Latino communities at Santa Ana's Fiestas Patrias in honor of Mexico’s Independence Day.
I was fortunate to get a sneak peek at the new Lucas Museum of Narrative Art last week and given how many thoughts our Best Things to Do readers had on the new LACMA Geffen Galleries, I can’t wait to hear what you think of the Lucas once it opens to the public on Sept. 22. Please share your thoughts when you go!
I was blown away by the building — it’s light and airy while feeling futuristic and somewhat imposing at the same time. The gardens are green and have plenty of places to sit and soak up the sun or the shade, and the reading room (which will be free and open to all) is definitely going on the "best places to cowork" list. The art collection is mostly organized by subject rather than era and includes works by artists from Norman Rockwell to Frida Kahlo to Banksy to Lucas himself via the many pieces of Star Wars history on display. There's truly something for everyone.
Thursday, Sept. 10, 5:35 p.m. The Regent 448 Main St., Downtown L.A. COST: FREE; MORE INFO
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Courtesy The Regent Theater
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I guess summer really is over because football season is here again and the Rams first game of the year is taking on our neighbors to the north, the 49ers. Head to the Regent for a free watch party; there’s a state-of-the-art sound system and LED video wall, plus it’s free.
Americana in the Park
Sunday, Sept. 13, 1:30 to 6:30 p.m. Gandara Park 1819 Stewart Ave., Santa Monica COST: FREE; MORE INFO
Alright, kids are back in school and football season started, but is it ever really not summer here? There’s still plenty of good weather for a free outdoor Americana folk concert and that’s exactly what’s in store at Santa Monica’s Gandara Park. Put on by our friends at McCabe’s Guitar Shop, there will be performances from Albert Lee, Ricardo Lemvo & Makina Loca, Abby Posner & the Big Fall, Jason Luckett, the Bob Baker Marionettes.
Fiestas Patrias Festival
Sept. 12-13 Multiple locations, Downtown Santa Ana COST: FREE; MORE INFO
Celebrate Orange County's vibrant Hispanic and Latino communities at Santa Ana's Fiestas Patrias in honor of Mexico’s Independence Day. There’s a parade and street fair, live entertainment from local bands, carnival rides, food, and more.
Steel Magnolias
Thursday, Sept. 10, 7:35pm Rooftop Cinema Club 888 S. Olive St., 4th Floor, Downtown L.A. COST: $31.05; MORE INFO
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Rooftop Cinema Club
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Rooftop Cinema Club is honoring Dolly Parton’s legacy with a screening of the ultimate ode to Southern female friendship, Steel Magnolias (in both Spanish and English), with 10 percent of ticket sales benefiting Parton's Imagination Library.
Staged reading of WTC View
Friday, Sept. 11, 7:30 p.m. Celebration Theatre & LA LGBT Center The Village at Ed Gould Plaza (Renberg Theatre) 1125 N. McCadden Place, Hollywood COST: FROM $29; MORE INFO
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Los Angeles LGBT Center
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Michael Urie (Ugly Betty) directs this special September 11 anniversary reading of WTC View, Brian Sloan’s 2003 play about the weeks following 9/11 in Lower Manhattan. The story looks at a gay photographer’s struggle to find community in a time of societal and personal change. “I was just beginning my third year of drama school in New York on 9/11, and I vividly remember how raw we New Yorkers still were when we premiered the play in 2003,” said Urie. “Now Brian’s beautiful play is a time capsule of those weeks following 9/11, when we were all babies in a new world and the interactions we had with strangers were so intimate and heartfelt.”
Spotlight Arts Festival
Sunday, Sept. 13, 2 to 5 p.m. Bank of America Performing Arts Center 2100 Thousand Oaks Blvd., Thousand Oaks COST: FREE; MORE INFO
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Eventbrite
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The first-ever Spotlight Arts festival in Thousand Oaks brings together local artists, performers, and community organizations for a free afternoon of art, music, creativity, and connection. The festival will feature 15-minute live performances from a range of local groups, artist booths, hands-on activities, live painting, and more.
Maria Koutsogiannis in Conversation with Gaby Dalkin
Saturday, Sept. 12, 11 a.m. Now Serving 727 N. Broadway, #133, Chinatown COST: FROM $11.49; MORE INFO
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Eventbrite
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Didn’t get to the Greek Islands this summer? No problem. Greek chef, author, and Instagram favorite Maria Koutsogiannis is bringing Greece to us as her debut cookbook, Greek Out, launches at Now Serving. The book features more than 120 Greek-inspired recipes alongside personal stories rooted in family, culture and tradition. She’ll be in conversation with Gaby Dalkin at Now Serving.
Come as You Are: The Musical
Tuesday, Sept. 15, 7 p.m. The Ripped Bodice 3806 Main St., Culver City COST: $22.58, MORE INFO
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Eventbrite
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Emily Nagoski, PhD has the answers to all the things you were afraid to ask about sex – and now you can sing along. The New York Times best-selling author of Come As You Are and Come Together has packed her ukulele for a fun night of music and sex talk (what could be better?) at the best romance book store around, Culver City’s The Ripped Bodice.
Postcode Ukraine: Diary of a Volunteer
Sept. 11-30 Westwood Contemporary 1101 Westwood Blvd., Westwood Village COST: FREE; MORE INFO
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Postcode Ukraine
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postcodeukraine.com
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As we head into a fifth year of war in Ukraine, the Wende Museum’s Westwood Contemporary is highlighting the work of British photographer Mark Neville, who has been documenting the lives of everyday Ukrainians through his expansive project, Postcode Ukraine. Postcode Ukraine: Diary of a Volunteer is here through the end of the month, ahead of a larger international tour.
By Christopher Weber and Amy Taxin | Associated Press
Published September 8, 2026 5:09 PM
Emergency vehicles repond to the chemical leak in LA Habra on Tuesday, Sept. 8, 2026.
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Jae C. Hong
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Associated Press
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Topline:
A slow leak from a chemical tank smeared an orange cloud across the sky of a Southern California neighborhood on Tuesday, but authorities said they quickly got it under control.
Why it matters: Los Angeles County Fire Capt. Aaron Katon said authorities responded to a La Habra business that makes cleaning products after receiving a call shortly before noon about the cloud. Police evacuated a nearby middle school as a precaution, Katon said.
The chemical: They do not yet know what the chemical was, but all shelter-in-place orders have been lifted, Katon said.
What's next: The regional air quality management district has deployed staff to the area to investigate, said Connie Villanueva, a spokesperson for the South Coast Air Quality Management District.
A slow leak from a chemical tank smeared an orange cloud across the sky of a Southern California neighborhood on Tuesday, but authorities said they quickly got it under control.
Los Angeles County Fire Capt. Aaron Katon said authorities responded to a business that makes cleaning products after receiving a call shortly before noon about the cloud. Police evacuated a nearby middle school as a precaution, Katon said.
They do not yet know what the chemical was, but all shelter-in-place orders have been lifted, he said. The regional air quality management district has deployed staff to the area to investigate, said Connie Villanueva, a spokesperson for the South Coast Air Quality Management District.
The company, Shepard Bros., could not immediately be reached for comment.
Three company employees reported minor respiratory irritation and declined further treatment, Katon said.
The leak occurred in the city of La Habra near a mix of residential neighborhoods and industrial warehouses about 10 miles (16 kilometers) north of Anaheim.
Keary Godinez, who works in a nearby restaurant, said she saw what appeared to be a dark yellow cloud spread across the sky. The 20-year-old said she watched students across the street board buses to evacuate, but police told her the eatery could remain open.
“It looked like pollen dust,” Godinez said, adding she didn’t detect a smell from the cloud. “It just kind of smeared in the sky and started going away.”
La Habra Mayor Jose Medrano had urged residents to shelter in place and said some streets were being evacuated.
Luis Gomez, who manages a nearby pickleball program, said earlier Tuesday he saw the cloud, called police and was told anyone within a mile radius of the location was under an evacuation order.
