Brianna Lee
is LAist’s Civics and Democracy engagement producer, focusing on making local government accessible.
Published April 23, 2025 2:34 PM
L.A. Mayor Karen Bass' recently released budget proposal includes estimates for how much the city government spent on services this year.
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Photo illustration by Samanta Helou Hernandez/ LAist; Source photographs by Carlin Stiehl/LAist; Creative Commons.
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Topline:
Have you ever wondered how much money you’re personally paying for L.A. city services? We made a tool to figure that out.
How does it work? Input the amount of property tax you pay in a year (we have instructions on how to figure that out), and it’ll break down how much went to various city departments and services over the past year. These numbers are based on the city’s expenditure estimates for this fiscal year, which ends in June.
Why it matters: The L.A. city government is facing a financial crisis fueled in part by overspending, and city residents will see service cuts as a result. Better understanding how the city government handled its money — and where your taxes fit into it — is one of the biggest ways residents can start to hold leaders accountable.
Read on… to try the calculator for yourself.
Our tax money makes our cities function. It funds everything from pothole repair to garbage pickup to firefighting.
So how much money are you personally putting into all these services?
If you’re a resident of Los Angeles, we made a calculator to show you how your property tax dollars were spent on city services this year, based on the city’s spending estimates. And, yes, this matters for renters, too.
Understanding how cities handle their funds — and where your money fits into it — is one of the best ways residents can hold their leaders accountable. That’s especially relevant now as the L.A. city government faces a financial crisis fueled in part by overspending.
How it works
Roughly a third of the city’s general fund (think of it as L.A.’s main checking account used to pay for services, including police, parks and libraries) comes from property taxes. This is the money we’re following with this calculator.
If you’re a homeowner in the city of L.A., you’re paying that tax directly. If you’re a renter, you’re likely helping your landlord pay that tax through your rent. When your landlord’s property taxes go up (or any other costs — maintenance, repairs or insurance), rent prices often follow.
The rest of the city’s revenues come from sales taxes, business taxes, parking tickets and other fees. You’re likely paying some of those, too, but it's harder to pin down how much you’re contributing in a given year.
To keep things simple, we’ll only be tracking property taxes with this tool — but know that your actual total contribution is likely higher.
If you live outside the city of L.A., your breakdown will look different. We don’t yet have detailed calculations for other cities within the county or some of the other government services your money goes to, like school districts or county departments.
If you’d like us to take a closer look at anything, send us a note via the form at the bottom of this story.
How to find out how much property tax you paid this year
The median property tax bill in L.A. is $5,438 per year, according to the Tax Foundation. When in doubt, use this number in the calculator.
To get a more precise figure, you can look up a property tax bill by address with the following steps:
Find the number on the top right that corresponds with General Tax Levy. This is the portion that goes to city and county general funds. Use this number in our calculator below. (If you’re in a large apartment building, this number is going to be pretty big. You can divide it by the number of units in your building to estimate your contribution.)
Try the calculator
Input your property tax amount below and see what the breakdown looks like. Read below to get additional background on some of this spending.
How we put this together
LAist relied on the city of L.A.’s expenditure estimates for fiscal year 2024-25, which you can see in Mayor Karen Bass’ most recent budget proposal.
First, we determined what percentage of the city’s general fund came from property tax dollars, and then what percentage of each department’s budget came from the general fund. We used these same percentage formulas to break down your property tax bill for this calculator.
More on how the city spends its money
Wondering what kind of discussions city leaders are having over spending?
Much of their attention has been on the budgets for the police and fire departments, which receive the largest share of city funds but have grappled with staffing shortages. Payouts for liability claims have also pushed the city further into its current budget crisis. Meanwhile, departments like the Bureau of Sanitation and Bureau of Street Lighting are proposing raising other fees to fund their services as city finances get tighter.
Here’s more context behind some of these figures along with LAist’s recent reporting on city department budgets.
Police
The Police Department receives more city funding than any other department. More than 95% of its budget comes from the general fund.
The number of sworn police officers has been falling in recent years. Today there are about 8,700 sworn officers, down from roughly 10,000 before the COVID-19 pandemic.
Encouraging recruitment is one reason L.A. Mayor Karen Bass in 2023 said she supported salary hikes for officers worth $1 billion over four years, a deal the L.A. City Council approved. The raises are guaranteed under a contract with the police officers’ union, which means the salary portion of the LAPD budget — and your contribution to it — will continue to rise until the contract is up in 2027.
The Fire Department’s budget has been a hot topic of conversation since the Palisades Fire erupted in January. (The LAFD was not in charge of fighting the Eaton Fire, which burned the unincorporated area of Altadena. That was managed by the L.A. County Fire Department.) This department’s budget comes almost entirely from the general fund, with less than 1% coming from a half-cent sales tax all Californians pay for local public safety agencies.
Before the fires broke out, then-L.A. Fire Chief Kristin Crowley had warned that the department was understaffed and that emergency services were suffering. With just under one firefighter per 1,000 residents, the LAFD is among the smallest fire departments per capita of any major city. Response times have also increased in recent years as the city’s population has grown.
The L.A. City Council approved a labor contract in 2024 that boosted firefighter pay and funded new equipment, but Crowley said that wasn’t enough to address understaffing. The mayor’s budget proposal for 2025-26 increases the department’s budget to add 227 new positions, an increase of about 6%.
One of L.A.'s biggest costs is its annual contributions to retirement and pension funds for city employees, which come from the general fund. This year the city paid $1.4 billion — about 17.9% of the general fund — to cover those payments plus some short-term borrowing costs to cover cash flow gaps. Sworn police and fire employees receive the biggest portion of these pension funds.
In 2024, L.A. city voters passed Measure FF, which raised the overall cost of pensions. It allowed about 460 park rangers, port police and other peace officers the option to move from the civilian pension system to the more generous plan reserved for fire and police officers. An analysis from the city administrative officer said the measure would cost the general fund a $23 million one-time payment and about $1 million annually.
When the stock market performs poorly, the city has to contribute more of your tax money to pension funds to make sure pension recipients get what they’re owed. That’s one of many ways the national economic outlook will have a big impact on L.A.’s finances in the years to come.
The dollar amount shown in this tool only represents a few of the city’s services for unhoused people that aren’t part of other departments’ costs, including Inside Safe, Bass’ initiative to move thousands of unhoused Angelenos to temporary hotels and motels while they await permanent housing, and CIRCLE, a crisis response program that sends mental health workers to respond to non-violent calls involving unhoused people.
This figure reflects about $70 million of spending on homelessness. The city of L.A. hasn’t yet released comprehensive spending estimates for all homelessness programs for this year, for which it originally budgeted $337 million from the general fund.
The city budgeted another $614 million in homelessness spending to come from state and federal grants, as well as taxes or bonds that L.A. city voters passed. (That’s Measure ULA, which sets aside 4% of L.A. city property sales of more than $5 million and allocates them to homeless services, and Proposition HHH, which authorized the city to borrow $1.2 billion to build 10,000 units of housing over a decade.)
The homelessness spending not reflected here also includes city department funds for homelessness-specific services — for example, job support programs for unhoused people through the Economic and Workforce Development Department’s budget, or park encampment cleanup resources through the Recreation and Parks Department’s budget.
The city also contributes money to the joint city-county agency Los Angeles Housing Services Authority, or LAHSA, for its services, including the annual Homeless Count, street outreach and case managers for placing unhoused people into available housing. L.A. County lawmakers recently voted to withdraw its funding for LAHSA and create a new county-run agency. L.A. City Council members are also exploring the possibility of pulling funding for LAHSA. Bass’ budget proposal for the coming fiscal year decreases spending on homelessness by about 5% overall.
This year, the city of L.A. is expected to pay more than $300 million to settle claims and lawsuits against the city for wrongdoing. It’s more than triple the amount the city budgeted for liability claims. That budget has remained at $87 million for the past five years despite payouts regularly amounting to double or triple that amount.
Some of the most expensive settlements include claims over housing discrimination, police use of force and injuries caused by decaying city infrastructure.
About 20% of the Bureau of Sanitation’s spending came from the general fund this year. A large portion of the rest came from fees that residents pay for trash, recycling, water usage and other services.
The department has been facing staffing shortages and budget gaps, which is why earlier this year it asked the L.A. City Council to raise trash collection fees. If the rate hikes don’t get approved, the general fund would have to cover about 40% of the department’s expenses in the coming fiscal year, according to the Bureau of Sanitation’s analysis.
If the figure shown in this calculator seems small, that’s because it’s not the full amount we actually pay for street lighting services.
Most of this department’s budget comes from an additional property tax that’s specifically for street lighting. If you pull up your property tax bill (see instructions near the top of this story), you’ll see a section called “Direct Assessments.” Underneath that is a line for Los Angeles City Light Maintenance — abbreviated as “City Lt Maint” — that’s most of what you’re contributing to this department’s services.
This fee hasn’t increased since the late 1990s. That has put stress on the department’s budget, which is also seeing rising costs due to copper wire thefts and frequent outages.
Last year’s budget eliminated about 17% of positions from the Bureau of Street Lighting, which were vacant at the time. The mayor’s budget proposal for 2025-26 cuts it by another 7%.
Jorge "Coqui" H. Rodriguez speaks at a press conference outside Dodger Stadium on Wednesady to demand the Dodgers not visit the White House following their 2025 World Series win.
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J.W. Hendricks
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The LA Local
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Topline:
Less than 24 hours before season opener, longtime Dodgers fans demand the team divest from immigration detention centers and decline the White House visit.
More details: More than 30 people joined Richard Santillan on Wednesday morning for a press conference held near 1000 Vin Scully Drive to convey a message directly to the team. “We are demanding that the Dodgers stop participating in funding of inhumane treatment of families and do not go to the White House to celebrate with the criminal in chief,” Evelyn Escatiola told the crowd. “Together we have the power to make a change.”
Since 1977, Richard Santillan has been to every Opening Day game at Dodger Stadium.
“The tradition goes from my father, to me, to my children and grandchildren. Some of my best memories are with my father and children here at Dodger Stadium,” Santillan told The LA Local, smiling under the shade of palm trees near the entrance to the ballpark Wednesday morning. He was there to protest the team less than 24 hours before Opening Day.
Santillan, like countless other loyal Dodgers fans, is grappling with his fan identity over the team’s decision to accept an invitation to the White House and owner Mark Walter’s ties to ICE detention facilities.
More than 30 people joined Santillan on Wednesday morning for a press conference held near 1000 Vin Scully Drive to convey a message directly to the team.
“We are demanding the Dodgers stop participating in funding of inhumane treatment of families and do not go to the White House to celebrate with the criminal in chief,” Evelyn Escatiola told the crowd. “Together, we have the power to make a change.”
Escatiola, a former dean of East Los Angeles College and longtime community organizer, urged fans to flex their economic power by “letting the Dodgers know that we do not support repression.”
Jorge “Coqui” Rodriguez, a lifelong Dodgers fan, spoke to the crowd and called on Dodgers ownership to divest from immigration detention centers owned and operated by GEO Group and CoreCivic.
Jorge Coqui H Rodriguez speaks at a press conference outside Dodger Stadium on March 25, 2026, to demand the Dodgers not to visit the White House following their 2025 World Series win.
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J.W. Hendricks
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The LA Local
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In a phone interview a day before the protest, Rodriguez told The LA Local he did not want the Dodgers using his “cheve” or beer money to fund detention centers.
“They can’t take our parking money, our cacahuate money, our cheve money, our Dodger Dog money and invest those funds into corporations that are imprisoning people. It’s wrong,” Rodriguez said.
Rodriguez considers the Dodgers one of the most racially diverse teams and said the players need to support fans at a time when heightened immigration enforcement has become more common across L.A.
The team’s 2025’s visit to the White House drew ire from the largely Latino fan base, citing the Trump administration’s ongoing attacks on immigrants.
The team again came under fire after not releasing a statement on the impacts of ICE raids on its mostly Latino fan base at the height of immigration enforcement last summer. The team later agreed to invest $1 million to support families affected by immigration enforcement.
When he learned the Dodgers were pledging only $1 million to families in need, Rodriguez called the amount a “slap in the face.”
“These guys just bought the Lakers for billions of dollars and they give a million dollars to fight for legal services? That’s a joke,” Rodriguez said. “They need to have a moral backbone and not be investing in those companies.”
According to reporting from the Los Angeles Times, former Dodgers pitcher Clayton Kershawsaid last week that he is looking forward to the trip.
“I went when President [Joe] Biden was in office. I’m going to go when President [Donald] Trump is in office,” Kershaw said. “To me, it’s just about getting to go to the White House. You don’t get that opportunity every day, so I’m excited to go.”
The Dodgers have yet to announce when their planned visit will take place.
Santillan sometimes laments his decision to give up his season tickets in protest of the team. His connection to the stadium and the memories he has made there with family and friends will last a lifetime, he said. On Thursday, he will uphold his tradition and be there for the first pitch of the season, but with a heavy heart.
“It’s a family tradition, but the Dodgers have a lot of work to do,” he said.
Destiny Torres
is LAist's general assignment reporter and brings you the top news you need for the day.
Published March 25, 2026 3:38 PM
The warmer weather and high water flow are causing an early outbreak of black flies in the San Gabriel Valley.
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Courtesy SGV Mosquito and Vector Control District
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Topline:
The warmer weather and high water flow are causing an early outbreak of black flies in the San Gabriel Valley, according to officials.
What are black flies? Black flies are tiny, pesky insects that often get mistaken for mosquitoes. The biting flies breed near foothill communities like Altadena, Azusa, San Dimas and Glendora. They also thrive near flowing water.
What you need to know: Black flies fly in large numbers and long distances. When they bite both humans and pets, they aim around the eyes and the neck. While the bites can be painful, they don’t transmit diseases in L.A. County.
A population spike: Anais Medina Diaz, director of communications at the SGV Mosquito and Vector Control District, told LAist that at this time last year, surveillance traps had single-digit counts of adult black flies, but this year those traps are collecting counts above 500.
So, why is the population growing? Diaz said the surge is unusual for this time of year.
“We are experiencing them now because of the warmer temperatures we've been having,” Diaz said. “And of course, all the water that's going down through the river, we have a high flow of water that is not typical for this time of year.”
What officials are doing: Officials say teams are identifying and treating public sources where black flies can thrive, but that many of these sites are influenced by natural or infrastructure conditions outside their control.
How to protect yourself: Black flies can be hard to avoid outside in dense vegetation, but you can reduce the chance of a bite by:
Wearing loose-fitted clothing that covers the entire body.
Wearing a hat with netting on top.
Spraying on repellent, but check the label. For a repellent to be effective, it needs to have at least 15% DEET, the only active ingredient that works against black flies.
Turning off any water features like fountains for at least 24 hours, especially in foothill communities.
See an uptick in black flies in your area? Here's how to report it
SGV Mosquito and Vector Control District Submit a tip here You can also send a tip to district@sgvmosquito.org (626) 814-9466
Greater Los Angeles Vector Control District Submit a service request here You can also send a service request to info@GLAmosquito.org (562) 944-9656
Orange County Mosquito and Vector Control Submit a report here You can also send a report to ocvcd@ocvector.org (714) 971-2421 or (949) 654-2421
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Robert Garrova
explores the weird and secret bits of SoCal that would excite even the most jaded Angelenos. He also covers mental health.
Published March 25, 2026 3:28 PM
Jeremy Kaplan and Florence at READ Books in Eagle Rock.
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Courtesy Jeremy Kaplan
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Topline:
Local favorite mom and pop shop READ Books in Eagle Rock is facing displacement due to a steep rent hike. The owners say they’re just one of several small businesses along Eagle Rock Boulevard struggling to keep up with lease increases.
The backstory: Over the past 19 years, many in the neighborhood have come to love READ Books for its eclectic collection of used titles and their shop dog Florence.
What happened? The building where Kaplan and his wife Debbie rent was recently sold and the rent increased by more than 130% to $2,805 a month, Kaplan said. He told LAist it was an increase his small business simply could not absorb.
What's next? While he looks for a new spot, Kaplan says he’s forming a coalition of local businesses and activist groups to see what can be done to help other small businesses facing similar displacement. He wants to address the displacement issue for businesses like his, which have made Eagle Rock the distinctive neighborhood that it is today.
Read on... for what small businesses can do.
A local favorite mom-and-pop bookshop in Eagle Rock is facing displacement due to a steep rent hike. The owners say theirs is just one of several small businesses along Eagle Rock Boulevard struggling to keep up with lease increases.
Over the past 19 years, many in the neighborhood have come to love READ Books for its eclectic collection of used titles and shop dog Florence.
Co-owner Jeremy Kaplan said it’s been a delight to grow with the community over the years.
“Like seeing kids come back in, who were in grade school and now they’re in college,” Kaplan said.
But the building where Kaplan and wife Debbie rent was recently sold, and the rent increased by more than 130% to $2,805 a month, Kaplan said. He told LAist it was an increase his small business simply could not absorb.
Kaplan said he originally was given 30 days notice of the rent increase. After some research, assistance from Councilmember Ysabel Jurado’s office and some pro-bono legal help, Kaplan said he pushed back and got the 90-day notice he’s afforded by state law.
California Senate Bill 1103 requires landlords to give businesses with five or less employees 90 days’ notice for rent increases exceeding 10%, among other protections.
Systems Real Estate, the property management company, did not immediately respond to LAist’s request for comment.
What can small businesses do?
Nadia Segura, directing attorney of the Small Business Program at pro bono legal aid non-profit Bet Tzedek said California law does not currently allow for rent control for commercial tenancies.
Outside of the protections under SB 1103, Segura said small businesses like READ Books don’t have much other recourse. And even then, commercial landlords are not required to inform their tenants of their protections under the law.
“There’s still a lot of people that don’t know about SB 1103. And then it’s very sad that they tell them they have these rent increases and within a month they have to leave,” Segura said.
She said her group is seeing steep rent hikes like this for commercial tenants across the city.
“We are seeing this even more with the World Cup coming up, the Olympics coming up. And I will say it was very sad to see that also after the wildfires,” Segura said.
Part of Bet Tzedek’s ongoing work is to advocate for small businesses, working with landlords who are increasing rents to see if they are willing to give business owners longer leases that lock in rents.
While he looks for a new spot, Kaplan says he’s forming a coalition of local businesses and activist groups to see what can be done to help other small businesses facing similar displacement. He wants to address the displacement issue for businesses like his, which have made Eagle Rock the distinctive neighborhood that it is today.
Owl Talk, a longtime Eagle Rock staple selling clothing and accessories in a unit in the same building as READ Books, is facing a “more than double” rent increase, according to a post on their Instagram account.
Kaplan said he’s been in touch with the office of state Assemblywoman Jessica Caloza and wants to explore the possibility of introducing legislation to set up protections for small businesses like his, including rent-control measures or a vacancy tax for landlords. Kaplan said he also reached out to the office of state Sen. Maria Durazo.
By his count, Kaplan said there are about a dozen businesses within surrounding blocks that are at risk of closing their doors or have shuttered due to rent increases or other struggles.
When READ Books was founded during the Great Recession, Kaplan said he knew it was a longshot to open a bookstore at the same time so many were struggling to stay in business.
“It was kind of interesting to be doing something that neighborhoods needed. That was important to me growing up, that was important to my children, that was important to my wife growing up,” Kaplan said.
“And then somebody comes in and says, ‘We’re gonna over double your rent.”
Kavish Harjai
writes about infrastructure that's meant to help us move about the region.
Published March 25, 2026 3:12 PM
A field team member of the Bureau of Street Lighting installs a solar-powered light in Filipinotown.
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Mayor Bass Communications Office
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Topline:
The Los Angeles City Council approved a plan in a 13-1 vote on Tuesday to send ballots to more than half a million property owners asking if they are willing to pay more per year to fortify the city’s streetlight repair budget, most of which has essentially been frozen since the 1990s. The item still requires L.A. Mayor Karen Bass’ signature, but her office confirmed to LAist on Wednesday that she’ll approve it.
Frozen budget: Most of the city’s Bureau of Street Lighting budget comes from an assessment that people who own property illuminated by lights pay on their county property tax bill. The amount people pay depends on the kind of property they own and how much they benefit from lighting. A typical single-family home currently pays $53 annually, and in total, the assessments bring in about $45 million annually for the city to repair and maintain streetlights. Changing the amount the Bureau of Street Lighting gets from the assessment requires a vote among property owners who benefit from the lights.
Ballots: L.A. City Council’s vote gives city staff the green light to prepare and send out those ballots. Miguel Sangalang, who oversees the bureau, said at a committee meeting earlier this month that he expects to send out ballots by April 17. Notices about the ballots will be sent out prior to the ballots themselves.
Near unanimous vote: L.A.City Councilmember Monica Rodriguez was the only “No” vote on Tuesday, saying she wanted to see a more current strategic plan for the bureau. Sangalang said the bureau developed a plan in 2022 that lays out how money will be spent. Councilmember Imelda Padilla was absent for the vote.
Vote count: Votes will be weighted according to the assessment amount. Basically, the more you’re asked to pay yearly to maintain streetlights, the more your vote will count. Ballots received before June 2 will be tabulated by the L.A. City Clerk.
How much more money: According to a report, the amount needed in assessments from property owners to meet the repair and maintenance needs of the city’s streetlighting in the next fiscal year is nearly $112 million.
Use of the money: Sangalang said at a March 11 committee meeting that the extra funds would be used to double the number of staff to handle repairs and procure solar streetlights, which don’t face the threat of copper wire theft. That would all potentially reduce the time it takes to repair simple fixes down to a week. Currently, city residents wait for months to see broken streetlights repaired.The assessment would come with a three-year auditing mechanism.
Topline:
The Los Angeles City Council approved a plan in a 13-1 vote Tuesday to send ballots to more than a half-million property owners asking if they are willing to pay more per year to fortify the city’s streetlight repair budget, most of which essentially has been frozen since the 1990s. The item still requires L.A. Mayor Karen Bass’ signature, but her office confirmed to LAist on Wednesday that she’ll approve it.
Frozen budget: Most of the city’s Bureau of Street Lighting budget comes from an assessment that people who own property illuminated by lights pay on their county property tax bill. The amount people pay depends on the kind of property they own and how much they benefit from lighting. A typical single-family home currently pays $53 annually, and in total, the assessments bring in about $45 million annually for the city to repair and maintain streetlights. Changing the amount the Bureau of Street Lighting gets from the assessment requires a vote among property owners who benefit from the lights.
Ballots: L.A. City Council’s vote gives city staff the green light to prepare and send out those ballots. Miguel Sangalang, who oversees the bureau, said at a committee meeting earlier this month that he expects to send out ballots by April 17. Notices about the ballots will be sent out prior to the ballots themselves.
Near unanimous vote: L.A.City Councilmember Monica Rodriguez was the only “No” vote Tuesday, saying she wanted to see a more current strategic plan for the bureau. Sangalang said the bureau developed a plan in 2022 that lays out how money will be spent. Councilmember Imelda Padilla was absent for the vote.
Vote count: Votes will be weighted according to the assessment amount. Basically, the more you’re asked to pay yearly to maintain streetlights, the more your vote will count. Ballots received before June 2 will be tabulated by the L.A. City Clerk.
How much more money: According to a report, the amount needed in assessments from property owners to meet the repair and maintenance needs of the city’s streetlighting in the next fiscal year is nearly $112 million.
Use of the money: Sangalang said at a March 11 committee meeting that the extra funds would be used to double the number of staff to handle repairs and procure solar streetlights, which don’t face the threat of copper wire theft. That would all potentially reduce the time it takes to repair simple fixes down to a week. Currently, city residents wait for months to see broken streetlights repaired. The assessment would come with a three-year auditing mechanism.
