Brief

The Mayor submitted a document on September 4, 2026, proposing that Los Angeles accept a Proposition 64 grant award from the California Board of State and Community Corrections for a hazardous fuel reduction, habitat restoration, and reforestation project in Angeles National Forest (Cohort 4). The file was referred to both the Budget and Finance Committee and Public Works Committee on September 9, 2026, and remains pending in both committees.

Full summary

Mayor Karen Bass is asking the City Council to accept a $6 million grant from the California Board of State and Community Corrections, funded by cannabis tax revenue under Proposition 64, to run a five-year workforce training and environmental restoration program in the Angeles National Forest. The Mayor's Office of Economic Opportunity would serve as the lead agency, with the grant period running from July 1, 2026, through December 31, 2031. The program is designed to address two intertwined problems: the environmental damage caused by illegal cannabis cultivation in the forest, and the shortage of trained conservation workers needed to restore fire-scarred land. The core of the project is a paid, 12-month on-the-job training program for 20 to 25 City of Los Angeles residents. Participants would be recruited and managed by two nonprofit subcontractors — Northeast Trees/Operation Flame, which would lead up to four one-year cohort cycles and pay trainees $25 per hour, and TreePeople, which would deliver the technical curriculum and integrate trainees into its existing field crews working active restoration sites. The training moves from foundational forest ecology and safety in the first two months through invasive species removal, native plant propagation, and reforestation techniques, culminating in a capstone field project. After each cohort, TreePeople would hire two to four graduates as permanent conservation staff. The RAND Corporation would be contracted for $300,000 to conduct an independent evaluation of ecological and workforce outcomes. Work sites include several fire scars across the forest, including areas affected by the Bridge (2024) and Hughes and Eaton (2025) fires. The $6 million budget allocates roughly 63 percent — about $3.8 million — to the two nonprofit subcontractors, covering trainee wages, curriculum development, field equipment, and personal protective equipment. Approximately $1.1 million covers salaries and benefits for a full-time Project Director and a half-time Project Accountant in the Mayor's Office. The remaining funds cover indirect costs, evaluation, supplies, and travel. Because the state reimburses on a reimbursement basis rather than advancing funds, the Mayor is also requesting a $400,000 front-fund loan from the City's General Fund to cover cash flow gaps while waiting for state reimbursements; the loan would be repaid in full by December 2031. The Council is asked to authorize the Mayor to formally accept the grant, execute agreements with TreePeople, Northeast Trees, and RAND, establish a new dedicated grant fund, and make the necessary accounting transfers. The file was referred to the Budget and Finance Committee and the Public Works Committee in September 2026 and remains pending committee review.

Activity (2)

• 2026-09-09 Mayor document(s) referred to Budget and Finance Committee; Public Works Committee.
• 2026-09-04 Document submitted by Mayor, dated September 4, 2026.

Documents (1)

• 2026-09-04 Report from Mayor · report