Shocking sex abuse scandal that will cost LA DOUBLE the amount of the disastrous fires that caused billions in damage
Los Angeles County is facing a financial crisis as leaders are forced to find ways to pay for a sex abuse settlement that cost twice the amount as the devastating wildfires.
The county's unveiled their $47.9 billion budget recommendation Monday that included massive cuts to pay for their 'unprecedented financial challenges.'
These challenges include $2 billion for the massive LA fires that ripped through Southern California in January, killing 30 people and destroying thousands of homes.
Even heftier on the budget is the $4 billion the county agreed to pay to settle nearly 7,000 claims of sexual abuse in juvenile facilities since 1959.
'We are in uncharted territory with these simultaneous pressures on our budget,' said Los Angeles County CEO Fesia Davenport.
On April 4, the county reached a $4 billion agreement to settle more than 6,800 sexual abuse claims dating back to 1959, calling it the costliest financial settlement in the county's history.
The majority of the claims date from the 1980s, 1990s and 2000s and are alleged to have happened at Probation Department facilities and at the MacLaren Children's Center, which was permanently closed in 2003.
The plaintiffs were able to sue because of a state law - known as AB 218 - that took effect in 2020 and suspended the statute of limitations for childhood sex abuse victims to bring cases for three years.
Los Angeles County CEO Fesia Davenport (pictured) said the county is facing 'uncharted territory' as they search for a way to pay for a $4 billion sex abuse settlement
The county reached a $4 billion settlement to more than 6,800 sexual abuse claims dating back to 1959, a majority of which happened at the MacLaren Children's Center (pictured)
The county also has to pay $2 billion for the massive LA fires that ripped through Southern California in January
One man said he was sexually abused by a physician at the facility when he was eight years old, while another said he was assaulted by a male staff member in a bathroom when he was five.
Children were routinely placed in solitary confinement, drugged and restrained in chairs at the facility, according to court papers filed by plaintiffs.
Davenport said the county will have to use cash reserves, borrow money by issuing bonds and cut the budget for decades to pay for settlement, reported KABC.
'Any of these alone would be daunting, but taken together, these challenges — the wildfires, the AB 218 settlement, the threat of deep cuts in federal funding — are cause for great concern,' she said.
'The AB 218 settlement is an unprecedented settlement. By far, the costliest in county history.
'This is not a one-year, not even a one-decade impact. We anticipate that we will be paying hundreds of millions of dollars every year until 2030, and then millions more each year through fiscal year, 2050 - (20)51.'
Financial strain on the county is compounded by the pressures from January's deadly wildfires.
LA county expects the revenue impact of the fires will be $1 billion, plus another $1 billion for the recovery, the local news station reported.
The sex abuse plaintiffs were able to sue because of a state law - known as AB 218 - that took effect in 2020 and suspended the statute of limitations for childhood sex abuse victims
Financial strain on the county is compounded by the pressures from January's fires that killed 30 people and destroyed thousands of homes
While some those costs could be reimbursed by the federal government, Davenport caution any relief will be years away.
'The FEMA process requires the county to front the funding first, so we call that front-funding, and then at some point, in a couple of years, we hope to receive reimbursement for expenses that are eligible for FEMA reimbursement,' Davenport said.
To make up for these costs, officials proposed county departments make three percent cuts to the budgets.
'These targeted cuts total $88.9 million and include eliminating 310 vacancies and more than $50 million in savings from cutting supplies, delaying equipment purchases and reducing the scope of some programs,' Davenport's office said.
'No layoffs are anticipated at this time, but the Recommended Budget—the first phase in the County’s annual budget process—reflects a high degree of caution, restraint and uncertainty in the face of the cascading budgetary pressures.'
