December 7, 2025 • 34 mins
LA County Supervisor Kathryn Barger joins Michael Monks to discuss how 2025 was a deeply difficult year for the county: devastating wildfires, a shocking $4.8 billion in sex abuse settlement, and a legal claim filed by the county CEO over a ballot measure approved by voters.
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Speaker 1 (00:00):
You're listening to KFI AM six forty on demand.
Speaker 2 (00:08):
This is Michael Monks Reports on Michael Monks from KFI Knew.
So happy to be with you on a Saturday night
in southern California. We are now knee deep into that
interlude between Thanksgiving and Christmas. Hope your shopping is going well.
If you're out there driving and listening to us right now,
be careful, be patient, You will get to where you
need to be. This hour is a big one. We've
(00:31):
got La County Supervisor Katherine Barker joining us, and she
was very generous with her time and we talked about
a lot. Twenty twenty five has just been a very
difficult year for La County, starting way back in January
with these terrible wildfires that we have in Pacific Palisades, Alta, Dina,
other areas, and obviously we're nowhere near recovering from that,
(00:55):
not only in terms of rebuilding those communities, but in pain,
the cost and you as taxpayers covering those costs. Supervisor
Barger is here to talk about what the county is
doing in terms of the rebuild, of course, but that's
not the only financial In fact, it's a smaller financial
(01:18):
problem facing this county four point eight billion dollars in
sex abuse settlements, but there may be some fraud involved
in those cases, according to the La County District Attorney's Office.
So we'll ask Supervisor Barker, how is it possible for
a board of supervisors, the most powerful roles in the
(01:41):
entire county, to approve such a settlement without properly vetting it.
We're going to get an explanation on that. And why
is the county CEO also taking a multi million dollar
settlement because she's upset over a ballot measure approved by voters.
Money appears to be flying out the window at La County.
(02:03):
So Supervisor Catherine Barger is with us and she is
going to talk about that with us. Very generous with
her time, so do not miss the rest of this
hour coming up. We'll also be joined by doctor Rashi's
choglate in our next hour from Rady Children's Health, Orange County.
We're all eating a lot right now, probably ate a
lot on Thanksgiving. You're probably having parties everywhere you turn
(02:25):
around at the office, ad friends and families, homes, and
then of course Christmas comes and then it's new year's
it's like several weeks of bad eating. But we're grown
ups and we know a lot of the rules, we
know a lot of the consequences kids don't necessarily know.
There's a new program at Rady Children's It's called the
Integrative Health and Culinary Medicine Program. It wants to teach kids'
(02:47):
food as medicine. Kids are having a lot of problems
with their stomachs. The National Institute of Health says between
ten and seventeen percent of school aged children experience recurring
abdominal pain is tied to irritable bowel disorder or disease
and other gastro intestinal conditions. So we're going to talk
to with doctor Chogle about what that program is. And yes,
(03:10):
we adults can learn a few things from these tips
as well, and how to teach kids to make better
choices when it comes to food. But the news hasn't
stopped in spite of this interlude between Thanksgiving and Christmas,
We've had a lot going on. Just this week, Immigration
back at the forefront at the La County Board of
Supervisors meeting. This time, the Board of Supervisors has preliminarily
(03:34):
approved a ban on masks involving federal agents. Here's what
Supervisor Jennis Hahn had to say about it.
Speaker 3 (03:42):
Yes, this is going to be argued in court. Yes,
we will have a judge ultimately decide the legality of
what we're asking. But in the meantime, we have to
stand up and say that this kind of secret hair
rising our county is unacceptable.
Speaker 2 (04:05):
It was easy for the La County Board of Supervisors
to adopt. They will have to vote a second time
on it a procedural matter next week on Tuesday, to
make it official, but it will be difficult to enforce.
And in fact, the US Attorney First Assistant Acting Interim
US Attorney whatever we're calling him now, Bill a Sale.
(04:25):
He tweeted a response to this on x and said,
you know, federal law, obviously Trump's whatever the local governments
are doing. The question is, from my vantage point, is
what does this mean to the Trump administration when local
governments take these positions. Because we are seeing new surges
and immigration enforcement in Minneapolis, we're seeing it in New Orleans,
(04:49):
it seems that the administration is willing to focus specifically
on cities the way they did Los Angeles earlier in
the Later in the spring, earlier in the summer, that
June period, and they've been kind of quiet for a while.
Speaker 1 (05:02):
It's still going on.
Speaker 2 (05:03):
Buster are still happening, People are still being detained and arrested,
but it hasn't been like it was then. Will that
change or are we poking the bear here? That's what
we'll be watching for and that issue will be before
the Board of Supervisors again on Tuesday. Meanwhile, California Attorney
General Rob Bunta also took a poke at the bear,
(05:24):
if you will. He's also upset with the way federal
immigration agents have behaved, and he wants to give Californians
an opportunity to report any unlawful or unconstitutional behaviors allegedly
conducted by federal agents. He's announced a new portal where
folks can go online and share text or photos or
(05:45):
videos of these allegations. Here's what Attorney General Rob Bonta
had to say about.
Speaker 4 (05:49):
That federal agents can enforce federal laws if they do
it lawfully. No one should interfere or obstruct with lawful
actions federal agents take that's what the law requires, and
everyone should follow that law. But federal agents can't operate
outside the bounds of the constitution. This portal gives Californians
(06:13):
a safe, accessible way to share what they've seen so
we can review it, so we can take action when
and as appropriate.
Speaker 2 (06:22):
And at La City Hall, the city Council has decided
it wants to do something about the failing infrastructure all
around the city. Councilmen Unitities Hernandez has proposed having all
of the departments that are related to roads and street
lights and all those sorts of infrastructure departments put their
heads together and figure out how to do better, how
(06:45):
to do it more effectively, how to be more responsive.
A report is now due back in a couple of months.
Here is what council Woman Hernandez said about this.
Speaker 5 (06:54):
It doesn't matter if you represent the valley, the west side,
or the east side. When our constituents call our offices,
they aren't asking for the moon. They're asking for the basics.
They want to know why a tree hasn't been trimmed
in fifteen years, why has the street light been dark
for six months, Why is the legal dumping on their
corner still there, or why the crosswalk to their child's
school has faded away? And for too long, as a city,
(07:15):
our answer has been We're doing the best that we
can with what we have. But the reality is that
we have normalized a system based on scarcity. We have
normalized a patchwork approach to public service. We fight fires,
we fill individual potholes, and we respond to the loudest complaints,
but we rarely get ahead of the curve. We are
managing decline rather than managing our infrastructure.
Speaker 2 (07:35):
Obviously, the infrastructure in the city is a mess. If
you live or work here, or drive through it or
visit you know that is true. But the city doesn't
have any money and they probably won't have any money
to fund this initiative either. But when those reports come
back in a couple of months, what those departments are
being asked to provide and honest they've been asked for
an honest assessment of their staffing needs, of their funding needs,
(07:58):
of their resource needs. We'll have it covered for you
here and let you know the feasibility of that from
our objective point of view. But up next, La County
Supervisor Catherine Barker has finished her term as chair of
the board. She's passed the gavel to Supervisor Hill to solase.
But we're going to talk about the year in review
that she held the gavel, a terrible, terrible year for
(08:19):
La County, wildfires, financial distress, and a forthcoming change in
the way the entire county government is set up in
a new powerful position being created. She's going to talk
to us about all of that, and how this Board
of Supervisors came to approve a four point eight billion
dollar sex abuse settlement without full vetting of those claims
(08:41):
that may include fraud. That's next one. Michael Monks Reports continues.
Speaker 1 (08:46):
You're listening to KFI Am six forty on demand.
Speaker 2 (08:52):
This is Michael Monks Reports on Michael Monks from KFI News.
There's been a change at La County a new chair
of the Board of Supervisors. The gavel passes from Supervisor
Catherine Barger to Supervisor Hilda Solise in twenty twenty five.
Has been a difficult year for La County, wildfires and
financial crisis, and a forthcoming change to the way the
government even operates. Supervisor Barger is our guest this hour.
(09:17):
Supervisor Barger, thanks so much for taking some time for KFI.
We appreciate it.
Speaker 6 (09:20):
Thank you for having me. I look forward to talking
to you.
Speaker 2 (09:22):
I know we talked just as you took hold of
the gavel as chair of the LA County Board of Supervisors,
and now you have relinquished that gavel, as that thing
rotates among the five of you each year. What a
year for you to chair the Board of Supervisors. I
don't know if I'm out of line in saying this
might have been the worst year for the county government ever.
Speaker 6 (09:44):
Well, clearly it has been one of the toughest years
Los Angeles County has faced, but it's also been one
that has been the most united. And I really do
believe that the wildfires in January changed everything, and our
job was simple help people rebuild their lives. But know this,
Ila was chair when COVID hit, so I'm kind of
(10:07):
used to being under the microscope when it comes to pressure,
and so this clearly was on a different level, but
it was still the impact that it had was equally
as traumatizing for at least me.
Speaker 2 (10:22):
I do want to talk about the wildfire response. I
do want to talk about the structural changes that are
coming to the county government and the way that residents
will react to it and interact with it. But I
do want to start with just some really depressing news
out of the county's meetings recently. I mean, these budget
presentations that you all have asked for have just been
(10:45):
dire and depressing to watch. And you've had to settle
a massive sex abuse case, multiple thousands of cases, four
point eight billion dollars total. There's other issues fiscal as well.
Lay it out for us. How bad is this situation?
Speaker 6 (11:05):
Well, it's like nothing I have ever experienced, and I've
been in the county for over thirty years, and we
are facing historic pressures. Do quite frame get a AB two
eight team, which I call the Gonzales Bill, call it
what it is, the author that wrote it, which is
costing us nearly, as you said, five billion dollars in
pending settlements, and there is no end in sight. The
(11:28):
way the legislation was written not well thought out, and
now taxpayers are holding the bag. And then we have
eight hundred million in wildfire recovery costs that are that
are going to be impacting our budget. And we are
fortunate that we've had a rainy day fund that we've
drawn down from, but that's not going to sustain us
over the long haul. So we are going to you know,
(11:51):
be working with our labor partners even with these challenges,
we did reach a tentative labor agreement to support our
workforce and our goals, you know, the same, to continue
to protect essential services for the people who depend on them.
That's something that the county is a safety net across
the board to do. I always say, at three quarters
of our budget goes to help them out there.
Speaker 2 (12:13):
That's a significant sum, and it seems necessary because of
the struggles of people who live in Los Angeles County.
It's a very expensive place, a very difficult place to live,
and so I've heard arguments at these meetings in favor
of protecting that safety net, but it does get expensive.
But as to this settlement, there may be some issues
(12:33):
to take with that state legislation that you cited that
did allow for more of these sex abuse claims to
come forward, and then there's this settlement. But now the
LA County District Attorney's office is investigating potential fraud. He
says he believes there's a significant amount of it. This
came about after reporting in the Los Angeles Times that
perhaps a law firm involved in this may have solicited
(12:55):
people with a couple hundred dollars outside of LA County
buildings to file claims even though they were never sexually abused.
I'm wondering, how does the board of supervisors approve a
settlement like this with what seems like not enough vetting
in the first place.
Speaker 6 (13:13):
Michael, that is an excellent question and one that I
wish our County Council had been more proactive and explaining
prior to the La Times article our hands were tied.
The judge had determined and prevented us from doing the
type of deep dive that you talk about in terms
of verifying the people that are submitting for the claims.
(13:35):
And because of the La Times that all changed. The
law firms waived that and said, go ahead, we'll let
you have We'll let you you know, look at who
the claim claimants aren't. But we didn't do a good
job of explaining to the fact that our hands were tied.
And it's been very frustrating for me because let's let's
be real, there are victims out there. There are victims
(13:57):
out there. But the Gonzales Bill as written limits I mean,
we do not have the records to go however far
back it is, and so we can't even defend ourselves.
And so we have to settle for cases that quite frankly,
we'll never know. But even for those cases where they
determine that in fact the person may not have been eligible,
(14:22):
they're still going to get fifty thousand dollars because part
of the agreement is that even in those cases, is
cheaper to give the fifty thousand than to take each
one and fight it in court. There's something wrong with
our system, and the good news for the Gonzales Bild
is shed light on just how broken the system is.
The attorneys are going to be making all the money
(14:43):
and the victims are going to get who knows how much.
I know they're estimating that right now. I think it's
over two billion dollars that attorneys are going to get
off the settlement. I'd much further to see that go
into the pockets and the true victims, and unfortunately that's
not the case. So I'm hoping, since Gonzalz is no
longer in the legislature, but she has said that she
(15:04):
wants to write this ship, I'm hoping that she is
working with us to come up with the fix to
address what this bill has done. I mean, I have
someone back east that called me and there's a whole
cottage industry, Michael, that they will put money into law
firms to allow them to basically have these cases, and
(15:28):
it's basically their loaning the money and then they get
paid back with interest. And I got a call from
somebod who said, I've heard this is like an evergreen,
that we should be investing our money with these law firms,
and I was appalled.
Speaker 2 (15:39):
I was appalled understandably. So, I mean, it all sounds
like a mess at all, kinds of different levels, you know,
whether it's the Assembly bill or the legal system and
that sort of thing, and what we can know, what
you can say, but it's just a sum that's really
hard to wrap one's head around. But what it sounds
like is it's going to affect to the way this
(16:01):
county budgets for I mean, up to the early twenty
fifties is what I believe. I've heard.
Speaker 6 (16:06):
Yeah, No, for generations to come, the Gonzales Bill, her
legacy is going to be this, and it's unfortunate and
I'm hoping that, you know, unfortunately, we can't change what's
come before us, but we're the tip of the iceberg.
LA Unified is right behind us. I mean it's coming
(16:26):
to a school district or a government near you in
the not two distant future, because when they lift the
statute limitations, all bets are off. All bets are off.
I volunteered at McLaren Hall before I work for the county.
I probably could have submitted to claim and I could
say I was at McLaren. I could tell you how
to walk around McLaren and they'd have to proved that
(16:47):
someone didn't physically or verbally abuse me, so i'd get
one hundred and seventy five thousand or two hundred thousand.
It's crazy. It's crazy.
Speaker 2 (16:57):
We'll continue with Supervisor Barter.
Speaker 6 (16:58):
Next.
Speaker 2 (16:59):
It's not just sex abuse settlements costing the county money.
The county CEO has also accepted a two million dollars
settlement over a ballot measure approved by voters. That's next.
Speaker 1 (17:10):
You're listening to KFI Am six forty on demand.
Speaker 2 (17:16):
This is Michael Monks Reports on Michael Monks from KFI News.
Our guest is La County Supervisor Catherine Barger. We've been
talking about the four point eight billion dollars in sex
abuse settlements and other financial challenges crippling this government. A
lot of the financial outlook was prepared in the in
the budget process last summer by County CEO f Sia Davenport,
(17:38):
and it just was very scary to hear as a
constituent and as a resident a taxpayer that, I mean,
the numbers are just dire. But then we find out
that the county CEO, Fecia Davenport also took a settlement
from this government two million dollars worth because of what
she views as I guess an unflattering portrayal of our work,
(18:00):
because of the passage of Measure G, which is completely
changing the structure of the county government, making her role
an elected position in twenty twenty eight, this came as
such a surprise as someone who sits through all of
your meetings and hearing her presentations, I mean, did you
just share with us your feelings about that situations as
much as you're allowed to?
Speaker 6 (18:22):
Yeah. For Oh, first of all, I mean, I will
say the way Measure G was handled was poor. I mean,
you know right now we're talking about I was reading
in the paper today about legislation that was done at
the dead and night up in Santa Barbara, and they
got an amended a bill in order to get it
through without letting the people know about it. Measure G
is the same thing. Measure G was a trojan horse
(18:43):
to get an elected CEO position, had nothing to do
with expanding the board. And you know, in this county,
you know, the reality is is that the way it
was done made it appear. And I was on the
sidelines because I was not I was not in being
group because some of my colleagues knew that I would
(19:03):
be very opposed to this because historically I've been down
this path and it did undermine Feusiast credibility in some
ways because people thought that it was the board's way
of kicking her out the door. And it's unfortunate. It's
unfortunate that it was done that way, but you know,
(19:24):
I'm not happy. The one thing I will say that
that needs to be done, and supasor Horbath is doing it,
and that is being very transparent. I always been about transparency,
but transparency as it relates to all these settlements, and
I was actually surprised that we didn't have to vote
on it in publics or at least reported out and
vote on it in public session. And so we've got
(19:45):
to change that because credibility and if we're broke, we're broke.
But I will tell you that if you look at
the lawsuits to come before this county, jurors sink that
were deep pockets. And so we will look at what
the the cost to fight, or cost to settle, or
cost of a jury finding would be. And and so
(20:07):
I think that that was all taken into consideration as well.
Speaker 2 (20:09):
I can't believe what I hear out of La County
or the City of Los Angeles when it comes to
these municipal settlements. Through all of these lawsuits, it makes
one wonder whether there's a county council office or city
council office at all. I mean, if it's like there's
no defense put up a do you just feel that
the county's hands are tied because of the jury pool.
Speaker 6 (20:33):
Yeah. Well, so you know, it's interesting because there are
those that I say, let's stay on the let's sigh
on the hill. I'd rather fight it and lose than
to settle. And I'm one of five, and so you
know there are times when I'm on the losing end.
We haven't haven't been to me lately. But when you
look at the cost of the lawyers, they'll do an
actuarial if you will, where they'll kind of cost out
(20:56):
per hour if we had, you know, to fight this
and expert witnesses and all that. And it's cheaper to
settle than it is to go to court. And because
you're taking a risk that if you go into court
and you get a jury, and that jury is never
sympathetic to the county, very rarely, although we've had some
cases lately that have come back in favor of the county,
(21:16):
and a couple of them have been law enforcement cases
which I was pleased to see where the jury found
in favor of the county, But overall that's not always
a case. And you're taking a risk, and it's a
financial risk that County Council recommends that we not take.
But I think there are some hills that you need
to die on because you need to send a message.
(21:37):
And I think it sends a chilling message because to
your point, you know they know that I soon people
know that if they file acclaim that we are going
to look at how much of a cost by it
and then we'll just write them a check. It shouldn't
be that way. And by the way, this is a
cottage industry for lawyers as well. And all you have
to do is go around some of our hospitals and
(21:57):
our DPSS offices and look who's hanging their placards or
their cards, and you'll know who's behind it.
Speaker 2 (22:06):
Supervisor Barker, you are one of five members of the
LA County Board of Supervisors. That board will be expanded
by what we just talked about Measure G. There will
be nine positions on the ballot in twenty thirty two.
Before that, there will be a county CEO elected in
twenty twenty eight, so there will be ten elected people
at that level of the county government. This wasn't something
you were excited about, as you noted, what should people
(22:29):
be paying attention to right now as we are ramping
up to this moment.
Speaker 6 (22:34):
So mikel I'm going to correct you. There's going to
be actually one CEO. The nine supervisors are going to
become irrelevant. They will be good at cutting ribbons and
going out into their district and telling the CEO what
they need, who, by the way, will set the budget,
oversees all the departments, and will have veto power as
it relates to what's going on. It's going to be
(22:56):
La City, but on steroids because we have a fit
four billion dollar budget, So the nine supervisors are going
to be irrelevant. And I think what I've said Alllong
is that the supervisors, which which I get frustrated because
we do not do our homework. I guess when we
come to work for the county, we are responsible for
the unincorporated area. Right now, I'm in Altadena. Altadena is
(23:19):
all unincorporated. I am the representative for Altadena. When I
go a mile down the road on Lake Avenue, I'm
in Pasadena. I still represent Pasadena, but they have their
own elected city council. You cannot divide by five the
unincorporated areas of Elie County. So the geniuses that bought
(23:40):
through Measure G didn't take into consideration. They've just just
enfranchised probably communities that, if we're talking about equity or underserved,
are the most underserved communities, and they basically muted all
of them as it relates to the job that they have.
So whoever the CEO is, he or she, I hope
(24:03):
that they will govern with an even hand and recognize
that that the county as a whole is under their jurisdiction.
But the supervisors that what has been done with Measure
G is this is a job, but I will be
termed out. But if I were to run again, it
will be a position where I will be going out
to a lot of coffees, teas, dinners, lunches, ribbon cutting.
(24:26):
But that's about it.
Speaker 2 (24:27):
The new county CEO position is a powerful role. So
does Supervisor Barger have any interest? She'll tell us next
when Michael Monks Reports continues.
Speaker 1 (24:37):
You're listening to KFI Am six forty on demand.
Speaker 2 (24:45):
This is Michael Monks Reports on Michael Monks from KFI News.
We're joined by La County Supervisor Catherine Barger. You mentioned
running again. I do want to ask. I mean, this
is a county that has a political dynasties. It has
a lot of people who move through political systems. Let's say,
are they're working. I believe you came up from an
office of someone else who was elected, and a lot
(25:07):
of folks cut their teeth by working for other electeds.
There are certain paths, it seems, that lead to elective success.
Elected success. I'm imagining that with the creation of an
LA County CEO position, it's going to be an attractive
job to a lot of people, whether they'd be good
at it or not. It seems like it would be
(25:28):
the most attractive job in La County. I'm wondering if
it's attractive.
Speaker 6 (25:31):
To you, next to governor. It is going to be
the most powerful job, I believe in the state of California.
And what I've said is, and believe me, people have
approached me because the biggest fear is is going to
be someone that is looking at this from the standpoint
of a political office. People that know me know that
I am very much about representing my constituents. Whether they're
(25:55):
a Republican, Democrat, independent, black, white, it doesn't matter. I'm
here to represent my constituency. At this point, I have
no interest because, quite frankly, I don't feel that. I'm
pretty disgusted with politics as a whole. I've seen the underbelly,
especially with measure g of how self centered people can
(26:18):
be when it comes to an agenda, and it makes
me sad. It makes me sad, and I don't want
to become like that. I truly believe that I've been
blessed to represent the fifth District. I never planned on
running for office I worked hard to get this job.
I have said all along that my love is a county.
People ask me what are you going to run for next?
(26:40):
And I joke and say the hills, which some people
should run for the hills, if you know what I mean.
But yeah, but for me, at this point, you know no.
I mean, it depends. If I see someone jump in
that I believe is truly going to send this county
down the wrong path, I might consider it, but at
(27:00):
this point it's not something that I'm actively seeking. But
I do have concerns about some of the names I'm
hearing that want to run.
Speaker 2 (27:09):
Our guest is Ellie County Supervisor, Catherine Barger, Supervisor. I
believe you are taking this call today in Alta Dina,
and that's a place where you've had to spend an
inordinate amount of time because of the tragedy in January,
the wildfires that struck there, the wildfires that hit the Palisades.
It was just the beginning of what has been a
very challenging year for La County, not just residents, but
(27:29):
really for the county government as well, as it figures
out how it's going to pay for all of this.
In the nearly eleven months. It's hard to believe we're
coming up on the one year anniversary of this. What
position do you see Alta Dina in Do you feel
that it's moved along at a pace that is acceptable?
Speaker 6 (27:48):
So I'm up here right now today, We actually were
up with Ted whus has his certificate of occupancy and
moved into his home, built it in four months, talked
about the process and talked about some of the impediments, which,
believe it or not, some of them, most of them
are not within the county's jurisdiction. But as I drive
(28:09):
up here and as I look around, the amount of
building that's going on gives me hope, and I tell
people it's organically happening. We are seeing people submitting permits,
We're seeing the permits get out, the inspections are going
in a real time fashion. And I say organic because
(28:29):
my biggest fear too was that we became so inundated
with building and all up here that it might overwhelm
the community. And right now it's being done in a
way that is giving people hopes. You can go street
to street and see foundations being poured, framing going up,
and it's it feels it feels right, and it feels good.
(28:52):
But I'm not letting my foot off the pedal. I mean,
I know that I've got to keep up with, you know,
what's going on, and not let the bureauc see takeover.
But the Public Works and Regional Plannings credit and Fire's credit,
they have continued to keep their foot on the pedal
as well, and I'm pleased with the momentum. But now
(29:12):
I'm not focused on how many permits have been submitted.
I'm focused on the over four thousand that haven't even
begun the process, because those are the people that need
our help. And I'm hearing time and time again, insurance
and uncertainty financially about how they're going to do it
are front and center as to why they haven't even
(29:32):
began the process. And then there are those that finding
an architect is hard because the architects are overwhelmed. I mean,
you've got a finite amount of architects who are now
in hot demand. And I learned today also up here
that in fact, some architects will draw plans that exceed
the amount of money that a person has to rebuild.
So there are a lot of considerations and a lot
(29:53):
of things that That's what I'm going to be focused
on over the next few months. How do we get
that bridge so that some of those fourth and move
over to the permit side.
Speaker 2 (30:02):
This is the government dealing with the aftermath of this.
I know that as the fires were still burning, I
for KFI covered this. I was in Altadinos in Pacific Palisades.
And for folks who were not on the ground, you
saw it on television, perhaps you saw pictures online. There
was nothing quite like standing in the midst of it
(30:23):
and smelling it and touching it. It was a shocking
scene that I'll never forget. I'm wondering even as we
deal with the aftermath still it's not even been a
year yet, what have we done to prevent this from
happening again? As best we can?
Speaker 6 (30:39):
Well, for example, you know Ted Corner, I was up
at his house all fire resistant. I mean that house
is going to that it's going to be standing for
a long time. So the lessons learned are the materials
that we use educating people about the rebuilding process and
how to do it smart. One of my staff she's
convinced the reason why her house did not for down
(31:01):
is because of the vegetation she had planted around her
home a couple of years ago, and she had fire
in mind, uh and she's convinced that's why her house
was saved in three houses behind her burned. So it's
going about pushing that message out and educating people about
their choices as well. Because when you go up to
the lot that we have up on Lincoln where we've
(31:24):
got prefab models that people can look at, they are
also fire resistant, they've gone through all the process, and
they're affordable. And there are going to be those that
are either going to want to do prefab homes and
their prefabed ad us that they can live in why
they while they rebuild and then rent it out and
generate income to help offset the cost of the rebuild.
(31:46):
So we're going to we're trying to get our voice
amplified to let people know they have choices and we're
pushing out that message and also the facts behind what
they can do.
Speaker 2 (31:58):
Supervisor, I know you've got to ron before we do.
Like this has been a challenging year. We've just talked
about the biggest challenges that the county has faced this year.
There's been good things. There's been highlights. There will be
more good things ahead. We have to believe that. But
in the spirit of the holidays, what are we celebrating
in Supervisoral District number five?
Speaker 6 (32:20):
We're celebrating the incredible compassion, empathy, generosity of not only
the out in the community, but the communities as a
whole that have come together and really held Altadena in
a way that I can't even really put into words.
(32:40):
And for me, it reminds it reminds me that there
is still good out there, and even though we have
really seen the darkest times, there is light and there's
a light at the end of the tunnel, and I'm
going to continue to shed light on that and make
sure that you know that we uh focus on what
(33:02):
we've accomplished is bite a very tough year, and then
we're going to keep the wildfire moving forward, I mean
the recovery moving forward, and protect our essential services up
here in Altna Fire and Sheriff that they need to
be front and center in terms of protection of this community.
And then strengthen, as we talked about earlier, strengthen accountability
(33:24):
across county government and say people focused in every decision,
people focus, not focused on what's going to get a
headline for us, but in fact people focus on what
is actually going to benefit our entire constituency.
Speaker 2 (33:41):
Ella County Supervisor Catherine Barger, who just completed her latest
term as chair of the board, future chair of ELI
Metro Come the Olympics. Supervisor Barber, It's always a pleasure
to talk to you. I appreciate the time you gave
us today and I do hope we get to talk
again soon.
Speaker 6 (33:56):
Thank you, very very very very much. You take care.
Speaker 2 (34:00):
Another hour ahead, a local hospital has a new program
focused on teaching kids to take care of those stomach
aches and digestive issues. How children can learn to use
food as medicine in Orange County. When Michael Monks Reports
continues
Speaker 1 (34:15):
KFI AM six forty on demand
You're listening to KFI AM six forty on demand.
Speaker 2 (00:08):
This is Michael Monks Reports on Michael Monks from KFI Knew.
So happy to be with you on a Saturday night
in southern California. We are now knee deep into that
interlude between Thanksgiving and Christmas. Hope your shopping is going well.
If you're out there driving and listening to us right now,
be careful, be patient, You will get to where you
need to be. This hour is a big one. We've
(00:31):
got La County Supervisor Katherine Barker joining us, and she
was very generous with her time and we talked about
a lot. Twenty twenty five has just been a very
difficult year for La County, starting way back in January
with these terrible wildfires that we have in Pacific Palisades, Alta, Dina,
other areas, and obviously we're nowhere near recovering from that,
(00:55):
not only in terms of rebuilding those communities, but in pain,
the cost and you as taxpayers covering those costs. Supervisor
Barger is here to talk about what the county is
doing in terms of the rebuild, of course, but that's
not the only financial In fact, it's a smaller financial
(01:18):
problem facing this county four point eight billion dollars in
sex abuse settlements, but there may be some fraud involved
in those cases, according to the La County District Attorney's Office.
So we'll ask Supervisor Barker, how is it possible for
a board of supervisors, the most powerful roles in the
(01:41):
entire county, to approve such a settlement without properly vetting it.
We're going to get an explanation on that. And why
is the county CEO also taking a multi million dollar
settlement because she's upset over a ballot measure approved by voters.
Money appears to be flying out the window at La County.
(02:03):
So Supervisor Catherine Barger is with us and she is
going to talk about that with us. Very generous with
her time, so do not miss the rest of this
hour coming up. We'll also be joined by doctor Rashi's
choglate in our next hour from Rady Children's Health, Orange County.
We're all eating a lot right now, probably ate a
lot on Thanksgiving. You're probably having parties everywhere you turn
(02:25):
around at the office, ad friends and families, homes, and
then of course Christmas comes and then it's new year's
it's like several weeks of bad eating. But we're grown
ups and we know a lot of the rules, we
know a lot of the consequences kids don't necessarily know.
There's a new program at Rady Children's It's called the
Integrative Health and Culinary Medicine Program. It wants to teach kids'
(02:47):
food as medicine. Kids are having a lot of problems
with their stomachs. The National Institute of Health says between
ten and seventeen percent of school aged children experience recurring
abdominal pain is tied to irritable bowel disorder or disease
and other gastro intestinal conditions. So we're going to talk
to with doctor Chogle about what that program is. And yes,
(03:10):
we adults can learn a few things from these tips
as well, and how to teach kids to make better
choices when it comes to food. But the news hasn't
stopped in spite of this interlude between Thanksgiving and Christmas,
We've had a lot going on. Just this week, Immigration
back at the forefront at the La County Board of
Supervisors meeting. This time, the Board of Supervisors has preliminarily
(03:34):
approved a ban on masks involving federal agents. Here's what
Supervisor Jennis Hahn had to say about it.
Speaker 3 (03:42):
Yes, this is going to be argued in court. Yes,
we will have a judge ultimately decide the legality of
what we're asking. But in the meantime, we have to
stand up and say that this kind of secret hair
rising our county is unacceptable.
Speaker 2 (04:05):
It was easy for the La County Board of Supervisors
to adopt. They will have to vote a second time
on it a procedural matter next week on Tuesday, to
make it official, but it will be difficult to enforce.
And in fact, the US Attorney First Assistant Acting Interim
US Attorney whatever we're calling him now, Bill a Sale.
(04:25):
He tweeted a response to this on x and said,
you know, federal law, obviously Trump's whatever the local governments
are doing. The question is, from my vantage point, is
what does this mean to the Trump administration when local
governments take these positions. Because we are seeing new surges
and immigration enforcement in Minneapolis, we're seeing it in New Orleans,
(04:49):
it seems that the administration is willing to focus specifically
on cities the way they did Los Angeles earlier in
the Later in the spring, earlier in the summer, that
June period, and they've been kind of quiet for a while.
Speaker 1 (05:02):
It's still going on.
Speaker 2 (05:03):
Buster are still happening, People are still being detained and arrested,
but it hasn't been like it was then. Will that
change or are we poking the bear here? That's what
we'll be watching for and that issue will be before
the Board of Supervisors again on Tuesday. Meanwhile, California Attorney
General Rob Bunta also took a poke at the bear,
(05:24):
if you will. He's also upset with the way federal
immigration agents have behaved, and he wants to give Californians
an opportunity to report any unlawful or unconstitutional behaviors allegedly
conducted by federal agents. He's announced a new portal where
folks can go online and share text or photos or
(05:45):
videos of these allegations. Here's what Attorney General Rob Bonta
had to say about.
Speaker 4 (05:49):
That federal agents can enforce federal laws if they do
it lawfully. No one should interfere or obstruct with lawful
actions federal agents take that's what the law requires, and
everyone should follow that law. But federal agents can't operate
outside the bounds of the constitution. This portal gives Californians
(06:13):
a safe, accessible way to share what they've seen so
we can review it, so we can take action when
and as appropriate.
Speaker 2 (06:22):
And at La City Hall, the city Council has decided
it wants to do something about the failing infrastructure all
around the city. Councilmen Unitities Hernandez has proposed having all
of the departments that are related to roads and street
lights and all those sorts of infrastructure departments put their
heads together and figure out how to do better, how
(06:45):
to do it more effectively, how to be more responsive.
A report is now due back in a couple of months.
Here is what council Woman Hernandez said about this.
Speaker 5 (06:54):
It doesn't matter if you represent the valley, the west side,
or the east side. When our constituents call our offices,
they aren't asking for the moon. They're asking for the basics.
They want to know why a tree hasn't been trimmed
in fifteen years, why has the street light been dark
for six months, Why is the legal dumping on their
corner still there, or why the crosswalk to their child's
school has faded away? And for too long, as a city,
(07:15):
our answer has been We're doing the best that we
can with what we have. But the reality is that
we have normalized a system based on scarcity. We have
normalized a patchwork approach to public service. We fight fires,
we fill individual potholes, and we respond to the loudest complaints,
but we rarely get ahead of the curve. We are
managing decline rather than managing our infrastructure.
Speaker 2 (07:35):
Obviously, the infrastructure in the city is a mess. If
you live or work here, or drive through it or
visit you know that is true. But the city doesn't
have any money and they probably won't have any money
to fund this initiative either. But when those reports come
back in a couple of months, what those departments are
being asked to provide and honest they've been asked for
an honest assessment of their staffing needs, of their funding needs,
(07:58):
of their resource needs. We'll have it covered for you
here and let you know the feasibility of that from
our objective point of view. But up next, La County
Supervisor Catherine Barker has finished her term as chair of
the board. She's passed the gavel to Supervisor Hill to solase.
But we're going to talk about the year in review
that she held the gavel, a terrible, terrible year for
(08:19):
La County, wildfires, financial distress, and a forthcoming change in
the way the entire county government is set up in
a new powerful position being created. She's going to talk
to us about all of that, and how this Board
of Supervisors came to approve a four point eight billion
dollar sex abuse settlement without full vetting of those claims
(08:41):
that may include fraud. That's next one. Michael Monks Reports continues.
Speaker 1 (08:46):
You're listening to KFI Am six forty on demand.
Speaker 2 (08:52):
This is Michael Monks Reports on Michael Monks from KFI News.
There's been a change at La County a new chair
of the Board of Supervisors. The gavel passes from Supervisor
Catherine Barger to Supervisor Hilda Solise in twenty twenty five.
Has been a difficult year for La County, wildfires and
financial crisis, and a forthcoming change to the way the
government even operates. Supervisor Barger is our guest this hour.
(09:17):
Supervisor Barger, thanks so much for taking some time for KFI.
We appreciate it.
Speaker 6 (09:20):
Thank you for having me. I look forward to talking
to you.
Speaker 2 (09:22):
I know we talked just as you took hold of
the gavel as chair of the LA County Board of Supervisors,
and now you have relinquished that gavel, as that thing
rotates among the five of you each year. What a
year for you to chair the Board of Supervisors. I
don't know if I'm out of line in saying this
might have been the worst year for the county government ever.
Speaker 6 (09:44):
Well, clearly it has been one of the toughest years
Los Angeles County has faced, but it's also been one
that has been the most united. And I really do
believe that the wildfires in January changed everything, and our
job was simple help people rebuild their lives. But know this,
Ila was chair when COVID hit, so I'm kind of
(10:07):
used to being under the microscope when it comes to pressure,
and so this clearly was on a different level, but
it was still the impact that it had was equally
as traumatizing for at least me.
Speaker 2 (10:22):
I do want to talk about the wildfire response. I
do want to talk about the structural changes that are
coming to the county government and the way that residents
will react to it and interact with it. But I
do want to start with just some really depressing news
out of the county's meetings recently. I mean, these budget
presentations that you all have asked for have just been
(10:45):
dire and depressing to watch. And you've had to settle
a massive sex abuse case, multiple thousands of cases, four
point eight billion dollars total. There's other issues fiscal as well.
Lay it out for us. How bad is this situation?
Speaker 6 (11:05):
Well, it's like nothing I have ever experienced, and I've
been in the county for over thirty years, and we
are facing historic pressures. Do quite frame get a AB two
eight team, which I call the Gonzales Bill, call it
what it is, the author that wrote it, which is
costing us nearly, as you said, five billion dollars in
pending settlements, and there is no end in sight. The
(11:28):
way the legislation was written not well thought out, and
now taxpayers are holding the bag. And then we have
eight hundred million in wildfire recovery costs that are that
are going to be impacting our budget. And we are
fortunate that we've had a rainy day fund that we've
drawn down from, but that's not going to sustain us
over the long haul. So we are going to you know,
(11:51):
be working with our labor partners even with these challenges,
we did reach a tentative labor agreement to support our
workforce and our goals, you know, the same, to continue
to protect essential services for the people who depend on them.
That's something that the county is a safety net across
the board to do. I always say, at three quarters
of our budget goes to help them out there.
Speaker 2 (12:13):
That's a significant sum, and it seems necessary because of
the struggles of people who live in Los Angeles County.
It's a very expensive place, a very difficult place to live,
and so I've heard arguments at these meetings in favor
of protecting that safety net, but it does get expensive.
But as to this settlement, there may be some issues
(12:33):
to take with that state legislation that you cited that
did allow for more of these sex abuse claims to
come forward, and then there's this settlement. But now the
LA County District Attorney's office is investigating potential fraud. He
says he believes there's a significant amount of it. This
came about after reporting in the Los Angeles Times that
perhaps a law firm involved in this may have solicited
(12:55):
people with a couple hundred dollars outside of LA County
buildings to file claims even though they were never sexually abused.
I'm wondering, how does the board of supervisors approve a
settlement like this with what seems like not enough vetting
in the first place.
Speaker 6 (13:13):
Michael, that is an excellent question and one that I
wish our County Council had been more proactive and explaining
prior to the La Times article our hands were tied.
The judge had determined and prevented us from doing the
type of deep dive that you talk about in terms
of verifying the people that are submitting for the claims.
(13:35):
And because of the La Times that all changed. The
law firms waived that and said, go ahead, we'll let
you have We'll let you you know, look at who
the claim claimants aren't. But we didn't do a good
job of explaining to the fact that our hands were tied.
And it's been very frustrating for me because let's let's
be real, there are victims out there. There are victims
(13:57):
out there. But the Gonzales Bill as written limits I mean,
we do not have the records to go however far
back it is, and so we can't even defend ourselves.
And so we have to settle for cases that quite frankly,
we'll never know. But even for those cases where they
determine that in fact the person may not have been eligible,
(14:22):
they're still going to get fifty thousand dollars because part
of the agreement is that even in those cases, is
cheaper to give the fifty thousand than to take each
one and fight it in court. There's something wrong with
our system, and the good news for the Gonzales Bild
is shed light on just how broken the system is.
The attorneys are going to be making all the money
(14:43):
and the victims are going to get who knows how much.
I know they're estimating that right now. I think it's
over two billion dollars that attorneys are going to get
off the settlement. I'd much further to see that go
into the pockets and the true victims, and unfortunately that's
not the case. So I'm hoping, since Gonzalz is no
longer in the legislature, but she has said that she
(15:04):
wants to write this ship, I'm hoping that she is
working with us to come up with the fix to
address what this bill has done. I mean, I have
someone back east that called me and there's a whole
cottage industry, Michael, that they will put money into law
firms to allow them to basically have these cases, and
(15:28):
it's basically their loaning the money and then they get
paid back with interest. And I got a call from
somebod who said, I've heard this is like an evergreen,
that we should be investing our money with these law firms,
and I was appalled.
Speaker 2 (15:39):
I was appalled understandably. So, I mean, it all sounds
like a mess at all, kinds of different levels, you know,
whether it's the Assembly bill or the legal system and
that sort of thing, and what we can know, what
you can say, but it's just a sum that's really
hard to wrap one's head around. But what it sounds
like is it's going to affect to the way this
(16:01):
county budgets for I mean, up to the early twenty
fifties is what I believe. I've heard.
Speaker 6 (16:06):
Yeah, No, for generations to come, the Gonzales Bill, her
legacy is going to be this, and it's unfortunate and
I'm hoping that, you know, unfortunately, we can't change what's
come before us, but we're the tip of the iceberg.
LA Unified is right behind us. I mean it's coming
(16:26):
to a school district or a government near you in
the not two distant future, because when they lift the
statute limitations, all bets are off. All bets are off.
I volunteered at McLaren Hall before I work for the county.
I probably could have submitted to claim and I could
say I was at McLaren. I could tell you how
to walk around McLaren and they'd have to proved that
(16:47):
someone didn't physically or verbally abuse me, so i'd get
one hundred and seventy five thousand or two hundred thousand.
It's crazy. It's crazy.
Speaker 2 (16:57):
We'll continue with Supervisor Barter.
Speaker 6 (16:58):
Next.
Speaker 2 (16:59):
It's not just sex abuse settlements costing the county money.
The county CEO has also accepted a two million dollars
settlement over a ballot measure approved by voters. That's next.
Speaker 1 (17:10):
You're listening to KFI Am six forty on demand.
Speaker 2 (17:16):
This is Michael Monks Reports on Michael Monks from KFI News.
Our guest is La County Supervisor Catherine Barger. We've been
talking about the four point eight billion dollars in sex
abuse settlements and other financial challenges crippling this government. A
lot of the financial outlook was prepared in the in
the budget process last summer by County CEO f Sia Davenport,
(17:38):
and it just was very scary to hear as a
constituent and as a resident a taxpayer that, I mean,
the numbers are just dire. But then we find out
that the county CEO, Fecia Davenport also took a settlement
from this government two million dollars worth because of what
she views as I guess an unflattering portrayal of our work,
(18:00):
because of the passage of Measure G, which is completely
changing the structure of the county government, making her role
an elected position in twenty twenty eight, this came as
such a surprise as someone who sits through all of
your meetings and hearing her presentations, I mean, did you
just share with us your feelings about that situations as
much as you're allowed to?
Speaker 6 (18:22):
Yeah. For Oh, first of all, I mean, I will
say the way Measure G was handled was poor. I mean,
you know right now we're talking about I was reading
in the paper today about legislation that was done at
the dead and night up in Santa Barbara, and they
got an amended a bill in order to get it
through without letting the people know about it. Measure G
is the same thing. Measure G was a trojan horse
(18:43):
to get an elected CEO position, had nothing to do
with expanding the board. And you know, in this county,
you know, the reality is is that the way it
was done made it appear. And I was on the
sidelines because I was not I was not in being
group because some of my colleagues knew that I would
(19:03):
be very opposed to this because historically I've been down
this path and it did undermine Feusiast credibility in some
ways because people thought that it was the board's way
of kicking her out the door. And it's unfortunate. It's
unfortunate that it was done that way, but you know,
(19:24):
I'm not happy. The one thing I will say that
that needs to be done, and supasor Horbath is doing it,
and that is being very transparent. I always been about transparency,
but transparency as it relates to all these settlements, and
I was actually surprised that we didn't have to vote
on it in publics or at least reported out and
vote on it in public session. And so we've got
(19:45):
to change that because credibility and if we're broke, we're broke.
But I will tell you that if you look at
the lawsuits to come before this county, jurors sink that
were deep pockets. And so we will look at what
the the cost to fight, or cost to settle, or
cost of a jury finding would be. And and so
(20:07):
I think that that was all taken into consideration as well.
Speaker 2 (20:09):
I can't believe what I hear out of La County
or the City of Los Angeles when it comes to
these municipal settlements. Through all of these lawsuits, it makes
one wonder whether there's a county council office or city
council office at all. I mean, if it's like there's
no defense put up a do you just feel that
the county's hands are tied because of the jury pool.
Speaker 6 (20:33):
Yeah. Well, so you know, it's interesting because there are
those that I say, let's stay on the let's sigh
on the hill. I'd rather fight it and lose than
to settle. And I'm one of five, and so you
know there are times when I'm on the losing end.
We haven't haven't been to me lately. But when you
look at the cost of the lawyers, they'll do an
actuarial if you will, where they'll kind of cost out
(20:56):
per hour if we had, you know, to fight this
and expert witnesses and all that. And it's cheaper to
settle than it is to go to court. And because
you're taking a risk that if you go into court
and you get a jury, and that jury is never
sympathetic to the county, very rarely, although we've had some
cases lately that have come back in favor of the county,
(21:16):
and a couple of them have been law enforcement cases
which I was pleased to see where the jury found
in favor of the county, But overall that's not always
a case. And you're taking a risk, and it's a
financial risk that County Council recommends that we not take.
But I think there are some hills that you need
to die on because you need to send a message.
(21:37):
And I think it sends a chilling message because to
your point, you know they know that I soon people
know that if they file acclaim that we are going
to look at how much of a cost by it
and then we'll just write them a check. It shouldn't
be that way. And by the way, this is a
cottage industry for lawyers as well. And all you have
to do is go around some of our hospitals and
(21:57):
our DPSS offices and look who's hanging their placards or
their cards, and you'll know who's behind it.
Speaker 2 (22:06):
Supervisor Barker, you are one of five members of the
LA County Board of Supervisors. That board will be expanded
by what we just talked about Measure G. There will
be nine positions on the ballot in twenty thirty two.
Before that, there will be a county CEO elected in
twenty twenty eight, so there will be ten elected people
at that level of the county government. This wasn't something
you were excited about, as you noted, what should people
(22:29):
be paying attention to right now as we are ramping
up to this moment.
Speaker 6 (22:34):
So mikel I'm going to correct you. There's going to
be actually one CEO. The nine supervisors are going to
become irrelevant. They will be good at cutting ribbons and
going out into their district and telling the CEO what
they need, who, by the way, will set the budget,
oversees all the departments, and will have veto power as
it relates to what's going on. It's going to be
(22:56):
La City, but on steroids because we have a fit
four billion dollar budget, So the nine supervisors are going
to be irrelevant. And I think what I've said Alllong
is that the supervisors, which which I get frustrated because
we do not do our homework. I guess when we
come to work for the county, we are responsible for
the unincorporated area. Right now, I'm in Altadena. Altadena is
(23:19):
all unincorporated. I am the representative for Altadena. When I
go a mile down the road on Lake Avenue, I'm
in Pasadena. I still represent Pasadena, but they have their
own elected city council. You cannot divide by five the
unincorporated areas of Elie County. So the geniuses that bought
(23:40):
through Measure G didn't take into consideration. They've just just
enfranchised probably communities that, if we're talking about equity or underserved,
are the most underserved communities, and they basically muted all
of them as it relates to the job that they have.
So whoever the CEO is, he or she, I hope
(24:03):
that they will govern with an even hand and recognize
that that the county as a whole is under their jurisdiction.
But the supervisors that what has been done with Measure
G is this is a job, but I will be
termed out. But if I were to run again, it
will be a position where I will be going out
to a lot of coffees, teas, dinners, lunches, ribbon cutting.
(24:26):
But that's about it.
Speaker 2 (24:27):
The new county CEO position is a powerful role. So
does Supervisor Barger have any interest? She'll tell us next
when Michael Monks Reports continues.
Speaker 1 (24:37):
You're listening to KFI Am six forty on demand.
Speaker 2 (24:45):
This is Michael Monks Reports on Michael Monks from KFI News.
We're joined by La County Supervisor Catherine Barger. You mentioned
running again. I do want to ask. I mean, this
is a county that has a political dynasties. It has
a lot of people who move through political systems. Let's say,
are they're working. I believe you came up from an
office of someone else who was elected, and a lot
(25:07):
of folks cut their teeth by working for other electeds.
There are certain paths, it seems, that lead to elective success.
Elected success. I'm imagining that with the creation of an
LA County CEO position, it's going to be an attractive
job to a lot of people, whether they'd be good
at it or not. It seems like it would be
(25:28):
the most attractive job in La County. I'm wondering if
it's attractive.
Speaker 6 (25:31):
To you, next to governor. It is going to be
the most powerful job, I believe in the state of California.
And what I've said is, and believe me, people have
approached me because the biggest fear is is going to
be someone that is looking at this from the standpoint
of a political office. People that know me know that
I am very much about representing my constituents. Whether they're
(25:55):
a Republican, Democrat, independent, black, white, it doesn't matter. I'm
here to represent my constituency. At this point, I have
no interest because, quite frankly, I don't feel that. I'm
pretty disgusted with politics as a whole. I've seen the underbelly,
especially with measure g of how self centered people can
(26:18):
be when it comes to an agenda, and it makes
me sad. It makes me sad, and I don't want
to become like that. I truly believe that I've been
blessed to represent the fifth District. I never planned on
running for office I worked hard to get this job.
I have said all along that my love is a county.
People ask me what are you going to run for next?
(26:40):
And I joke and say the hills, which some people
should run for the hills, if you know what I mean.
But yeah, but for me, at this point, you know no.
I mean, it depends. If I see someone jump in
that I believe is truly going to send this county
down the wrong path, I might consider it, but at
(27:00):
this point it's not something that I'm actively seeking. But
I do have concerns about some of the names I'm
hearing that want to run.
Speaker 2 (27:09):
Our guest is Ellie County Supervisor, Catherine Barger, Supervisor. I
believe you are taking this call today in Alta Dina,
and that's a place where you've had to spend an
inordinate amount of time because of the tragedy in January,
the wildfires that struck there, the wildfires that hit the Palisades.
It was just the beginning of what has been a
very challenging year for La County, not just residents, but
(27:29):
really for the county government as well, as it figures
out how it's going to pay for all of this.
In the nearly eleven months. It's hard to believe we're
coming up on the one year anniversary of this. What
position do you see Alta Dina in Do you feel
that it's moved along at a pace that is acceptable?
Speaker 6 (27:48):
So I'm up here right now today, We actually were
up with Ted whus has his certificate of occupancy and
moved into his home, built it in four months, talked
about the process and talked about some of the impediments, which,
believe it or not, some of them, most of them
are not within the county's jurisdiction. But as I drive
(28:09):
up here and as I look around, the amount of
building that's going on gives me hope, and I tell
people it's organically happening. We are seeing people submitting permits,
We're seeing the permits get out, the inspections are going
in a real time fashion. And I say organic because
(28:29):
my biggest fear too was that we became so inundated
with building and all up here that it might overwhelm
the community. And right now it's being done in a
way that is giving people hopes. You can go street
to street and see foundations being poured, framing going up,
and it's it feels it feels right, and it feels good.
(28:52):
But I'm not letting my foot off the pedal. I mean,
I know that I've got to keep up with, you know,
what's going on, and not let the bureauc see takeover.
But the Public Works and Regional Plannings credit and Fire's credit,
they have continued to keep their foot on the pedal
as well, and I'm pleased with the momentum. But now
(29:12):
I'm not focused on how many permits have been submitted.
I'm focused on the over four thousand that haven't even
begun the process, because those are the people that need
our help. And I'm hearing time and time again, insurance
and uncertainty financially about how they're going to do it
are front and center as to why they haven't even
(29:32):
began the process. And then there are those that finding
an architect is hard because the architects are overwhelmed. I mean,
you've got a finite amount of architects who are now
in hot demand. And I learned today also up here
that in fact, some architects will draw plans that exceed
the amount of money that a person has to rebuild.
So there are a lot of considerations and a lot
(29:53):
of things that That's what I'm going to be focused
on over the next few months. How do we get
that bridge so that some of those fourth and move
over to the permit side.
Speaker 2 (30:02):
This is the government dealing with the aftermath of this.
I know that as the fires were still burning, I
for KFI covered this. I was in Altadinos in Pacific Palisades.
And for folks who were not on the ground, you
saw it on television, perhaps you saw pictures online. There
was nothing quite like standing in the midst of it
(30:23):
and smelling it and touching it. It was a shocking
scene that I'll never forget. I'm wondering even as we
deal with the aftermath still it's not even been a
year yet, what have we done to prevent this from
happening again? As best we can?
Speaker 6 (30:39):
Well, for example, you know Ted Corner, I was up
at his house all fire resistant. I mean that house
is going to that it's going to be standing for
a long time. So the lessons learned are the materials
that we use educating people about the rebuilding process and
how to do it smart. One of my staff she's
convinced the reason why her house did not for down
(31:01):
is because of the vegetation she had planted around her
home a couple of years ago, and she had fire
in mind, uh and she's convinced that's why her house
was saved in three houses behind her burned. So it's
going about pushing that message out and educating people about
their choices as well. Because when you go up to
the lot that we have up on Lincoln where we've
(31:24):
got prefab models that people can look at, they are
also fire resistant, they've gone through all the process, and
they're affordable. And there are going to be those that
are either going to want to do prefab homes and
their prefabed ad us that they can live in why
they while they rebuild and then rent it out and
generate income to help offset the cost of the rebuild.
(31:46):
So we're going to we're trying to get our voice
amplified to let people know they have choices and we're
pushing out that message and also the facts behind what
they can do.
Speaker 2 (31:58):
Supervisor, I know you've got to ron before we do.
Like this has been a challenging year. We've just talked
about the biggest challenges that the county has faced this year.
There's been good things. There's been highlights. There will be
more good things ahead. We have to believe that. But
in the spirit of the holidays, what are we celebrating
in Supervisoral District number five?
Speaker 6 (32:20):
We're celebrating the incredible compassion, empathy, generosity of not only
the out in the community, but the communities as a
whole that have come together and really held Altadena in
a way that I can't even really put into words.
(32:40):
And for me, it reminds it reminds me that there
is still good out there, and even though we have
really seen the darkest times, there is light and there's
a light at the end of the tunnel, and I'm
going to continue to shed light on that and make
sure that you know that we uh focus on what
(33:02):
we've accomplished is bite a very tough year, and then
we're going to keep the wildfire moving forward, I mean
the recovery moving forward, and protect our essential services up
here in Altna Fire and Sheriff that they need to
be front and center in terms of protection of this community.
And then strengthen, as we talked about earlier, strengthen accountability
(33:24):
across county government and say people focused in every decision,
people focus, not focused on what's going to get a
headline for us, but in fact people focus on what
is actually going to benefit our entire constituency.
Speaker 2 (33:41):
Ella County Supervisor Catherine Barger, who just completed her latest
term as chair of the board, future chair of ELI
Metro Come the Olympics. Supervisor Barber, It's always a pleasure
to talk to you. I appreciate the time you gave
us today and I do hope we get to talk
again soon.
Speaker 6 (33:56):
Thank you, very very very very much. You take care.
Speaker 2 (34:00):
Another hour ahead, a local hospital has a new program
focused on teaching kids to take care of those stomach
aches and digestive issues. How children can learn to use
food as medicine in Orange County. When Michael Monks Reports
continues
Speaker 1 (34:15):
KFI AM six forty on demand
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