City Council

(45)\n25-0030\nRESOLUTION (HARRIS-DAWSON - BLUMENFIELD) relative to the\nDeclaration of Local Emergency by the Mayor dated January 7, 2025,\nand Updated Declaration of Local Emergency by the Mayor dated\nJanuary 13, 2025, due to the windstorm and extreme fire weather\nsystem and devastating wildfires in the City of Los Angeles (City),\npursuant to Los Angeles Administrative Code (LAAC) Section 8.27.\nRecommendation for Council action:\nADOPT the accompanying RESOLUTION, dated January 14, 2025,\nto:\n1. Resolve that a local emergency exists resulting from ongoing\nwindstorm and extreme fire weather system and the devastating\nwildfires in the City within the meaning of LAAC Section 8.21, et\nseq., as set forth in the Mayor’s January 13, 2025 Updated\nDeclaration of Local Emergency, which incorporated the\ndeclaration of emergency dated January 7, 2025, which the City\nCouncil hereby ratifies.\n2. Resolve that because the local emergency, which began on\nJanuary 7, 2025, continues to exist, there is a need to continue\nthe state of local emergency, which the City Council hereby\nratifies.\n3. Instruct and request all appropriate City departments (including\nproprietary departments), agencies, and personnel, in\naccordance with LAAC Code Section 8.21 et seq., to continue\nto perform all duties and responsibilities to represent the City in\nthis matter to respond to and abate the emergency and prevent\nfurther harm to the life, health, property, and safety, and receive,\nprocess; and, coordinate all inquiries and requirements\nnecessary to obtain whatever State and Federal assistance that\nmay become available to the City and/or to the citizens of the\nCity who may be affected by the emergency.\n4. Instruct the General Manager, Emergency Management\nDepartment, to advise the Mayor and City Council on the need\nto extend the state of local emergency, as appropriate.\n5. Resolve that, to the extent the public interest and necessity\ndemand the immediate expenditure of public funds to safeguard\nlife, health, or property in response to the local emergency and\nto support the emergency operations of the City and its\ndepartments (including its proprietary departments), agencies,\nand personnel (including mutual aid resources) in responding to\nthe declared local emergency, the competitive bidding\nrequirements enumerated in City Charter Section 371, and\nfurther codified in the LAAC, including LAAC Section 10.15 be\nsuspended until termination of the state of emergency and\nsolely with respect to purchases and contracts needed to\nrespond to the declared state of emergency.\n6. Direct and request City departments and agencies making\npurchases pursuant to the authority granted in paragraph five\n(5), above, to report every two weeks to the City Council\nregarding the purchases and contracts made during the prior\ntwo week period on the reasons justifying why such purchase or\ncontract was necessary to respond to the emergency, including\nwhy the emergency did not permit a delay resulting from a\ncompetitive solicitation for bids or proposals, and why\ncompetitive proposals or bidding was not reasonably practicable\nor compatible with the City’s interests.\n7. Request all City departments and agencies who have the\nauthority to investigate and/or enforce any/all forms of price\ngouging, fraud, and theft by deceit, as described in the\nCalifornia Penal Code, to do so to the fullest extent permissible\nunder federal, state, and local law.\n8. Instruct the City Clerk, unless and until Council directs\notherwise or discontinues the state of emergency, to timely\nagendize this matter so that Council may consider whether\nto continue the state of emergency.\n9. Instruct the City Clerk to forward copies of this Resolution\nto the Governor of the State of California, the Director of\nthe Office of Emergency Services of the State of California,\nthe Los Angeles County Office of Emergency Management,\nand the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors.