Fact check: LA governor decreased fire budget before LA wildfires

1. Summary of the results

The original statement oversimplifies a complex budgetary situation. While there was initially a $17.6 million (2%) decrease in the LA Fire Department's budget between 2023-24 and 2024-25 ^[1], subsequent negotiations and contract approvals actually resulted in a significant increase in funding. The budget grew from $819.6 million to $895.6 million, representing a net increase of $58.4 million ^[2]. Additionally, Governor Newsom, far from decreasing the budget, proposed a $2.5 billion increase for emergency response and wildfire preparedness in Los Angeles County ^[3].

2. Missing context/alternative viewpoints

Several crucial pieces of context are missing from the original statement:

• The LAFD's budget has shown consistent growth over time, increasing from $674.27 million in 2019 to $819.64 million in 2025 ^[4]
• While there was an initial budget cut, the city had set aside funds for potential payroll changes ^[5]
• The city council approved $53 million in firefighter pay raises and $58 million for new equipment after the initial budget ^[6]
• The state government mobilized over 15,000 personnel and signed executive orders to support recovery efforts ^[7]

3. Potential misinformation/bias in the original statement

The statement appears to create a misleading narrative by:

• Conflating city and state actions: The statement implies the "LA governor" (presumably meaning California's governor) decreased the budget, when in fact Governor Newsom increased funding substantially ^[3]
• Ignoring subsequent budget increases: While focusing on the initial decrease, it omits the significant subsequent increases through union contracts and additional funding ^[8]
• Presenting competing narratives: There's a notable disconnect between Fire Chief Crowley's assertion that cuts "severely" impacted response capabilities and Mayor Bass's denial of meaningful reductions ^[6]

This situation demonstrates how different stakeholders might benefit from different narratives:

• Fire Department leadership (Chief Crowley) emphasizing budget constraints to advocate for more resources ^[1]
• City administration (Mayor Bass) downplaying budget impacts to maintain public confidence
• State government (Governor Newsom) highlighting increased funding to demonstrate proactive disaster response ^[7]