People living on LA’s streets rose nearly 8% this year
The topic:
Why it matters: The findings are a setback for the region — especially for L.A. Mayor Karen Bass, who is campaigning for reelection against City Councilmember Nithya Raman and frequently touts prior declines in the homeless counts as evidence her approach is working. Last year, the city and county’s homeless populations dropped by 3.4% and 4%, respectively. The 2024 count also showed a decline — those numbers were smaller and within the count’s margin of error.
Official explanations: LAHSA says the number of newly unhoused people seeking services each year has grown 30% between 2022 and 2025. For every person housed by the homeless services system over the past year, about 2.3 newly unhoused people sought out services, according to LAHSA. LAHSA said state funding cuts to a local rental subsidy program reduced permanent housing placements, leading to increased homelessness. Local officials also blamed the Trump administration for policies they say worsened the affordability crisis.
With files from LAist
What if we brought the grizzly bear back to California?
The topic:
Background: It’s estimated there were more than 10,000 grizzly bears roaming California in 1850. Aggressive hunting and human migration dwindled the bear’s population to zero in just 75 years. Besides the ecological impacts of losing a major predator, the bear is a huge part of history and culture for many Indigenous tribes in the region and is an iconic symbol of California as a state…