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Los Angeles 2020 Commission Report
The Los Angeles 2020 Commission Report "A Time for Truth" was commissioned by Los Angeles City Council Prresident Herb Wesson in 2013. It is the first of two reports and analyzes the evolution of the economy of the city of Los Angeles over the past twenty years.

The report's conclusion reads "It is time for truth. Time to face up to the challenges we face."

It asks "Can we provide Angelenos the services they need, while providing our public employees the benefits they earned? How can the city be put on a path to a sustainable financial situation and a truly balanced budget."

The budget deficit for Los Angeles in 2014-2014 is projected at $267 million. Twenty five percent of city expenditures are for pensions and the police is understaffed and overloaded.

In the introduction, the commission writes "we risk falling further behind in adapting to the realities of the 21st century and becoming a city in decline."

The basic issue seems to be how to stop Los Angeles from becoming the next Detroit. An objective reading of the report would conclude that this issue is being occluded by politicians outside Southern California and in state and federal government.

Finances
The City of Los Angeles projects a return on investment of almost eight percent on city pensions. These already account for 25 percent of city expenditures. The United States government and corporations project about half that amount.

According to the City Adminstrative Officer Miguel Santana, the deficit for 2014-2015 is projected to balloon to $267 million. Twenty five percent of city expenditures are for pensions. The return on investment of city pensions is unreasonably estimated at 7.75 percnet per annum,

Economy
The population of Los Angeles county has grown by ten percent in 20 years and at the same time 165,000 jobs have been lost. As a result, fewer Angelenos are working than twenty years ago.

Nearly 80,000 jobs have been lost in the motion picture industry, 20,000 jobs in air transport, and 200,000 jobs in retail trade. The Internet economy and e-commerce have been negatively affecting Los Angeles.

Job growth is in poor paying jobs including hospitality (100,000 jobs), education services, and care giving.

According to Maria Elena Durazo, Executive Secretary Treasurer of the Los Angeles County Federation of Labor. "Los Angeles has more workers who struggle to survive on poverty pay than any other metropolitan area of the country." Specifically 28 percent of workers live on poverty wages, and ten percent are unemployed.

Schools
The drop out rate in Los Angeles County is 40 percent. Only one in three high school students are eligible for education in the University of California and Cal State. A large percent of fourth graders are not proficient in reading, and a large percentage of high school students are not proficient in English and math. In terms of academic performance, Los Angeles is the second worst school district in California.

This contrasts with the need for college educated workforce. It is projected that in 2020, demand will exceed supply leading to more immigration and a segregated society.

This situation is unfortunate given that the city remains a leader in higher education including USC, UCLA, and the states best network of community colleges. New York is doing a much better job than Los Angeles in attracting a pole for research in biosciences.

Diversity
According to the commission, Los Angeles has all of the ingredients to succeed. USC has more international students than any university in the US, and other private colleges such as Occidental College, Loyola Marymount, and the Claremont Colleges draw students from around the world. UCLA's business, law and medical schools are among the countries most prestigious.

Some of the strong points of the city are that it is the most diverse American city in the world, and that nearly half of the population is Latino or Hispanic. It has the largest US populations of Filipino, Japanese, Vietnamese and Armenian ethnicities.

Los Angeles is at the forefront of thought and action on the environment, immigration, and individual rights.

Lack of Democracy and a Time for Truth
The commission was created with the agreement of Honorable Antonio Villagairosa, Mayor of Los Angeles and former President of the California Senate.

The report states that City Hall published for several years bogus departments on fire department response times. According to LAPD seriously, the percentage of serious crimed that are solved has dropped precipitously. This is either due to cutbacks in police hours, or incorrect statistics, neither of which is satisfactory.

Los Angeles holds its city elections in off cycle years. Only 23 percent of voters cast a ballot in local elections in May 2013. This is as opposed to 51 percent in the Presidential election of 2012. It could be argued that the city leadership does not want people to vote. Only two out of three voters, so the actual participation is worse. its going to take leadership willing and able to make change. Leadership willing to be transparent and held accountable. It's going to take thoughtful reforms and a rational approach to promote these values."

The city government is perceived as overly bureaucratic and hostile to small business, specifically due to a regulatory overload.

The report states that many of these issues were already raised in the LA2000 report commissioned more than twenty years ago and that nothing has happened. The report also states that nimbyism and special interests prevent making swift and rational decisions for the common good.