The company behind Garden Grove hazmat scare opens a center to help victims file claims
The chemical tank at the GKN Garden Grove aerospace facility.(Allen J. Schaben / Getty Images)Topline:A claims support center to help victims evacuated in Garden Grove’s chemical tank scare opens Tuesday, Nov. 10. GKN Aerospace, the company behind the hazmat incident, said the center in Los Alamitos will help eligible residents file for reimbursement.Background: GKN Aerospace opened its $100 million claims program last month for those affected by the Garden Grove hazmat scare that forced more than 50,000 nearby residents to evacuate their homes and businesses.What we know: The independent Claims Administrator, Ernst & Young, will operate the center and is responsible for reviewing, processing and evaluating claims. Assistance will be available in English, Vietnamese, Spanish and Korean.Who is eligible? People and households who lived within the mandatory evacuation zone are eligible for the claims program. Businesses can file a business interruption claim for losses of income. Resident
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LAHSA shuts down its computers over ‘potential security issue’
Los Angeles Homeless Services Authority workers observe L.A. city sanitation workers removing an encampment in Venice Beach in June 2023. (Brian Feinzimer / LAist)The Los Angeles Homeless Services Authority told its employees Friday to stop work, shut down their computers and stay off agency systems while it looked into “a potential security issue affecting our systems,” its chief executive confirmed to LAist.That shutdown order was still in place Monday evening, according to a LAHSA official not authorized to speak on the record.Gita O'Neill, the agency’s interim CEO, told LAist on Friday evening that the agency did not “yet have enough information to say definitively whether any sensitive or confidential personal information was accessed.”She has not answered questions about whether or not services for unhoused people are disrupted.Gita O’Neill, interim CEO of LAHSA, speaks ahead of the annual homeless count on Jan. 20, 2026.(Jordan Rynning / LAist)LAHSA holds highly sensitive inform
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How will LAUSD respond to Google’s AI mandate? You can weigh in
Google says Search will be turned off for schools that do not want to use artificial intelligence. (Chesnot / Getty Images)The Los Angeles Unified School District said it’s reviewing how to proceed after Google’s announcement last week that it will not allow schools to use its search engine unless they opt in to using artificial intelligence.Google said that in the coming months, access to products like Gemini and Google Search would be turned off by default until schools turn them on, saying it believes “schools should have control over AI in their classroom.” But Google Search, by default, includes an AI chatbot and uses AI to summarize search results — meaning that schools that restrict AI would not have access to Google Search.Earlier this school year, LAUSD implemented a moratorium on students using generative AI on district-issued devices.“We are reviewing Google’s announcement and its potential implications for schools, educators and students,” said a spokesperson for LAUSD. “Lo
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California voters reject measure to tax the wealth of billionaires
A “Tax the Ultra-Rich Now” bus parked outside the Curran Theater before the start of a "Ballots Over Billionaires" rally in San Francisco on Oct. 3, 2026.(Manuel Orbegozo / CalMatters)California voters have rejected a first-in-the-nation tax on the net worth of billionaires following a contentious ballot fight that generated huge spending by some prominent tech leaders eager to stop their taxes from going up.The measure’s failure is a win for Democratic leaders who opposed it, including Gov. Gavin Newsom, who’s deciding whether to run for president in 2028. Critics of the tax, known as Proposition 40, said it would have prompted ultrawealthy taxpayers to leave the state.The “no” side raised roughly 10 times as much as the “yes” side. Google co-founder Sergey Brin alone dumped more than $100 million into a political action committee working to defeat the measure.The measure would have imposed a one-time 5% tax on the wealth of Californians whose net worth exceeds $1 billion. Most of the
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LA County Supervisor Horvath announces run for new elected CEO position
Lindsey Horvath has announced she will run for county CEO in 2028.(YouTube screenshot )Los Angeles County Supervisor Lindsey Horvath announced Monday that she is running to be the county’s first elected chief executive. Horvath is the only candidate so far to enter the race, which is set for 2028.The new executive post will take the place of the county’s appointed CEO and implement key priorities of the county Board of Supervisors. The executive will oversee the county budget, which is currently roughly $50 billion, and labor relations with more than 100,000 employees.Horvath was first elected to the Board of Supervisors in 2022 and was re-elected in June to another four-year term. She represents the county’s 3rd District, which covers the San Fernando Valley and parts of the Westside and Central Los Angeles. She is a former mayor of West Hollywood.The supervisor made her announcement Monday via social media and her campaign website. She called the race a “once-in-a-generation opportun
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Raman’s win triggers surge of optimism among advocates of transit and safer streets in LA
L.A. Mayor-elect Nithya Raman at a press conference to speak in support of safety updates following a fatal crash that occurred on Forest Lawn Drive, on Tuesday, August 18, 2026. (Christina House / Los Angeles Times via Getty Images)In the home-stretch of the L.A. mayor’s race, Mayor Karen Bass and her former ally-turned-challenger Nithya Raman met for the only televised debate of the campaign.They traded jabs over public safety, homelessness and other core issues for Angelenos. But one dig was particularly eyebrow-raising. It came toward the end of the debate, when Bass chided Raman for her support from bike lane advocates.“There’s very influential people who are supporting your campaign who are very, very much advocates for bike lanes,” Bass, who conceded the race Thursday, said in the Oct. 13 debate hosted by NBCLA and Telemundo.“Um, yes,” Mayor-elect Raman can be heard quietly saying as one of the moderators tries to move the conversation along.While it represented just a moment in
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Raman’s win triggers surge of optimism among advocates of transit and safer streets in LA
L.A. Mayor-elect Nithya Raman at a press conference to speak in support of safety updates following a fatal crash that occurred on Forest Lawn Drive, on Tuesday, August 18, 2026. (Christina House / Los Angeles Times via Getty Images)In the home-stretch of the L.A. mayor’s race, Mayor Karen Bass and her former ally-turned-challenger Nithya Raman met for the only televised debate of the campaign.They traded jabs over public safety, homelessness and other core issues for Angelenos. But one dig was particularly eyebrow-raising. It came toward the end of the debate, when Bass chided Raman for her support from bike lane advocates.“There’s very influential people who are supporting your campaign who are very, very much advocates for bike lanes,” Bass, who conceded the race Thursday, said in the Oct. 13 debate hosted by NBCLA and Telemundo.“Um, yes,” Mayor-elect Raman can be heard quietly saying as one of the moderators tries to move the conversation along.While it represented just a moment in
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Rep. Thomas Massie of Kentucky launches bid to impeach Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth
Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth faces questions about Iran in congressional appearance. Rep. Thomas Massie moved Monday to force a vote to impeach Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, setting the stage for a dramatic vote on whether to remove one of the Trump administration’s most prominent figures following sweeping election losses.The impeachment resolution was introduced by Massie, a Kentucky Republican, as soon as the House opened for the first day of sessions after the midterms. It largely focuses on the war in Iran but also includes references to Hegseth’s role in carrying out military actions in Yemen and Venezuela.Massie said the secretary’s actions amount to “high crimes and misdemeanors” and his leadership at the Pentagon “thus warrants impeachment.”A vote in the House could come by mid-week, putting pressure on Republicans — many of whom blamed their election wipeout on the Iran war — but next steps are highly uncertain. House Speaker Mike Johnson had tried to prevent this outcome
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LA had its worst mosquito year this decade. El Niño could make it even worse
A Culex quinquefasciatus mosquito, also known as a southern house mosquito, in 2022.(Lauren Bishop / Centers for Disease Control and Prevention)When temperatures rise above 70 degrees, tiny West Nile viral particles begin to rapidly replicate in the gut of Culex mosquitoes, which then go hunting for their next “blood meal,” injecting virus-laden saliva into their prey when they feast.This year, California’s warm, wet summer and fall produced the most West Nile activity in five years. As of Nov. 6, the virus has seriously sickened 528 people and killed 32, according to the California Department of Public Health.Most people who are infected never feel sick, but about 1 in 5 may develop fever, headache and body aches. For the rare few — 1 in 150 — things get serious: The virus can hitch a ride to the brain, causing inflammation, neurological problems and even death. There is no cure, only supportive medical care.Southern California bore the brunt of infections, with Los Angeles County acc
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Best things to do in LA and SoCal: Nov. 4-10
Alanis Morissette will play four nights at YouTube Theater.(Jean Catuffe / Getty Images)The days are getting shorter, so it’s important to keep your spirits up, whether that’s by already starting to decorate for Christmas (too soon, if you ask me! I was just in London and all the department stores were decked out even before Halloween!) or just putting some fun things on the calendar for the weeks ahead. Like some of the events listed here!Elsewhere on LAist, you can follow ongoing election results, find out if Cal State will take your music memorabilia for their archives and get your tickets for the LAist Moth Storyslam on Nov. 10.MusicIf it’s music you’re looking for, Licorice Pizza has your picks, including:Wednesday Austin psych-rockers the Black Angels at the FondaK-pop veteran Henry Lau at the NovoThursdayMedium Build at the BellwetherAlvaro Diaz at the WilternFriday Carl Cox plays the Hollywood PalladiumArmand Hammer plays the Lodge RoomSaturday Moby and Underworld plus others a
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