Board of Supervisors Move to Enhance Access to Los Angeles County Services for Residents in Unincorporated Areas
LOS ANGELES, Calif. (September 12, 2023) — The Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors unanimously approved a motion authored by Supervisors Holly J. Mitchell and Kathryn Barger focused on increasing access to County departments, programs, and services for the over 120 unincorporated areas that rely on Los Angeles County as its primary source for municipal services. The motion directs the Chief Executive Office to report back within 90 days with a plan for launching a comprehensive website to access all County services and Departments, accompanied by multi-lingual printed materials and an outreach strategy for unincorporated areas.
“The absence of a city government structure in our unincorporated communities often creates confusion for the residents who live there on what local services are available. This motion builds on the work the County is doing to ensure our residents are aware of and able to get the services they are entitled to,” said Supervisor Holly J. Mitchell. “Equipping our unincorporated communities with the resources to more easily navigate the vast County system of services, departments, and initiatives is our ongoing responsibility.”
“Our unincorporated communities rely on the County for local representation and essential services such as zoning enforcement, sanitation, and public safety but many don’t know how to access that help,” said Supervisor Kathryn Barger. “This motion is about making it easier to contact the County. We owe it to our tax-paying constituents to be accessible and responsive.”
The County of Los Angeles is the most populous and complex county system in the nation, responsible for setting policies and delivering services to meet the needs of 10 million residents, out of which 1 million are living in unincorporated areas – communities outside of city jurisdictions, that have no local mayor or city council. These areas look to the County and their County Supervisor for local government representation and services, including sanitation, public libraries, public safety, environmental protection, emergency response, code enforcement, homelessness crisis response, and other critical services and initiatives.