Mayor Butts Moves for Full Accounting of Every Tax Owed to Inglewood from Hollywood Park and SoFi Stadium

With the 2015 Development Agreement ruled void, the Mayor’s motion, co-sponsored by Councilmember  Dionne Faulk, directs an independent Hollywood Park Revenue Accountability and Ticket Transparency Audit  covering 2015 to the present, including ticket transparency protections the Rams opposed in Sacramento 

INGLEWOOD, CA (October 8, 2026) — Mayor James T. Butts, Jr. will introduce a motion, co-sponsored by Councilmember  Dionne Faulk, directing an independent Hollywood Park Revenue Accountability and Ticket Transparency  Audit of every tax and fee owed to the City of Inglewood from the Hollywood Park campus, home to SoFi  Stadium and YouTube Theater, covering 2015 to the present. The motion follows a California Superior Court  ruling that the 2015 Hollywood Park Development Agreement is void, and it continues the Mayor’s long standing commitment to transparency. For years he has insisted that every dollar flowing between the City and  Hollywood Park be documented and verified. 

“For years, I have asked for one thing: a full and honest accounting,” said Mayor Butts. “Now that the court has  declared the development agreement void, the City must take command of every dollar it is owed. Not an  estimate, not a number handed to us, but an independent audit, line by line and ticket by ticket. The people of  Inglewood deserve nothing less.” 

A Champion of Transparency 

Since at least 2023, the Mayor, through written correspondence from his executive staff and the City Manager,  has asked for a full accounting of what was owed under the 2015 Development Agreement, both by the City and  to the City. Under that agreement, the City was to pay back the developer’s up-front public infrastructure costs  once the development brought in more than $25 million a year in total taxes to the City, and the City’s  admissions tax on stadium events was capped at $15 million a year, adjusted for inflation. 

In December 2024, the Hollywood Park ownership asked the City for approximately $376 million in  reimbursement. The Mayor insisted that the City pay nothing without full documentation and directed the City  to bring in independent forensic accountants rather than accept the ownership’s figures at face value. The total  was hundreds of millions of dollars more than the infrastructure costs presented to voters and the City Council  in 2015 and included costs that were clearly not Inglewood residents’ responsibility. When Hollywood Park  management claimed the $25 million yearly threshold had been reached, the City asked for a full reconciliation  of the relevant taxes to confirm whether that was accurate. From the beginning, the City worked in good faith to  make sure every payment was supported and that no gift of public funds was made. 

After Hollywood Park and other venue owners sued the City over its digital kiosks, which fund senior  programs, pre-kindergarten classes for low-income families, and upgrades to public safety systems, among  other public benefits, the litigation revealed that the 2015 Development Agreement was void from the 

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beginning. The Superior Court agreed with the City and ruled the Development Agreement void. The  Hollywood Park ownership has vowed to appeal. 

Every Tax, Every Ticket 

The motion authorizes the City Attorney, working with the City’s Chief Financial Director, to retain an  independent certified public accounting firm with forensic accounting expertise in stadium, sports and  entertainment, concert, and event accounting practices. Because of pending litigation, the firm will be retained  through the City Attorney’s office, and the City Attorney and Finance Director will use all audit, inspection, and  records authority available to the City to obtain the records needed. The auditors will compare what the City  actually received since 2015 with what it is actually owed under the law, in categories including: 

• Admissions tax, the City tax on tickets to stadium events, including what is owed without the $15 million  cap. 
• Sales tax, the City’s share of sales at the stadium, shops, and concession stands, including bundled ticket  packages that include beverages, parking, and merchandise, and private events that include catering. • Parking tax on event days and other days, utility user tax, and business license tax for the operators,  vendors, and tenants doing business on the campus. 
• The City’s share of property taxes on the campus, and advertising and signage revenue owed to the City. • Development and permit fees charged, waived, delayed, or credited. 
• Hotel tax, if any, recognizing that the first hotel on the campus is under construction. 

Recognizing that the Court deemed the Development Agreement void, the City will continue to review the  documentation behind the approximately $376 million in infrastructure costs claimed against the City. 

Ticket Transparency the Rams Opposed 

Ticket transparency is a core part of the audit. The City’s admissions tax is collected on ticket sales, and the  audit will follow the same principles as AB 8 (Friedman, 2023–24), a state bill that called for ticket buyers to  see the full price and every fee up front, and for sellers to keep complete records. When AB 8 was heard in the  State Senate in 2023, the Los Angeles Rams, the anchor tenant of SoFi Stadium and part of the same ownership  as Hollywood Park, were listed in opposition to the bill. The bill did not become law. 

Where the State did not act, the City can, by applying the same transparency standard to the tax on every ticket  sold in Inglewood. The audit will answer five questions: whether the City’s tax is based on everything fans must  pay, including service, facility, and processing fees, or only part of it, with a complete inventory of bundled  ticketing; whether the tax fans pay reaches the City; whether ticket sales, refunds, and cancellations line up with  tax payments to the City; whether the stadium, the ticketing company, or the promoter collects and pays the tax  for each type of event; and how resale tickets, free tickets, suites, and premium seats are taxed. 

“When a family buys a ticket to SoFi Stadium, part of that ticket belongs to the people of Inglewood,” said  Councilmember Dionne Faulk. “Ticket transparency means our residents finally see what is owed on every  ticket and whether it was paid. I’m proud to stand with the Mayor on this.” 

“The principle behind AB 8 was simple: people deserve to see the whole price,” said Assemblymember Tina  McKinnor. “Mayor Butts is applying that principle to the public’s share of every ticket, and I fully support this  effort to make sure Inglewood receives every dollar it is owed.” 

Independent and Public 

Preliminary audit findings will be presented to the City Council in public session within 30 days of the firm’s  engagement, with privileged or litigation-related matters presented in closed session as permitted by law. The  motion also directs the City Manager to return with a quarterly Stadium Revenue Transparency Report for the 

Hollywood Park campus, published on the City’s website, showing each tax collected from the campus, tickets  sold and free tickets issued, total ticket revenue and fees, admissions tax owed and received, and event-day  costs to the City and the amounts reimbursed. 

With the 2027 Super Bowl and the 2028 Olympic Opening Ceremony coming to SoFi Stadium, the audit  establishes a reliable baseline now. Accurate numbers are essential for any new agreement the City negotiates  for the campus. 

The motion will be considered at the City Council meeting on Tuesday, October 13. The audit is estimated not  to exceed $325,000, funded from the City’s General Fund. It does not change any tax rate and does not create  any new tax or fee — just a full accounting of the money Inglewood is already owed.