{"id":1002600,"date":"2026-08-15T15:15:18","date_gmt":"2026-08-15T15:15:18","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/1002600\/"},"modified":"2026-08-15T15:15:18","modified_gmt":"2026-08-15T15:15:18","slug":"nithya-raman-says-she-was-punished-l-a-s-council-president-disagrees","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/1002600\/","title":{"rendered":"Nithya Raman says she was punished. L.A.’s council president disagrees"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Good morning, and welcome to L.A. on the Record \u2014 our City Hall newsletter. It\u2019s David Zahniser, with an assist from Noah Goldberg, giving you the latest on city and county government.<\/p>\n

It was a move this week that drew immediate blowback: Council President Marqueece Harris-Dawson <\/b>pulled Councilmember Nithya Raman<\/b><\/a> off of her position as chair of the city\u2019s housing and homelessness committee, just as Raman enters the homestretch in her campaign to unseat Mayor Karen Bass<\/b>.<\/p>\n

Raman quickly suggested that she was being punished for challenging Bass, a Harris-Dawson ally. On a video titled \u201cBass\u2019 Ally Removed Me as Chair,\u201d she portrayed the move as retribution for saying City Controller Kenneth Mejia <\/b>should audit the mayor\u2019s homeless programs.<\/p>\n

\u201cMayor Bass and her allies are protecting what we all know is a deeply broken status quo, one that is not serving any person here in the city of Los Angeles,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n

For months, many at City Hall had expected Raman to make a stink if she was yanked from her post, transforming herself into a martyr. So what exactly was Harris-Dawson thinking?<\/p>\n

You\u2019re reading the L.A. on the Record newsletter <\/p>\n

Sign up to make sense of the often unexplained world of L.A. politics.<\/p>\n

By continuing, you agree to our Terms of Service<\/a>, which include arbitration and a class action waiver. You agree that we and our third-party vendors may collect and use your information, including through cookies, pixels and similar technologies, for the purposes set forth in our Privacy Policy<\/a> such as personalizing your experience and ads. <\/p>\n

In an interview Friday, Harris-Dawson said the removal of Raman as committee chair was simply one piece in a larger effort to make the council\u2019s committees work better \u2014 and not punishment at all.<\/p>\n

\u201cIf I were trying to punish her, I would have moved her off [her post] the day after she filed to run for mayor\u201d back in February, he said.<\/p>\n

Harris-Dawson said he split Raman\u2019s committee into two \u2014 one focused on housing, the other on homelessness \u2014 because the two subjects were simply too big for a single committee to handle effectively. He said he and Raman had talked extensively about that idea, disagreeing on whether the two topics should have been combined. <\/p>\n

The homelessness committee needs someone who can focus their undivided attention on the ongoing crises surrounding homeless services \u2014 including the Trump administration\u2019s effort to strip hundreds of millions of dollars<\/a> in federal funding, Harris-Dawson said.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019ve got to be able to move, and move in the most efficient manner possible,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

\"Councilmember <\/p>\n

Councilmember Nithya Raman attends a city council meeting at City Hall in downtown Los Angeles on August 14, 2026.<\/p>\n

(Genaro Molina \/ Los Angeles Times)<\/p>\n

As part of the reshuffling, Harris-Dawson picked Councilmember Ysabel Jurado<\/b>, who represents Skid Row, to lead the now renamed homelessness and health committee. Jurado will also sit on the new three-member housing committee, which will be chaired by Councilmember Imelda Padilla<\/b>.<\/p>\n

Councilmember Hugo Soto-Mart\u00ednez, <\/b>fresh off his reelection victory, will head up the council\u2019s economic development committee, replacing Councilmember Curren Price<\/b>, who leaves at the end of the year.<\/p>\n

Even Councilmember Monica Rodriguez<\/b> landed a spot in charge of the committee that deals with parks, a pet issue of hers. Harris-Dawson stripped Rodriguez of her committee seats<\/a> last year, after she criticized his leadership.<\/p>\n

The new assignments could give Harris-Dawson a base of support the next time there\u2019s a vote on his presidency. Harris-Dawson dismissed the idea that there was any connection, calling such speculation \u201ccompletely inaccurate.\u201d<\/p>\n

The committee assignments take effect next month.<\/p>\n

Raman will continue serving on the five-member homelessness committee, just not as its chair. She will head the council committee dealing with immigration and civil rights. She even broadened her portfolio in some ways, securing a seat on the public safety committee, which deals with police and fire responses. <\/p>\n

\u201cIf you\u2019re on a committee, you definitely can get things done, and you don\u2019t have to be the chair,\u201d Harris-Dawson said.<\/p>\n

Raman offered a different take, telling reporters on Friday that a committee chair simply has more authority, setting the agenda.<\/p>\n

\u201cYou also have some more power in trying to get the departments to reply \u2014 although even my best efforts to get the departments to reply to report-backs didn\u2019t work,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n

Not happy with the homeless count<\/p>\n

The hot potato that is homelessness now heads to Jurado, at a critical time for the city and her district.<\/p>\n

Jurado\u2019s district, which takes in downtown and parts of the Eastside, saw a 23% increase in unsheltered homelessness, according to this year\u2019s homeless count. On top of that, The Times recently reported<\/a> that the Los Angeles Homeless Services Authority, which runs the count, failed to tally hundreds of residents at a Skid Row shelter in 2024 and 2025, skewing this year\u2019s citywide numbers.<\/p>\n

Jurado voiced frustration over those issues, saying city officials shouldn\u2019t have to spend time and money verifying data that \u201cshould have been accurate from the start.\u201d<\/p>\n

She isn\u2019t the only one voicing displeasure.<\/p>\n

Harris-Dawson questioned the accuracy of the count in his own South L.A. district, where LAHSA reported a 127% increase in unsheltered homelessness.<\/p>\n

Harris-Dawson thinks the big increase may stem from a single census tract south of Manchester Avenue between Normandie and Van Ness avenues. In that area, LAHSA said it found 277 unsheltered homeless people.<\/p>\n

Last year, the agency counted 19, Harris-Dawson said. <\/p>\n

\u201cA jump of this magnitude in a single corridor strongly suggests a data collection or processing error rather than an actual change on the ground,\u201d according to a motion signed this week by Harris-Dawson that calls for an explanation.<\/p>\n

LAHSA officials didn\u2019t respond to requests for comment. <\/p>\n

Sherman Oaks Smackdown, Part II<\/p>\n

It was the most personal of the mayoral debates staged last spring: Bass and Raman going mano a mano in front of an audience at the Sherman Oaks Homeowners Assn.<\/p>\n

During that 90-minute back-and-forth, the two took shots at each other over homelessness, police hiring and their respective leadership styles, among other things.<\/p>\n

Now, with the Nov. 3 runoff approaching, Bass and Raman are set for a Valley rematch on Wednesday, which will again feature Fox11\u2019s Phil Shuman<\/b>, as well as a panel of representatives from Sherman Oaks community groups.<\/p>\n

Reservations have been filling up for in-person attendance. The event will also be live streamed on www.soha914.com<\/a> and aired on LAist 89.3, organizers said.<\/p>\n

State of play<\/p>\n

\u2014 HITTING HUD: <\/b>In a scathing order, a federal judge blocked the Trump administration<\/a> from taking control of federal funding for homelessness programs across L.A. County. In his preliminary injunction, U.S. District Judge David O. Carter <\/b>said the Department of Housing and Urban Development acted arbitrarily and capriciously when it suspended LAHSA from managing federal funds.<\/p>\n

\u2014 LOATHING LAHSA:<\/b> Federal officials also denounced LAHSA<\/a> as corrupt and incompetent during an appearance at the Dream Center, a faith-based residential treatment center. LAHSA pushed back, saying the federal government has failed to provide evidence of graft or abuse.<\/p>\n

\u2014 RETURN ENGAGEMENT: <\/b>The mayor\u2019s Inside Safe homelessness program is spending more and more time going back to the same locations<\/a>. Data reviewed by The Times showed that, in the fourth quarter of 2025, four out of every five Inside Safe operations were carried out in places already visited by its outreach teams. The repopulation problem has been especially pronounced along the 110 Freeway in South L.A.<\/p>\n

\u2014 WAREHOUSE WOES: <\/b>City leaders have accused Lineage, whose warehouse in Boyle Heights was destroyed by fire, of blowing past the city\u2019s 45-day deadline<\/a> for removing millions of pounds of rotting food from its property. Lineage reported Friday that the task was 94% done. Bass wants the city\u2019s lawyers to take Lineage to court and impose penalties.<\/p>\n

\u2014 RISKY BUSINESS: <\/b>A divided City Council finalized an agreement<\/a> aimed at controlling the city\u2019s costs during the 2028 Summer Olympic Games, amid complaints that the event poses a major financial risk.<\/p>\n

\u2014 TRAIN IN VAIN: <\/b>Despite months of test runs, the Automated People Mover train is facing new uncertainty<\/a>, with a bond rating downgrade and a legal battle between the city and the contractor.<\/p>\n

\u2014 ZEROING IN: <\/b>City Controller Kenneth Mejia<\/b> told The Times he\u2019s planning to use his auditing authority to examine spending by LA28, the privately run committee that is staging the Games.<\/p>\n

\u2014 BUMMER NUMBERS: <\/b>Euthanasia rates for cats and kittens are up in a big way<\/a> in L.A. this year, according to the city\u2019s latest stats.<\/p>\n

\u2014 LICENSE TO CARRY: <\/b>The federal government and the county\u2019s Sheriff\u2019s Department have reached a settlement over what prosecutors alleged<\/a> was a pattern of delaying applications for permits to carry concealed firearms. The Sheriff\u2019s Department has cut its waiting times and now complies with statutory deadlines, officials said.<\/p>\n

\u2014 END OF THE PARTY:<\/b> A mansion in Encino, located in the western end of Raman\u2019s district, has become a massive party house<\/a>, drawing a neighborhood outcry.<\/p>\n

QUICK HITS<\/p>\n