In a shocking revelation, a recent analysis by OpenTheBooks has disclosed that Los Angeles spent a staggering $1.1 billion in overtime in 2024, setting a new record.
This comes at a time when the city's police force is at its thinnest since 1995, with only 8,620 officers struggling to maintain order amidst nightly chaos.
As reported by the Daily Caller, the analysis found that police, firefighters, and other public employees had to work extreme overtime hours due to a series of crises and chronic staffing shortages. This resulted in some workers' compensation packages exceeding those of top city officials and even the President of the United States.
The overtime costs in 2024 reached unprecedented levels, enough to offset the city's entire budget deficit and save 1,600 frontline workers from termination, as per a May letter to the City Council.
Los Angeles is currently facing mounting public safety challenges. In January, a series of devastating wildfires from Pacific Palisades to Altadena strained fire crews and infrastructure. At one point, firefighters arrived at blazing neighborhoods only to find empty hydrants as water lines faltered. The University of California, Los Angeles estimated the fires caused total property losses of up to $131 billion.
Adding to the city's woes, protests against Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) escalated into rampant violence and disorder over the past week. Arson attacks and assaults on officers left the LAPD "overwhelmed" by the chaos, according to the police chief's statement to CBS News. LAPD chief Jim McDonnell admitted on June 9 that the situation was "out of control" as clashes intensified. President Donald Trump ordered National Guard troops and the Marine Corps to assist, a 60-day deployment expected to cost taxpayers $134 million, a senior Pentagon official informed lawmakers last week.
The city's current predicaments follow years of strain due to prolonged COVID-19 lockdowns under Democratic Gov. Gavin Newsom and local officials. These lockdowns reduced city revenues and staffing, putting Los Angeles in a uniquely precarious position as it faces what could be a long, turbulent summer.
The OpenTheBooks report warns that Los Angeles has now entered a "record-breaking era of overtime pay," which could keep costs elevated as first responders continue to work around the clock. The LAPD spent $265.5 million on overtime last year, a $100 million jump since 2019. In 2024, seven LAPD officers earned more than $235,000 in a single year, a feat never achieved before. Detective Nathan Kouri topped the list, logging $404,875 in overtime pay on top of his regular salary, for a total compensation of $603,887.
The report also noted that five people earned more in overtime alone than the $400,000 salary paid to the President of the United States. Even Mayor Karen Bass, who earned about $328,000 last year, was out-earned by dozens of her own employees once overtime was factored in. Overall, 4,114 city workers took home more in 2024 than the governors $242,295 salary.
Firefighters and utility workers also saw significant increases in their pay. The citys ten highest-paid employees of 2024 all came from the Fire Department or Department of Water and Power (DWP), each collecting between $610,000 and $905,000 in total compensation. LAFD Battalion Chief Nicholas Ferrari was the top earner, pulling in $905,060 last year, including a staggering $644,456 just in overtime.
OpenTheBooks attributes these exorbitant payouts to a severe staffing shortfall that has forced remaining employees to work extreme hours. Vacancies in Los Angeles have spiked since the pandemic, jumping from 11% pre-pandemic to a 17.5% job vacancy rate as of December 2023. More than 2,000 city workers took early retirement in 2020 as part of a cost-cutting program after the pandemic hit revenues, hollowing out the workforce.
Hiring new employees has proven difficult due to "archaic" civil service rules, according to Dana Brown, head of the citys personnel department. Applicants often wait six months or more in the pipeline, which has hampered efforts to replenish the ranks. Police recruiting hasnt kept pace with the attrition: the LAPD received 53% more job applications in 2024 than in 2022, but slow background checks meant 9% fewer candidates were actually hired.
The report points out that while LAPD staffing has dropped to its lowest level in decades, payroll expenses havent dropped at all theyve actually grown. In 2020, the LAPD had 14,902 employees costing the city $1.71 billion; in 2024, it had only 12,617 employees but a payroll of $1.73 billion. Much of that gap is due to overtime.
The OpenTheBooks report concludes that "between draconian lockdowns, inefficient onboarding processes and sky-high union-negotiated deals, Los Angeles is set to take a financial beating as it deploys officers and personnel to respond to the chaos."
City leaders, however, claim they are taking steps to address the crisis. Earlier this month, Bass signed a new $13.9 billion city budget for 2025-26 that boosts funding for public safety and begins to rebuild depleted departments.
Bass secured an agreement with the City Council to fund 240 additional LAPD recruits in the coming months, aiming to restore police staffing levels after retirements drove the force to a 20-year low. The budget also adds dozens of firefighter and paramedic positions.
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