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Karen Bass: “We have expedited permits [for the film and television…”

Featuring: Karen Bass, Democratic | Mayor of Los Angeles | California

Full NBC4 broadcast: Karen Bass, Spencer Pratt, Nithya Raman debate for LA mayor

Published May 6, 2026 | Video Starts at 49:29

Do we do enough to keep production in Southern California? Well, let me just. One minute. Let me just tell you what I have done in working with the industry. We have expedited permits [for the film and television industry]. I established one person who is a czar to provide concierge services for the industry. We also lowered the cost to do filming in Los Angeles. (49:29–49:32)

CLAIM

Asserts that permits for the film and television industry have been expedited.

This is an excerpt from a raw transcript. The assertions have not been audited or verified. Tap the video to view the source footage and understand the context.

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Karen Bass

“While it went up in the country, 18%, it came down in Los Angeles, 17 and a half percent.”
Full NBC4 broadcast: Karen Bass, Spencer Pratt, Nithya Raman debate for LA mayor | Uploaded May 6, 2026 | 03:24-03:31
“The primary problem there was that the chief sent home a thousand firefighters.”
Full NBC4 broadcast: Karen Bass, Spencer Pratt, Nithya Raman debate for LA mayor | Uploaded May 6, 2026 | 04:05-04:13
“Firefighters spend 30% of their time putting out fires that are related to homelessness.”
Full NBC4 broadcast: Karen Bass, Spencer Pratt, Nithya Raman debate for LA mayor | Uploaded May 6, 2026 | 27:45-27:52
“We also change the zoning codes, so we have the potential for another half million units.”
Full NBC4 broadcast: Karen Bass, Spencer Pratt, Nithya Raman debate for LA mayor | Uploaded May 6, 2026 | 34:07-34:14
“Homelessness was going up year after year. And under my watch, it is the first time we've had a decrease in street homelessness.”
Full NBC4 broadcast: Karen Bass, Spencer Pratt, Nithya Raman debate for LA mayor | Uploaded May 6, 2026 | 03:16-03:25
“I have expedited the building of housing because our number one issue in this city is affordability.”
Full NBC4 broadcast: Karen Bass, Spencer Pratt, Nithya Raman debate for LA mayor | Uploaded May 6, 2026 | 03:30-03:37
“Yes.”
Full NBC4 broadcast: Karen Bass, Spencer Pratt, Nithya Raman debate for LA mayor | Uploaded May 6, 2026 | 04:17-04:18
“There was supposed to have been deployment and pre-deployment in the area. That did not happen.”
Full NBC4 broadcast: Karen Bass, Spencer Pratt, Nithya Raman debate for LA mayor | Uploaded May 6, 2026 | 04:27-04:33
“There was one reservoir that was out of commission.”
Full NBC4 broadcast: Karen Bass, Spencer Pratt, Nithya Raman debate for LA mayor | Uploaded May 6, 2026 | 06:43-06:46
“The winds reach close to 100 miles an hour and the planes were unable to fly.”
Full NBC4 broadcast: Karen Bass, Spencer Pratt, Nithya Raman debate for LA mayor | Uploaded May 6, 2026 | 07:01-07:07
“We had two other reservoirs totaling 8 billion, 8 billion gallons that were available.”
Full NBC4 broadcast: Karen Bass, Spencer Pratt, Nithya Raman debate for LA mayor | Uploaded May 6, 2026 | 07:12-07:19
“That operation was ordered by the feds.”
Full NBC4 broadcast: Karen Bass, Spencer Pratt, Nithya Raman debate for LA mayor | Uploaded May 6, 2026 | 10:24-10:28
“Los Angeles is understaffed in terms of LAPD for the nation's second largest city.”
Full NBC4 broadcast: Karen Bass, Spencer Pratt, Nithya Raman debate for LA mayor | Uploaded May 6, 2026 | 10:51-10:58
“What is in my current budget now is 512 officers, which still is not enough.”
Full NBC4 broadcast: Karen Bass, Spencer Pratt, Nithya Raman debate for LA mayor | Uploaded May 6, 2026 | 11:19-11:26
“We have to pay the officers. Had to give them a raise, had to expand recruitment because officers were going to other cities.”
Full NBC4 broadcast: Karen Bass, Spencer Pratt, Nithya Raman debate for LA mayor | Uploaded May 6, 2026 | 18:08-18:17
“We can't keep L. A safe with the size of the department we have now.”
Full NBC4 broadcast: Karen Bass, Spencer Pratt, Nithya Raman debate for LA mayor | Uploaded May 6, 2026 | 18:24-18:28
“Everybody needs to go inside. Making it illegal and arresting people is not the way to solve this problem [of homelessness].”
Full NBC4 broadcast: Karen Bass, Spencer Pratt, Nithya Raman debate for LA mayor | Uploaded May 6, 2026 | 19:09-19:15
“I declared a state of emergency on day one because I know that what Angelenos want to see are their streets clear.”
Full NBC4 broadcast: Karen Bass, Spencer Pratt, Nithya Raman debate for LA mayor | Uploaded May 6, 2026 | 20:43-20:51
“Insight Safe is the only citywide program that we have had that has reduced homelessness two years in a row.”
Full NBC4 broadcast: Karen Bass, Spencer Pratt, Nithya Raman debate for LA mayor | Uploaded May 6, 2026 | 20:51-21:00
“60% of the people in Insight Safe stay inside.”
Full NBC4 broadcast: Karen Bass, Spencer Pratt, Nithya Raman debate for LA mayor | Uploaded May 6, 2026 | 21:19-21:23
“It's the first time homelessness has gone down.”
Full NBC4 broadcast: Karen Bass, Spencer Pratt, Nithya Raman debate for LA mayor | Uploaded May 6, 2026 | 21:41-21:44
“There's no rooms for $100,000.”
Full NBC4 broadcast: Karen Bass, Spencer Pratt, Nithya Raman debate for LA mayor | Uploaded May 6, 2026 | 23:37-23:40
“We've had a reduction of homelessness two years in a row because of policies that I have put in place.”
Full NBC4 broadcast: Karen Bass, Spencer Pratt, Nithya Raman debate for LA mayor | Uploaded May 6, 2026 | 27:28-27:36
“We have been reducing homelessness again, for the first time and building out a system that needs to be built.”
Full NBC4 broadcast: Karen Bass, Spencer Pratt, Nithya Raman debate for LA mayor | Uploaded May 6, 2026 | 30:05-30:14
“What I have done on my watch is reduced homelessness for the first time two years in a row.”
Full NBC4 broadcast: Karen Bass, Spencer Pratt, Nithya Raman debate for LA mayor | Uploaded May 6, 2026 | 32:46-32:52
“42,000 units are being fast-tracked for affordable housing.”
Full NBC4 broadcast: Karen Bass, Spencer Pratt, Nithya Raman debate for LA mayor | Uploaded May 6, 2026 | 33:53-33:58
“We have another 43,000 units that are potential with our adaptive reuse, which means you can change office buildings into housing.”
Full NBC4 broadcast: Karen Bass, Spencer Pratt, Nithya Raman debate for LA mayor | Uploaded May 6, 2026 | 33:58-34:08
“We have cut red tape so you can go through much quicker than [a year and a half].”
Full NBC4 broadcast: Karen Bass, Spencer Pratt, Nithya Raman debate for LA mayor | Uploaded May 6, 2026 | 36:10-36:15
“The 42,000 units of housing that are being fast tracked, 6,000 of those units are actively under construction.”
Full NBC4 broadcast: Karen Bass, Spencer Pratt, Nithya Raman debate for LA mayor | Uploaded May 6, 2026 | 36:14-36:23
“SB79 basically says you can build it in any residential area, and I don't believe that that is necessary in some areas.”
Full NBC4 broadcast: Karen Bass, Spencer Pratt, Nithya Raman debate for LA mayor | Uploaded May 6, 2026 | 39:41-39:51
“We did not need Sacramento to tell us what to do and to mandate what we were doing.”
Full NBC4 broadcast: Karen Bass, Spencer Pratt, Nithya Raman debate for LA mayor | Uploaded May 6, 2026 | 40:14-40:20
“Downtown is the center of our city and it is an economic engine that absolutely needs to be attended to.”
Full NBC4 broadcast: Karen Bass, Spencer Pratt, Nithya Raman debate for LA mayor | Uploaded May 6, 2026 | 45:39-45:48
“We have a strategy that is working. We are working with the downtown business associations.”
Full NBC4 broadcast: Karen Bass, Spencer Pratt, Nithya Raman debate for LA mayor | Uploaded May 6, 2026 | 45:47-45:53
“We are increasing Public safety there.”
Full NBC4 broadcast: Karen Bass, Spencer Pratt, Nithya Raman debate for LA mayor | Uploaded May 6, 2026 | 45:53-45:56
“That's why I did the adaptive reuse ordinance, which allows for the office buildings that are vacant to be converted into housing.”
Full NBC4 broadcast: Karen Bass, Spencer Pratt, Nithya Raman debate for LA mayor | Uploaded May 6, 2026 | 45:56-46:04
“Those conversions are taking place right now.”
Full NBC4 broadcast: Karen Bass, Spencer Pratt, Nithya Raman debate for LA mayor | Uploaded May 6, 2026 | 46:04-46:07
“There needs to be massive intervention [to deal with street homelessness].”
Full NBC4 broadcast: Karen Bass, Spencer Pratt, Nithya Raman debate for LA mayor | Uploaded May 6, 2026 | 46:10-46:13
“The convention center is a long term investment that we have to make in our city.”
Full NBC4 broadcast: Karen Bass, Spencer Pratt, Nithya Raman debate for LA mayor | Uploaded May 6, 2026 | 46:16-46:22
“Did you know that we are the only major city that does not have a comprehensive infrastructure plan?”
Full NBC4 broadcast: Karen Bass, Spencer Pratt, Nithya Raman debate for LA mayor | Uploaded May 6, 2026 | 48:27-48:35
“I have instituted and started a comprehensive infrastructure plan and moving right away into replacing 60,000 solar lights.”
Full NBC4 broadcast: Karen Bass, Spencer Pratt, Nithya Raman debate for LA mayor | Uploaded May 6, 2026 | 48:40-48:51
“I established one person who is a czar to provide concierge services for the industry.”
Full NBC4 broadcast: Karen Bass, Spencer Pratt, Nithya Raman debate for LA mayor | Uploaded May 6, 2026 | 49:31-49:38
“We also lowered the cost to do filming in Los Angeles.”
Full NBC4 broadcast: Karen Bass, Spencer Pratt, Nithya Raman debate for LA mayor | Uploaded May 6, 2026 | 49:38-49:43
“The observatory, we reduced those amounts by 70%.”
Full NBC4 broadcast: Karen Bass, Spencer Pratt, Nithya Raman debate for LA mayor | Uploaded May 6, 2026 | 49:43-49:48
“When I was in Sacramento and served as speaker, I did the first tax credits and also promoted and advocated for those tax credits here in…”
Full NBC4 broadcast: Karen Bass, Spencer Pratt, Nithya Raman debate for LA mayor | Uploaded May 6, 2026 | 49:54-50:06
“ICE was chasing people in car washes. ICE was chasing people in Home Depots and picking up vendors selling fruit.”
Full NBC4 broadcast: Karen Bass, Spencer Pratt, Nithya Raman debate for LA mayor | Uploaded May 6, 2026 | 54:14-54:23
“The majority of them, over 70%, had no record, no police record whatsoever.”
Full NBC4 broadcast: Karen Bass, Spencer Pratt, Nithya Raman debate for LA mayor | Uploaded May 6, 2026 | 54:22-54:29
“We need cooperation from the governor [to clean up highways, do landscaping, remove graffiti].”
Full NBC4 broadcast: Karen Bass, Spencer Pratt, Nithya Raman debate for LA mayor | Uploaded May 6, 2026 | 56:19-56:26
“We need the governor to restore the money for homelessness that was cut by 50%.”
Full NBC4 broadcast: Karen Bass, Spencer Pratt, Nithya Raman debate for LA mayor | Uploaded May 6, 2026 | 56:28-56:34
“We need the governor to front fund the money for FEMA because while we're waiting for it to come from D.C.”
Full NBC4 broadcast: Karen Bass, Spencer Pratt, Nithya Raman debate for LA mayor | Uploaded May 6, 2026 | 56:34-56:41