LA County delays motion that would provide rent relief for thousands of immigrants

In a 3-2 vote, the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors delayed a motion that would provide rent relief for thousands of immigrants and low-income families in Los Angeles County impacted by the federal enforcement operations that have taken place since early June.

On Tuesday morning, Immigrants Are LA (IRLA), a coalition of more than 100 immigrant, worker and community-based organizations, such as Inclusive Action for the City, TransLatin@ Coalition, the Coalition for Humane Immigrant Rights (CHIRLA) and the Council of Mexican Federations in North America (COFEM), held a press conference outside of the L.A. County Board of Supervisors meeting, urging the governing body responsible for the county to approve a motion that would expand its Emergency Rent Relief Program (ERRP).

The $16.8 million expansion would support families facing a double crisis: rising rents and loss of income due to immigration enforcement or ICE raids.

Supervisor Lindsey Horvath, who authored and introduced the motion, said at Tuesday’s press conference that it was the board's duty to address and protect L.A. County renters through these evolving emergencies, especially for households facing eviction and at risk of falling into homelessness.

Despite the numerous public comments in favor, the board decided on Tuesday to delay the motion into the county’s “cluster process,” an internal review where county departments meet to analyze and make recommendations before the motion comes back for another board vote. 

“Too many families are still displaced by the wildfires [and] too many immigrant households are living in fear each and every single day since the start of these raids. They can't wait: rent is due, rent cannot wait,” Horvath said. “[Donald] Trump's targeted attacks on our communities have people afraid to leave their homes, afraid to go to work, with no other recourse to make the income they need to support their families and keep a roof over their heads.”

The (ERRP) program was first developed for the survivors of the January 2025 Southern California wildfires, but as the motion stated, the expansion would now also help prevent housing instability by expanding coverage to immigrant families and tenants who have lost income due to aggressive ICE raids.

“Aggressive immigration enforcement in our neighborhoods and workplaces spreads fear and disrupts our communities and the economy. Cuts to our social safety net programs and other federal policy changes are leaving our most vulnerable Angelenos even more in need and at risk of losing their housing,” the motion states. 

If passed, the ERRP would have offered up to $5,000 in rent or mortgage relief for wildfire survivors, immigrant families, low-income tenants and small landlords. 

Angelica Salas, executive director of CHIRLA, said rent relief can be immensely helpful, especially in L.A., which has one of the highest renter populations in the nation.  

In L.A. County, approximately 54% to 64% of its residents are renters, according to data from sources like Neighborhood Data for Social Change and the LA Housing Department. 

“Families are still feeling the impacts of the fires in January, so any assistance for them will go a long way. Similarly, the housing assistance for those impacted by the raids is critically important and demonstrates the county's leadership to understand how the raids have impacted whole communities, individuals and families,” Salas said.

For many, the fear of detention has led to missing work, leading to a chilling effect on the local economy. According to a new study from the UC Merced Community and Labor Center, Latinos were among the top groups who lost work after the Trump administration escalated immigration enforcement in LA.

The study, which analyzed data from the U.S. Census Bureau and the Bureau of Labor Statistics, showed that fewer Californians reported private sector work during the week of escalated federal enforcement actions on June 8, 2025, than on the preceding reference week of May 11, 2025. 

The study also showed that the decline in work was greater among citizens (271,541) than noncitizens (193,428), which Flor Melendrez, executive director of the CLEAN Carwash Worker Center, said is because, despite their immigration status, many people cannot afford to miss work. 

Car wash businesses have also been among the most targeted and raided by federal agents in the last months, leading to community patrols and safety teams safeguarding various car washes in their respective communities. “Over 200 car wash workers have been taken from our communities; that means over 2,000 households have been left without their breadwinner. That is our reality right now. We must support our community with rental assistance; there is no other way around it,” Melendrez said. 

No immediate action was taken today by the L.A. County Board of Supervisors, meaning community advocates will need to wait until the motion returns to the agenda. Despite this, IRLA said they will continue to review next steps and continue their advocacy.

“Being housed is a right, not a privilege. No one should be forced into homelessness because of a natural disaster or because of federal policies beyond their control,” Horvath said.