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On Tuesday, August 5, the City Council will be officially presenting the FY26 Budget. Visit the budget website here. Read the Community Budget Book here. Read the Mayor's Budget Message here.
My Initial Thoughts on this Year's Proposed Budget
When I first took office, I didn’t expect the biggest budget challenge facing Long Beach would come from how the State treats our local oil revenue. After spending the past two and a half years learning the details, I believe this is the most urgent issue we face and it’s starting to show up clearly in this year’s budget.
For nearly 100 years, Long Beach has produced oil from our tidelands, which include our beaches, marinas, and waterways. The revenue was meant to help take care of the coast, which the City manages on the State’s behalf for the public. This revenue supports clean water through water quality improvements, safe beaches with lifeguards and regular maintenance, public shoreline access, and major projects like pier repairs, wetland restoration, and seawall and storm drain upgrades.
Now, the State is shutting down oil production without a funded plan to plug wells, remove equipment, transition workers into clean energy jobs, or support our responsibility to maintain the tidelands through the transition.
How did this happen? In 1964, when oil was booming, the State declared it “economically impractical” to spend all of Long Beach’s oil revenue on the coast and deemed the excess “surplus,” sending it to the State. That outdated decision still controls the revenue flow today. Currently, Long Beach receives just 8.5% of tidelands oil revenue to maintain the coast, while the State takes 42.5%. Since 2004, the State has collected nearly $6 billion from Long Beach’s tidelands.
The disparity is clear and the 1964 surplus finding is based on facts that are no longer true. Oil revenues are falling as tidelands costs rise. A City Audit report shows that Long Beach could lose $300 million in oil revenue over the next decade while the tidelands face over $1 billion in unfunded capital projects.
This year’s budget is the first to show a Tidelands Fund deficit. Next year, the General Fund, which supports core services including police, fire, parks and recreation, and libraries, is expected to absorb several million in Tidelands shortfalls. That burden will grow as oil declines, while the State continues collecting tens of millions from Long Beach. Public Safety alone receives over $38 million yearly from Tidelands revenue.
We need to start demanding that more of our tidelands oil revenue stay in Long Beach. If you want to learn more or get involved, please reach out to my office!
Do you want to participate in a City Council meeting but don't know how? Check out the 3rd District's Guide to City Council Meetings here!
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