Supervisor Don Knabe County of Los Angeles • Fourth District

On Friday, January 11, 2008, Los Angeles County Supervisor Don Knabe and the Hispanic Outreach Taskforce (H.O.T.) will present the inaugural Southeast Summit on Youth & Violence. The purpose of this summit is to bring forth a conceptual framework for reducing violence in our communities. This framework will focus on a strategy that encourages cooperative, [...]

Now in its second season, the Los Angeles County Museum of Art’s (LACMA’s) concert series, Art & Music, will celebrate the museum’s newly completed Phase I of Transformation, reinstallation of its permanent collection, and touring exhibitions with a group of celebrated artists. Each of the museum’s collections and exhibitions inspires a special concert featuring such [...]

Hypertension is on the rise among Los Angeles County adults. A report issued by the Los Angeles County Department of Public Health indicates that the percentage of adults countywide who have been diagnosed with hypertension increased from 18% in 1997 to 25% in 2005, a rise of nearly 40%. The findings are based on the [...]

The leaders of Los Angeles County have proclaimed Thursday, December 20, 2007, as A Day Without a Bag throughout the County, in an effort to encourage shoppers to go without disposable bags in favor of reusable bags. The motion, introduced by Supervisors Don Knabe and Zev Yaroslavsky, was unanimously approved today by the Los Angeles [...]

A free, six-hour holiday spectacular of music, song and dance will unfold on the stage of the beautiful Dorothy Chandler Pavilion of the Music Center on Monday, December 24, from 3:00 to 9:00 p.m. It’s the 48th Annual L.A. County Holiday Celebration, L.A. County’s biggest holiday show, featuring more than 40 musical ensembles, choirs, and [...]

The Los Angeles County Registrar-Recorder/County Clerk today assured all non-partisan Permanent Absentee/Mail Voters who received letters late last week indicating the option of requesting party ballots for the upcoming Presidential Primary Election that their requests would be honored beyond the December 3, 2007, deadline referenced in the letter. Election law in California allows qualified political [...]

My position on the negotiations between the Coliseum and USC is simple. I do not and will not support the Trojans leaving the Coliseum for the Rose Bowl or any other venue. As a member of the Coliseum Commission, I am completely committed to getting USC’s lease with the Coliseum renewed. It will be a [...]

A high-tech system designed to curb graffiti is credited for an arrest of a local man accused of several incidents of graffiti vandalism in the Rowland Heights area, Supervisor Don Knabe announced today. Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Deputies, using documentation obtained from the Graffiti Tracker program, recently arrested one of the most active graffiti vandals [...]

Los Angeles County Department of Health Services (DHS) hospitals rate average and above average in several key quality indicators and showed improvement in other areas according to the latest quarterly report card from the California Hospital Assessment and Reporting Taskforce (CHART), released recently. The CHART project was established in 2004 by a group of hospitals, [...]

The Los Angeles County Department of Animal Care & Control reminds everyone that Halloween can be a fun holiday, but also it can be potentially dangerous and frightening for pets. Here are some tips to keep your pets safe during Halloween: – Keep pets indoors in a secure comfortable area with a radio or television [...]

According to the South Coast Air Quality Management District, much of Los Angeles County will begin experiencing better air quality today. At this time, the County Health Officer is advising sensitive individuals to continue to monitor their conditions and limit outdoor activity. Schools outside the Santa Clarita Valley and away from areas of visible wildfire [...]

The American Humane Association and Los Angeles County Department of Animal Care & Control are working to help find homes for homeless dogs during Adopt-a-Dog Month this October. The public is encouraged to visit one of the County’s six animal shelters this month to meet some great dogs and puppies of all breeds and sizes [...]

Supervisor Don Knabe is pleased to announce that Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger has recently signed Assembly Bill 800 (AB 800), authored by Torrance Assemblymember Ted Lieu, which will dramatically improve the sewage spill reporting process across California. AB 800, sponsored by the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors, requires that any entity responsible for a sewage [...]

The Fourth Annual Los Angeles National Association for Mental Illness NAMIWALKS for the Minds of America 5K event is taking place at the Third Street Promenade in Santa Monica on Saturday, October 6. Scheduled to participate will be more than 5,000 walkers and supporters from Los Angeles County who are expected to raise more than [...]

Discover Marina del Rey Day 2007, an annual day of family fun and activities, will take place Sunday, October 7, 11 am to 4 pm in Burton Chace Park, 13650 Mindanao Way, Marina del Rey. The popular event is presented by Arrowhead Mountain Spring Water and sponsored by Los Angeles County Supervisor Don Knabe and [...]

The Los Angeles County Child Support Services Department has received two national awards recognizing its community outreach efforts to educate the public about child support services in L.A. County. The recognition came from the National Child Support Enforcement Association (NCSEA) and the National Association of Counties (NACO). L.A.County CSSD received NCSEA’s ’07 Program Awareness award [...]

Just in time for summer, the Los Angeles County Museum of Art (LACMA) is turning up the heat with the second season of the popular Latin Sounds series. These concerts showcase some of the finest Latin musicians and spice up Saturday evenings for the Los Angeles community with an eclectic mix of performers from Brazil, [...]

California’s child care programs, which issue over $1.2 billion in taxpayer dollars each year, have been increasingly vulnerable to fraudulent activity and improper payments, due to a gap in appropriate oversight at the State level. Los Angeles County Supervisor Don Knabe is pleased that the State Legislature has taken action to require the State to [...]

The Los Angeles County Department of Parks and Recreation will be sponsoring a new study to develop siting criteria for a system of Off-Highway Vehicle (OHV) Parks in Los Angeles County. Environmentalists, OHV representatives, resource agencies, trails and open space advocates, and other stakeholder groups will come together through a number of public workshops to [...]

Yesterday, Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa announced that the City of Los Angeles’ Department of Animal Services is the largest animal adoption agency in the United States. This claim is inaccurate. The County of Los Angeles’ Department of Animal Care places more animals each year than the City of Los Angeles. The City of Los Angeles placed [...]

Health officials with the Los Angeles County Department of Public Health have confirmed that one person with West Nile Virus infection has died. Because the man, who lived in the San Fernando Valley, was in his 80′s and had multiple, chronic medical problems, it is not possible to determine the extent to which the virus [...]

The County Health Officer is issuing a Public Health Alert due to the National Weather Service’s forecast that hot weather will affect much of southwestern California today and into the week. Temperatures are expected to go above 100 degrees in parts of the desert, mountain, and valley areas of Los Angeles County. Air quality is [...]

The Los Angeles County Department of Children and Family Services (DCFS), the largest child welfare agency in the country, has begun a historic child welfare reform plan that will focus on preventative services to help families and keep children out of the foster care system. The plan will also broaden the search for more permanent [...]

While school is out and the long days of summer turn into hot nights, graffiti vandals can become more active. The County of Los Angeles Department of Public Works wants County residents to know that it continues to offer graffiti removal services in unincorporated areas throughout the County. To report graffiti in unincorporated areas, call [...]

The 2007 season of Marina del Rey Summer Concerts opens Thursday, July 12 at 7:00 p.m., waterside at Burton Chace Park in Marina del Rey, Supervisor Don Knabe announced recently. Presented by Arrowhead Mountain Spring Water, both classical and pop series run concurrently throughout the summer, on alternate weeks: classical every other Thursday, and pop [...]

The Los Angeles County Department of Public Health has launched an innovative campaign to reverse the increase in cases of syphilis, gonorrhea, and chlamydia in the County. The public education campaign, funded by the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors, repeatedly and strongly urges young, sexually-active African American women and Latinas, gay and bi-sexual men [...]

The Los Angeles County Sheriff is an elected official in his own right. As a result, The Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors has no control over sentencing, release dates or medical assessments of prisoners. That said, I am adamant that if Paris Hilton has been reassigned to house arrest and placed on electronic monitoring, [...]

A new report from the Los Angeles County Department of Public Health reveals that many people living in Los Angeles County are not prepared for an emergency event such as an earthquake or a terrorist attack. The risk of a natural or man-made disaster occurring here remains high, yet more than 35% of county residents [...]

To coincide with Women’s Health Month and the Women’s Health Policy Summit, County health officials released the first ever report, Health Indicators for Women in Los Angeles County: Highlighting Disparities by Ethnicity and Insurance Status. The report showed that compared to men, women have higher rates of many serious chronic diseases and depression, and that [...]

Seniors and their families will get help and learn how to protect themselves against elder financial frauds at a free forum being presented by Supervisor Don Knabe and the Department of Consumer Affairs. The "SMARTER SENIORS FORUM" will be held on Wednesday, May 30, 2007 from 10:00 a.m. to 12:00 p.m. at San Pedro Service [...]

April is not only tax time but the perfect opportunity to consider how much hard-earned money smokers spend on cigarettes and the health dangers caused by using tobacco products. Every time you buy a pack of cigarettes, you tax your wallet and your health, said Dr. Jonathan E. Fielding, MD, MPH, Public Health Director and [...]

The Los Angeles County Department of Public Health recently unveiled the new Just Be Ready: Prepare Together mobile education outreach program. At the center of the program is a multicultural and multi-language public education campaign that encourages residents to create a family communication plan and put together an emergency preparedness kit. The emergency preparedness kit [...]

Thomas (Tom) R. Martin, a long-serving South Bay community leader and field representative for several elected officials, passed away this morning at the age of 61 after a prolonged battle with cancer. Tom was a prominent figure in the South Bay and Beach Cities for over thirty years, serving as a field representative to former [...]

The Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors has accepted a donation of 120 cherry trees and a stone memorial marker to Schabarum Regional Park with an estimated value of more than $10,000, Supervisor Don Knabe announced today. The donation was made by Dr. Jane Gu and Dr. Ron Gu who are physicians that reside in [...]

A free toy loan program is the newest community service to be offered by the County of Los Angeles at Manzanita Park in Hacienda Heights. By participating in the program, children can choose to borrow one of over 100 available toys, then return the toy and check out others. Much like a traditional library, the [...]

The Los Angeles County Department of Public Health has re-launched an expanded version of its STD Hotline, which has been a powerful prevention weapon against sexually transmitted diseases (STD). Accessible 24 hours, 7 days a week, the Hotline, 1-800-758-0880, gives callers instant access to a wealth of STD information in both English and Spanish, access [...]

The Los Angeles County Department of Beaches and Harbors will again offer its popular Outdoor Adventures programs in Burton Chace Park, 13650 Mindanao Way, Marina del Rey, beginning March 22. Bird Watching, Harbor Kayaking, and Surf Kayaking will offer exciting experiences for individuals and families. Bird Watching will take groups to various sites in the [...]

The County of Los Angeles has filed a lawsuit in Superior Court seeking an injunction to enforce nuisance abatement on a homeowner in the unincorporated community of Rowland Heights, Supervisor Don Knabe announced this week. The private property, at 19368 East Heritage Place in Rowland Heights, is located in a residential zone, but is currently [...]

A 45-day public comment period for the revised Draft Environmental Impact Report (EIR) relating to the Termino Avenue Storm Drain Project in Long Beach will begin on Thursday, March 1, 2007, and conclude on Monday, April 16, 2007. Because of the broad community interest in this project, Supervisor Knabe has made the 566 page Draft [...]

Los Angeles County public health officials announced this week that they have recently recorded an increase in cases of the flu and flu-like illnesses being seen in local hospital emergency rooms and doctor offices. At the same time, County health leaders reminded local residents that there is still time to get a flu shot since [...]

Los Angeles County Supervisor Don Knabe is happy to announce that a baby girl was safely surrendered in the City of Downey over the weekend. The newborn Hispanic female was surrendered at Downey Regional Medical Center on Saturday, February 10 and is reported to be in good health. As is standard practice, the baby girl [...]

The Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors will consider whether to create a new position of Chief Executive Officer (CEO) that would be much stronger than the County’s current Chief Administrative Officer (CAO), based on a proposal introduced today by Supervisors Don Knabe and Zev Yaroslavsky. The proposal for a strong CAO is not a [...]

Surrounded by some of the most famous and dirtiest hands in Hollywood, Los Angeles County Public Health Officials and community leaders today unveiled an aggressive public education campaign aimed at getting residents to wash their hands to reduce the spread of seasonal flu and encourage pandemic flu preparedness. Public Health Officials made the announcement in [...]

That no evidence exists as to what ever happened to 9.7 million gallons of raw sewage over a 55 month period is abhorrent. That’s the equivalent to the volume of nearly 15 Olympic-sized swimming pools and no one has any idea of what happened to the raw sewage. No one knows if it made it [...]

This week the Los Angeles County Community Development Commission (CDC) – which functions as the County’s Housing Authority – will release a Notice of Funding Availability (NOFA) for over $30 million in both HOME Affordable Rental and "City of Industry Funds". Housing developers are encouraged to submit proposals and apply for these funds. The NOFA [...]

Los Angeles County-Seniors’ survey of unmet needs is coming to an end January 31, 2007. Senior citizens aged 60 and over, will have the rest of January to complete the L.A. County Seniors Count! survey and be counted. Advocates such as the Los Angeles County Area Agency on Aging Advisory Council and the Los Angeles [...]

The L.A. County Junior Golf Program is offering free golf lessons, after school, for the first 36 juniors to sign up for each program. Please fill out the application and either mail it in or fax it to (626) 447-8573. You will be notified by mail or by phone, one week prior, if your application [...]

The Department of Children & Family Services (DCFS) Torrance Office has partnered with the South Bay Community Partnership Council to coordinate and implement a community-based mentor program for foster youths called the South Bay Mentors Coalition. The program is now actively seeking adult volunteers in the South Bay community (from Inglewood down to Palos Verdes [...]

The Natural History Museum stays open late for its monthly First Fridays series of evening events featuring engaging original discussion, film, live performance and curator-led tours on January 5, February 2, March 2, April 6, May 4, and June 1. Created to engage the public in an open, dynamic and thought-provoking dialogue, this Winter/Spring First [...]

Eighth-, ninth- and 10th-graders with talent in the visual and performing arts are invited to apply for the Los Angeles County High School for the Arts’ fall 2007 semester. Arts High — a tuition-free public school located on the campus of Cal State Los Angeles — combines conservatory-style arts training with a college preparatory academic [...]