Publication
LA Mayor Issues Emergency Executive Order to Help Displaced Students, Schools, and Child Care Facilities
By Drake Mirsch, Chance Brooks, and Josh Schneiderman
Quick Take
Executive Order No. 4 provides a streamlined path for the relocation, co-location, and temporary operation of short-term and long-term educational and child care facilities.
Key Provision of Executive Order No. 4.
On February 4, 2025, Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass issued Executive Order No. 4, “Return and Rebuild.” The Executive Order provides a streamlined path for the relocation, co-location, and temporary operation of educational and child care facilities, consistent with the Governor’s Executive Order N-6-25 (relaxing building and safety standards for school facilities).
By February 18, 2025, the Department of Building and Safety, the Department of City Planning, and other applicable departments must issue guidelines that include objective criteria and operating standards to implement the Executive Order.
Short-Term Temporary School and Child Care Facilities
The Executive Order alleviates permitting burdens for schools and child care facilities affected by the fires. The Department of Building and Safety is authorized to issue “a temporary 180-day permit on any lot, regardless of zone, for any temporary school or child care facility use that will aid in the immediate restoration of operations for schools and child care facilities that were damaged, destroyed, or otherwise adversely impacted” by the fires.
Long-Term Temporary School and Child Care Facilities
Similarly, the Executive Order alleviates permitting burdens for long-term temporary school and child care facilities, including:
- Empowering the Department of City Planning to create an “expedited ministerial review process, without a hearing or an appeal, to issue long-term temporary school and child care facility use authorizations.”
- Providing that these authorizations will be valid for three years and eligible for up to two additional yearly extensions; and, if necessary, one partial extension to align with the academic calendar. Following this period, the temporary school will be terminated and removed, and the site shall be restored to its previous permitted use.
- Authorizing the Zoning Administrator to “approve a long-term school/child care facility use on a lot in any zone that will aid in the immediate restoration of operations for schools and child care facilities that were damaged, destroyed, or otherwise adversely impacted” by the fires.
- Clarifying that a long-term school or child care facility is still required to obtain “any necessary building permits from the Department of Building and Safety if additional construction is planned, including approval for temporary physical improvements.”
Implications and Takeaways
Schools and child care facilities affected by the fires should promptly evaluate whether short-term or long-term relocation is necessary and gather information and documentation about both the damaged site and any potential temporary location. Early collection of these materials will help ensure quicker permit submissions, while prompt coordination with the Department of Building and Safety and the Department of City Planning can address site-specific issues and expedite approvals.
Snell & Wilmer will continue to monitor the implementation of Executive Order No. 4, including the guidelines expected to be issued on February 18, 2025. We will provide updates as new information becomes available.
About Snell & Wilmer
Founded in 1938, Snell & Wilmer is a full-service business law firm with more than 500 attorneys practicing in 16 locations throughout the United States and in Mexico, including Los Angeles, Orange County and San Diego, California; Phoenix and Tucson, Arizona; Denver, Colorado; Washington, D.C.; Boise, Idaho; Las Vegas and Reno, Nevada; Albuquerque, New Mexico; Portland, Oregon; Dallas, Texas; Salt Lake City, Utah; Seattle, Washington; and Los Cabos, Mexico. The firm represents clients ranging from large, publicly traded corporations to small businesses, individuals and entrepreneurs. For more information, visit swlaw.com.
