Employee raises and other expenses are expanding the Los Angeles Fire Department's budget. At the same time, the agency has had to scale back operations in recent months.

Since Mayor Bass returned to LA, she has thanked the LAFD for their service and announced that the fires have been "fully contained."

Nearly 153,000 people have signed a petition demanding Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass resign, citing mismanagement of the city's wildfire crisis.

The budget, approved last year by Bass, cut mainly administrative jobs but also axed about $7 million from its overtime budget.

Bass is not the only person to be widely criticized for their response to the California wildfires, with Governor Gavin Newsom also in the spotlight.

The demonstration came amid a torrent of controversy surrounding the embattled mayor, with protestors who gathered near her Windsor Square residence demanding she step aside citing her lack of

Bass stayed mum while a reporter grilled her, asking, "Do you owe citizens an apology for being absent while their homes were burning?"

Less than two weeks after the start of what has become one of the state’s most destructive natural disasters, Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass continues to face backlash for her response to the Southern California wildfires, with critics demanding her resignation and some even floating a recall effort.

Rick Caruso, the billionaire real-estate developer who lost the mayoral race to Bass, now leads the charge against her.

Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass (D) is facing mounting backlash over her response to the wildfires that have torn through her city, raising questions about her own political future as the region continues to struggle to contain the fires.

causing the city to move funds intended for fire department pay into the general fund. Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass poses for a photo during an interview at Los Angeles City Hall on Oct. 17 ...

Over 125,000 sign a petition demanding Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass resign, citing mismanagement of the city's wildfire crisis.