Mayor Bass solicited millions through a gap in her own lobbying restrictions

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(The Center Square) – Three years ago, Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass promised to stop lobbyists from donating to two nonprofits closely associated with her office, but an investigation by The Center Square found the corporations and organizations paying those lobbyists have still given millions of dollars at her request.

The "common-sense donation reforms" came after years of criticism during former Mayor Eric Garcetti’s administration. 

“We must move to restore trust and faith in City Hall,” Bass said in 2023, touting herself as a champion for transparency and accountability with a new Mayor’s Office Ethics Pledge. “I thank the leadership of the Mayor’s Fund Los Angeles and Getty House Foundation for taking this important action… That’s what the people of Los Angeles deserve.”

The Getty House Foundation and Mayor's Fund have received more than 300 payments totaling at least $22 million from donors at Bass’ behest since December 2022.  Some of the corporate donors were familiar faces who shared executives with each nonprofit.

The Mayor’s Fund is a nonprofit in which Bass serves as an “advisor” to the board. Bass can help determine what money is solicited for and can advocate for how it is used, but the nonprofit's board retains legal authority over the money.

The Getty House Foundation is a nonprofit associated with the city-owned mansion where Bass lives. It advertises working on a series of programs that “reflect the goals of the Bass administration.” She began raising money for the foundation almost immediately after taking office, but she does not sit on the board.

Bass described the 2023 lobbying safeguards for the Mayor’s Fund and Getty House Foundation as “the most strict ethics reforms ever implemented by either organization.” Apparently, the reforms were not strict enough to prevent dozens of companies like AltaMed, Amazon, HDR, and McDonalds from making donations at her behest even while they pay city lobbyists. Bass did not respond to multiple requests for comment.

“How is that less bad?" asked Sean McMorris with California Common Cause, a nonpartisan organization that seeks transparency reforms, after The Center Square informed him of its findings. "The public has a right to be cynical and call them out on that."

Bob Stern, a principal co-author of California's Political Reform Act, saw it coming in 2023. In an interview with the Los Angeles Times, he referred to Bass’ changes as “good steps, but not enough,” indicating donors that want something on the back end from City Hall should be prohibited from making behested payments.

“When people or groups give and they have business pending before the city? Well, that’s why they give,” Stern said at the time.

In a phone call with The Center Square, Stern said he could not comment on current matters because he is now a member of Los Angeles City Ethics Commission.

Tax filings reviewed by The Center Square do not show Bass has received a salary from the Mayor’s Fund or Getty House Foundation. Unlike the city's expenditures, spending records for private nonprofits are not obtainable through the California Public Records Act. 

"Nonprofits are exempt from having to reveal who their donors are," McMorris said. “It’s very telling about the way this whole system works.”

State law only requires the mayor to report payments made at her behest above $5,000, although the Mayor's Fund has chosen to disclose some smaller donations. 

The Mayor’s Fund has not answered what powers come with Bass’ title of “advisor.” Regulations outlined by the California Fair Political Practices Commission state an elected official is required to disclose “a position on an honorary or advisory (nonprofit) board” when reporting behested payments. Records show Bass has not input her advisor title on FPPC paperwork. The FPPC has not responded to a request for comment. 

Melanie Mendoza, a spokeswoman for the Mayor’s Fund, spoke briefly with The Center Square by telephone but stopped responding to inquiries after asking about the findings of The Center Square's investigation. Getty House Foundation has not responded to a request for comment. 

Charter earned a $2.75 million contract extension

Charter Communications has made four payments totaling $35,000 to Getty House Foundation at Bass' behest.

On October 28, 2025, the Los Angeles’ Information Technology Agency sent Bass a proposed Charter contract “for your review and approval” which would extend the company’s citywide cable and internet contract by three years and raise its spending limit by $2.75 million.

Ten days later, Charter made a $10,000 payment to Getty House Foundation at the mayor’s behest. Bass failed to disclose any city business with Charter at the time of the payment.

Charter has spent $318,750 on its city lobbying efforts since Q4 2022. Those lobbying efforts did not prevent Getty House Foundation from processing the behested payments.

The City Council ultimately approved Charter’s three-year contract extension in February 2026. Bass later disclosed Charter’s contracts with the city for the first time after the company's next behested payment to Getty House Foundation in August 2026.

“I would recommend they consider changing their policy," McMorris said. "It doesn't look good. It is perceived to many of us as pay to play."

Charter Communications has not responded to a request for comment.

Familiar faces

Sometimes when Bass asks for money, the donor is directly connected to the recipient.

PepsiCo gave a combined $140,000 to Getty House Foundation at Bass’ behest from 2023 to 2026 while its vice president of government affairs Lupe De La Cruz also sat on the Getty House Foundation board. 

According to the Getty House Foundation website, De La Cruz’s job includes representing PepsiCo's food and beverage businesses with policymakers and community leaders across 23 states and territories.

Approximately ten days before one of its behested payments, the city received a proposal offering exclusive Pepsi pouring rights at the Los Angeles Equestrian Center. Bass did not disclose it.

PepsiCo has not responded to a request for comment. The company has spent $15,000 lobbying the Mayor's Office on "general business issues" since Bass took office.

AT&T also made multiple payments to Getty House Foundation at Bass’ behest while Lupita Sanchez-Cornejo served as president of the Getty House Foundation Board. Sanchez-Cornejo also served as the regional vice president of external and legislative affairs for AT&T California. She did not respond to a request for comment.

The telecommunications company has spent approximately $175,000 lobbying the city since Q4 2022 when Bass took office.

AT&T also had multiple contracts with the city around the time of its behested payments. Its largest known contract with Los Angeles has a maximum draw of $60 million; it was approved 22 days after AT&T made a July 2024 payment to Getty House Foundation at Bass' behest. 

The Los Angeles Dodgers made payments to the Getty House Foundation while Kristin McCown served as the Dodgers’ vice president of government and community affairs. She also serves on the Getty House Foundation board “on behalf of the Dodgers,” according to her bio. The Dodgers have contracted with the city, which Bass disclosed after behested payments in 2023 and 2026 but not 2024 or 2025.

The team has spent $226,010 lobbying Los Angeles since Q4 2022 when Bass took office, including for the development of a gondola at Dodger Stadium.

The Dodgers have declined to comment. 

Other recipients

The Mayor’s Fund and Getty House Foundation are not the only nonprofits close to Bass or City Hall that received money at the mayor’s behest.

Some organizations were founded by Bass or still list her in a formal position. Some recipients are independent nonprofits that explicitly partner with her administration. Some recipients act as fiscal sponsors to help carry out City Hall initiatives.

The California Community Foundation (CCF) has received more than $4.2 million from donors at the mayor’s behest while also donating nearly $1.5 million. Bass does not serve on the CCF board, but the organization has become an important partner “working alongside Mayor Karen Bass” on initiatives such as LA4LA, an affordable-housing partnership.

Community Partners, another independent nonprofit, has received more than $2.8 million from donors at the mayor’s behest. Many of the donations were sent to support the government directly by establishing an Office of Strategic Partnerships as a division of the Mayor’s Office.

The nonprofit National Foster Youth Institute (NFYI) currently identifies Bass as its founder and as a member of its board. NFYI has received three donations totaling $200,000 at the mayor’s behest. Records show Bass disclosed her status as founder for each payment.

Community Coalition has received $14,243 from two donors at the mayor’s behest. Bass created the nonprofit in 1990. She received $70,500 in compensation for consulting work connected to the organization in 2010. Records show her status as founder was disclosed for both payments.

Senior members of Bass’ staff held positions with Coro Southern California, a nonprofit that has received $68,300 at the mayor’s behest. Deputy Chief of Staff Jenny Delwood has served on Coro's board since 2017. Nicolas Zevallos served on Coro’s board from July 2023 through June 2024, according to his professional biography. He was also a Coro fellow and served in Bass' administration as an intergovernmental affairs deputy. Records show Bass disclosed their positions for all payments to Coro Southern California.

The Center Square reached out to Delwood and Zevallos for more context and information, but they did not respond.