Good morning! Here's what you need to know today.
Your Weather Planner
Spring officially arrived at 2:01 a.m. Thursday.
While temperatures will dip a few degrees, expect sunshine throughout the day.
The weekend will be dry and quiet. Unseasonably warm temperatures are heading our way next week.
Watch the latest news from across the country.
Around SoCal
1. LA anticipates layoffs, service cuts to address $1B gap in FY25-26
A top financial adviser to the city of Los Angeles shared a grim outlook for fiscal year 2025-26, saying elected officials need to address a projected $1 billion gap that will require tough financial decisions and could lead to thousands of layoffs.
City Administrative Officer Matt Szabo said Mayor Karen Bass' proposed budget, which will be released April 21, will close that gap, but it will require difficult "cost-cutting decisions." He warned that the severity of revenue declines and rising costs has created a budget gap that makes layoffs "nearly inevitable."
"We are not looking at dozens or even hundreds of layoffs, but thousands," Szabo said. "While layoffs may be necessary, it cannot and will not be the only solution."
2. LA Olympics head says 2028 Games will be a catalyst for rebuild. Count on Kendrick Lamar, too
After deadly fires devastated much of Los Angeles, organizers of the 2028 Olympics told the IOC on Thursday how the city will rebuild with help from the Games.
Count on Kendrick Lamar, too, to be part of "the greatest show on earth" in three years. Lamar would be a globally popular part of the opening ceremony on July 14, 2028, after his stunning halftime show at the Super Bowl last month.
The wildfires in January have reset the daily life and global perception of the city. Olympic venues and operational plans escaped serious damage.
Another expected challenge for LA organizers is ensuring athletes, officials and fans from every Olympic team feel welcome and safe going to the United States in what shapes to be a turbulent future for the world. Updating IOC and sports leaders on Thursday, organizing committee chairman Casey Wasserman said his team made "significant strides" with President Donald Trump's administration, which has security obligations for the Olympics and subsequent Paralympics.
3. Disney in search of perhaps its greatest sequel, a successor to Bob Iger
Behind the red carpet movie premieres and new thrill-inducing rides for fans of its amusement parks, there is a quiet search underway to find the successor to Bob Iger, the face of Disney for most of the past two decades.
Disney went through the CEO search recently, and it was nearly a disaster. But how do you replace a chief executive who is considered by many to be the gold standard?
The question of who can follow Iger will clearly be on the minds of investors as Disney kicks off its annual shareholders meeting on Thursday.
Disney does has the benefit of time. After signing a two-year contract mostly to right Disney’s trajectory after a rocky two years under his hand-picked successor, Iger agreed to a contract extension that keeps him at Disney through the end of 2026.
Around the Nation
1. Trump to order plan to shut down Education Department
2. Pentagon reviews plans to cut troops handling migrants at Guantánamo by as much as half
3. White House, French politician trade jabs after he asks for Statue of Liberty back
Don't Miss This
Only on Spectrum News 1
Divers preserve history in America's lakes in new docuseries
All kinds of mysteries lay beneath the surface of lakes across California and the U.S. divers with Clean Up the Lake have made it their mission to remove the junk and litter and debris in our lakes and preserve them for future generations. Their work is now captured in a new docuseries, "What Lies Unseen."
Clean Up the Lake founder Colin West joined host Lisa McRee on "LA Times Today" to talk about the series and their continued work.
Click the link above to watch the full segment.
SoCal Snapshot
Uzo Aduba, second from left, a cast member in "The Residence," poses with, from left, executive producer Betsy Beers, creator/showrunner Paul William Davies and executive producer Shonda Rhimes at the premiere of the Netflix series at the Egyptian Theatre on Wednesday in Los Angeles. (AP Photo/Chris Pizzello)
