Monday, February 16, 2026

LA County Report Finds $3.7 Million in Business Losses Tied to Immigration Enforcement

[Courtesy of Los Angeles County Department of Economic Opportunity]

Small businesses across Los Angeles County reported $3.7 million in losses over three months last summer, with owners saying federal immigration enforcement reduced customer traffic and created staffing shortages, according to a County report released February 9.

The report, produced by the Los Angeles County Department of Economic Opportunity and the Los Angeles County Economic Development Corporation, surveyed 311 businesses and found that 82% reported negative effects from enforcement between July and September, with 44% saying they lost more than half their revenue. The Republican Party of Los Angeles County called the report politically motivated, saying the County’s Democratic supervisors commissioned it to justify tax increases.

Of the businesses surveyed, 70% reported staffing shortages following enforcement actions, and 33% of employers said workers were afraid to report to their jobs, according to the report. County Supervisors Hilda L. Solis and Janice Hahn commissioned the study through a motion adopted by the Board of Supervisors on June 17, according to the County’s press release.

“Small businesses and workers across Los Angeles County have felt the real consequences of the Trump administration’s cruel and inhumane federal immigration enforcement,” said Solis, the County Board chair, in the press release. Hahn, the County’s Fourth District supervisor, said in the same release that “our businesses recorded millions of dollars in losses in a matter of months.”

Trump administration officials have defended the enforcement, saying it was needed after what they described as lax border security under former President Joe Biden that allowed tens of thousands of people to enter the country without screening, according to NBC Los Angeles. The Department of Homeland Security said in December that 70% of those arrested by ICE had been charged with or convicted of a crime, according to DHS.

The Republican Party of Los Angeles County issued a statement saying the Board of Supervisors “wants to justify further tax increases on the law-abiding citizens of Los Angeles.” The party’s statement added: “LA’s elected Democrats are doing everything they can to blur the lines between legal and illegal immigrants in order to squeeze hard-working people, and it’s shameful,” according to NBC Los Angeles.

Pasadena has been directly affected. On June 18, ICE agents detained several people near Orange Grove Boulevard and Los Robles Avenue, according to the San Gabriel Valley Tribune. The Pasadena City Council unanimously approved $100,000 on July 21 for an immigrant assistance fund, administered in partnership with the Pasadena Community Foundation, the Tribune reported.

The County launched the LA Region Small Business Resiliency Fund in September and awarded $1.53 million in grants to 367 businesses in December, according to the Department of Economic Opportunity. The County has approved an additional $3.33 million to expand the program.

The full report is available at opportunity.lacounty.gov/immigration. Pasadena residents can contact the Immigration Resource Center of San Gabriel Valley at ircsgv.org.

The fund is expected to distribute grants to more than 650 additional businesses in upcoming rounds, the department said. Federal immigration enforcement in the region remains ongoing.