Data conducted by a USC-based nonprofit showed the city of L.A. has spent millions more on parking enforcement costs than the revenue it generates from tickets.

The data compiled by Crosstown L.A. shows that over the past five years, the city has spent $192 million more on parking and traffic enforcement than the fines it collects.

Over the five year period, parking tickets have generated $617 million for Los Angeles, but the overall cost to maintain the enforcement was $809 million.

That gap was larger in 2020, with the pandemic causing a freeze in parking tickets that didn’t end until April of 2021. The cost of parking enforcement was more than $179 million while the city only collected $114.8 million in ticket fines.

A similar trend has been shown in 2021, as the city has spent more than $148 million in parking enforcement costs while only generating $93 million.

Even with tickets being handed out again, the city has seen a 35% drop in tickets, compared to pre-pandemic numbers, according to Crosstown.

One reason for the drop in citations was attributed to a decrease in parking enforcement officials, with about 76 positions left open.

The L.A. Department of Transportation said confirmed that the Crosstown numbers were correct, and said the city has authorized the hiring of 82 additional parking enforcement officers.

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