THE BUZZ: IS THIS SOME KIND OF RECORD? Los Angeles City Councilmember Curren Price was charged with 10 counts of embezzlement, perjury and conflict of interest on Tuesday, making him the fourth member in four years to face corruption charges. The news marks another chapter in the ongoing controversies that have plagued the council that oversees the nation’s second-largest city. Public trust has yet to recover from the events of last fall when three city council members were caught on tape making racist remarks in a conversation with a powerful labor leader. Two of them no longer sit on the council, with President Nury Martinez having resigned and Gil Cedillo leaving office. Kevin de León remains the sole survivor — an ongoing point of tension in and of itself. Price was among the members who looked to align with furious activists following the tapes scandal, telling POLITICO last fall that the entire thing had “disillusioned a lot of folks.” Unlike the fallen members before him, who faced federal charges, the indictment for Price comes from the Los Angeles County District Attorney’s office. In a 10-count complaint, the office alleges that Price cast favorable votes for corporations that had paid tens of thousands of dollars to a company owned by his wife, Del Richardson, while also failing to disclose those funds in his political financial disclosure forms, as is required by state law. Those two actions constitute conflict of interest and perjury, the DA’s office says. Price also embezzled from the city government funds when he received medical premiums for Richardson at a time when she was not legally his wife, the complaint alleges. Price’s communications director, Angelina Valencia-Dumarot, complained in a statement Tuesday about not having a chance to see the charges in advance. “It’s highly unusual for charges like this to be brought up against a sitting city councilmember without any prior notice or discussion,” she said. “Curren Price is a longstanding public servant who has given his life to the City of Los Angeles. He looks forward to defending himself once he’s had an opportunity to address these charges.” Shortly after, Price announced he was stepping down from his leadership and committee positions, saying he doesn’t want to be a distraction while fighting “unwarranted” charges. Angelenos have gotten used to seeing city council members in trouble. Since 2021, Mitch Englander has pleaded guilty to seeking to obstruct a probe into his accepting gifts from a businessman (He got 14 months.); Jose Huizar pleaded guilty to tax evasion and RICO conspiracy charges stemming from a sprawling pay-to-play investigation; and Mark Ridley-Thomas was convicted of extracting favors from USC for his son — a familial bribery plot that was echoed by the allegations against Price (Huizar and Ridley-Thomas haven’t been sentenced but face years in prison.). Mayor Karen Bass on Tuesday said she hadn’t reviewed the charges on Price yet but was “saddened by the news.” District Attorney George Gascón took a more forceful tone. "(Price's) alleged conduct undermines the integrity of our government and erodes the public's trust in our elected officials,” he said in a statement. “We will continue to work tirelessly to root out corruption at all levels and hold accountable those who betray the public's trust." BUENOS DÍAS, good Wednesday morning. Now, back to our regularly scheduled Sacramento programming: Both budget committees will hear the primary budget bill this morning, giving us the first discussions on the legislative deal. Lawmakers are expected to cast floor votes Thursday morning. Got a tip or story idea for California Playbook? Hit us up at jwhite@politico.com and lkorte@politico.com or follow us on Twitter @JeremyBWhite and @Lara_Korte.
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