Local officials are making their way up to Sacramento for the final sprint of the two-year legislative session, and there's one person they're all meeting with who has become the go-to for everything megaevent-related in the state legislature. As the chief budget advisor to California State Assembly Speaker Robert Rivas with a focus on LA28, Jason Sisney has been in charge of wrangling funding requests, policy tweaks, and legislative proposals for the 2028 Olympic and Paralympic Games ever since Los Angeles won the bid nearly a decade ago.
A longtime Olympic and Paralympic super fan — his favorite events are diving, climbing and para climbing, curling and wheelchair curling, and speed skating — Jason worked on projects related to both the 1996 Atlanta and 2002 Salt Lake City games and is the author of "California's Olympic Financial Failure: The 1960 Winter Games," published in the Journal of Olympic History in 2025. Jason has his own must-read blog where he recently covered the history of using dedicated lanes during megaevents and SB 169, the transportation trailer bill which will authorize automated enforcement of the forthcoming Olympic lanes. Jason will also explain what exactly is happening with the state legislation — still not signed! — that would provide a backstop for LA28 financial liabilities, and the ongoing effort to exempt temporary venue construction from California's environmental review laws. LA's own ordinance was approved by council this week.
If you're looking for a thoughtful overview of how our public money is funding major events, trust me, you won't want to miss this one!
Torched Talks with state budget advisor Jason Sisney Tuesday, September 1 12 to 1 p.m. PT
🎤 Torched Talks is an ongoing series of conversations with experts on topics facing LA in its megaevent era. It's free and open to all — simply join the Zoom to participate. If you can't make it, I'll post the recording here when it's over. Be sure to watch the previous Torched Talks with anti-trafficking advocates Stephanie Richard and Paloma Bustos
🎉 It's time to party with Torched! The annual subscriber party is coming up next month. Become a paid subscriber by upgrading to 🔥 (or higher) and be sure to RSVP today
