City Council Agenda Report
Meeting Date: August 19, 2025
From: Brian Saeki, City Administrator
Department: City Administration
Submitted by: Diana Figueroa, Senior Management Analyst Subject
Sports Access Community Alliance Program
Recommendation
A. Receive and file the Sports Access Community Alliance (SACA) Program Summary Report; and
B. Provide direction to staff on whether to continue the SACA Program for Fiscal Year 2025-26.
Background
On October 15, 2024, the City Council established the Sports Access Community Alliance (SACA) Program to facilitate sports participation for families in the Southeast Los Angeles area (SELA). This “Pilot” SACA Program was designed to enable fair and equitable access to a wide variety of athletic activities for youth in SELA to help establish healthy habits and create unique opportunities for personal growth and development. SACA Program guidelines and a template letter agreement for SACA partner organizations were approved by Council.
With Council’s authorized allocation of $100,000 for FY 2024-25 and approval of program documents, staff coordinated partnerships with local nonprofit organizations offering sports and recreation services to children and adolescents, and offered sponsorships that channeled funding directly to participating families to ensure that expenses were not a barrier impeding involvement in sports.
A total of 11 organizations initially agreed to participate in Vernon’s SACA Program and letter agreements were presented to these organizations: 1) Boyle Heights Football and Cheer; 2) Boys and Girls Club of Metro Los Angeles; 3) CA Derby Dolls; 4) East LA Rising; 5) Girls on the Run of Los Angeles County; 6) Hollenbeck Youth Center; 7) Huntington Park Youth Football and Cheer Association; 8) Southern California Golf Association, Junior; 9) Variety Boys and Girls Club; 10) West San Gabriel Valley Boys and Girls Club; and 11) YMCA Metropolitan Los Angeles. Agreements offered $9,000 for each of the participating organizations, an equal distribution of available SACA funds.
As of June 30, 2025, nine nonprofits had submitted invoices for reimbursements eligible under the SACA Program guidelines. Two of the 11 partner organizations did not participate due to unforeseen circumstances that diverted their attention toward other priority community services such as wildfire relief and immigrant support. Overall, 82% of the identified organizations participated in the SACA Program and 78% of the total fund allocation for SACA was expended.
Invoices in the amount of $77,645.15 were submitted by SACA partner organizations and were reimbursed accordingly.
Financing youth sports activities can be challenging for families and communities who lack sufficient resources to bear such costs. It is estimated that approximately 1,500 youth participants benefitted from the SACA Program, with sports program costs (i.e. registration, uniforms, equipment) either fully covered or reduced. The SACA Program reimbursed organizations’ expenses for equipment, referee and field fees, uniforms, for a variety of sports including karate, baseball, basketball, volleyball, roller derby, football, golf, and special programming (like Hollenbeck Youth Center’s stadium outing and lunch with the Dodgers). These SACA reimbursable organizational expenses were passed through as savings for families, enabling more affordable and accessible participation in sports programming, covering an average of $52 per participant.
For FY 2025-26, $100,000 in funding for the City’s SACA Program remains in the City Administration Community Development Account budget. Staff is seeking direction from the Council on whether the SACA Program should continue through FY 2025-26, or if funds should be reallocated based on current Council priorities.
Fiscal Impact
The Fiscal impact for FY 2024-25 was $77,645.15. The fiscal impact for FY 2025-26 will depend on Council direction regarding the SACA Program. The FY 2024-25 and FY 2025-26 budgets each allocated $100,000 in funding for the SACA Program in the General Fund, City Administration - Community Development Account No. 011-010-160-529715.
Attachments
None.