L.A. County Clarifies the Right of Entry Process

The Army Corp of Engineers has begun Phase 2 of the Debris Removal Process. They have also put up a website, click here, where a resident can feed in their address and see if the property is on the ACE list.

As of today, at 3 p.m., there are about 13,579 parcels that need to be cleared.

Residents fill out Right of Entry Forms and submit it to L.A. County. The County has to review the form and validate it and then it goes to the Corps.

The Corps has received 458 ROE (with 416 assigned to contractors) from  the County. The trucks are staged on Temescal, waiting to go to work. Colonel Eric Swenson, who is overseeing Altadena and Pacific Palisades, spoke during Mayor Karen Bass’ biweekly town hall on February 18.

“It is 41 days since the fire started. We’ve had seven crews doing removal,” he said, and noted that he had more waiting to go to work. “We have 40 crews doing hazard assessment, which preps with debris removal.”

The ACE is waiting to work, and especially with sunny skies, removal of the debris before it runs into the ocean, would seem to be of prime importance.

Swenson was asked “Is there something that could be done to speed-up the process?”

“There is a challenge for the county to verify the owner,” he said.

The editor, whose home had burned on Radcliffe had filled out the form and taken it to the Disaster Recovery Center on Pico, handed it on person and received a receipt that it was complete.

On Monday, a resident spoke on 1Pali, a local organization that is trying to unite the Palisades during the rebuild. He thought he had done all the steps and then called the County and found out that there were issues. No one had contacted him. As a precaution, this editor called the County the next day.

My application was incomplete, according to someone on the phone, despite what I had been told at the center. We had not been notified. We once again submitted picture identification, yesterday, and now hope the application is complete.

For the past two weeks, the County now has a team of 160 people working on ROE applications. A website now been added (for the Palisades and Altadena) so that residents can follow their application process.

Kerjon Lee, L.A. County Public Works, Chief of Strategic Communications told CTN that they had received more than 8,829 submissions.

“Each ROE is reviewed to verify property ownership through assessor records and checked to ensure all required documentation and signatures are complete,” Lee said. “This careful process is essential to protecting property owner rights and prevent fraud. Our dedicated team is actively reaching out to property owners to follow up on any applications needing additional documentation.

“If any documentation is missing or there’s an issue with a submission, the applicant will receive a follow-up email from ROE@dpw.lacounty.gov—appearing as ‘LA County Public Works’—with the subject line ‘Right of Entry Request For Information.’ A prompt response helps us finalize these submissions faster:

ROE by the numbers: A step-by-step guide to the Debris Removal Process

 LA County Public Works Clarifies Right of Entry Process for Debris Removal

Step 1: Obtain the Right of Entry (ROE) Form

Download the ROE form from the LA County Recovers website.

The form is available in eight languages (English, Spanish, Farsi, Korean, and Chinese (Mandarin), Russian and Armenian

Visit a Disaster Recovery Center for assistance or call the ROE support hotline at (844) FIRE-DEBRIS.

Step 2: Complete the ROE Form Accurately

Fill out all required fields, including:

o   Property owner information

o   Property address

o   Contact details

Carefully review the terms and conditions of granting government access for debris removal.

Step 3: Gather Required Documentation

Attach necessary supporting documents, such as:

o   Proof of property ownership (e.g., property tax bill, deed)

o   Government-issued identification

o   Any additional documentation requested on the form

Step 4: Submit Your ROE Form

Submit your completed form and supporting documents online through the LA County Public Works portal or in person at designated locations.

Upon submission, you will receive an immediate confirmation email.

Step 5: ROE Review & Verification

LA County Public Works will review your submission to verify:

o   Property ownership through assessor records

o   Completeness of documentation and signatures

If no issues are found, your ROE will be processed and sent to the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers for scheduling debris removal.

Step 6: Respond to Any Follow-Up Requests

• If documentation is missing or further information is needed, you will receive an email from ROE@dpw.lacounty.gov—appearing as “LA County Public Works”—with the subject line “Right of Entry Request For Information.”
• Promptly submit any requested documents to avoid delays in processing.

Step 7: Check Your ROE Status

• Monitor real-time updates on your ROE submission through the LA County ROE Status Dashboard. LA County ROE Status Dashboard.

Step 8: Debris Removal Scheduling & Completion

• Once your ROE is approved, it will be assigned to a debris removal team.
• You will be notified about the scheduled cleanup date for your property.

For additional support, contact the ROE Support Hotline at (844) FIRE-DEBRIS.