Cameron Watkins

Cameron Watkins
Cameron Watkins

Cameron Watkins

Public Affairs Associate

Cameron Watkins supports EKA’s public affairs and government relations work across the City and County of Los Angeles. He monitors legislative, regulatory, and procurement activity on behalf of the firm’s technology sector clients, tracking council and committee agendas, departmental budgets, and agency developments.  He translates complex government activity into clear, actionable intelligence that keeps clients ahead of the issues that matter most to them. Cameron also supports issue campaigns, issues management, and day-to-day service across multiple accounts.

Cameron brings a distinctive technical edge to the firm’s work. He designed and built EKA’s internal legislative tracking system, a tool that monitors board meetings, agendas, and correspondence across Los Angeles City and County governments in real time. He also contributes to EKA’s creative and digital presence, including graphic design, website management, social media, and the EKA Newsletter, while assisting the Partners with research, legislative updates, and business development.

Before joining EKA, Cameron worked in government relations at The Madison Group in Washington, D.C., where he tracked legislative developments across Congress and federal agencies and produced policy memos for clients including Google, Coinbase, and the County of Los Angeles. He previously served as Product & Sales Lead at Lux AI (now Obia), a Y Combinator startup, and founded Voter Social, a digital strategy firm serving political campaigns and advocacy organizations.

Cameron holds a bachelor’s degree in Political Science with a minor in Criminology from the University of California, Irvine, where he was a member of the UCI basketball team. He also studied U.S. government and policymaking at the University of California’s Washington Center in Washington, D.C. A New Jersey native, Cameron now calls Los Angeles home.

Los Angeles News & Updates from EKA – August 14, 2026

EKA News

Los Angeles News & Updates from EKA – August 14, 2026

EKA Spotlight

Kathryn Randazzo

Katie Randazzo specializes in both land use and special event permitting, with a focus on navigating the approvals, entitlements, and agency processes that bring complex projects to life.

On the land use side, Katie works on innovative mixed-use developments, retail projects, restaurants, and entertainment venues, securing discretionary entitlements through City Planning Hearings,  a process that involves close coordination with neighborhood groups, Council offices, and Commission hearings. She also guides numerous tenant improvement projects through the often challenging permit compliance process, helping bring construction and architectural plans to fruition.

On the special events side, Katie manages permitting and agency coordination for a diverse range of activations, from beachside gatherings to full-scale concerts on Hollywood Blvd. She has a gift for turning unconventional spaces into legendary, safely executed events.

Katie’s ability to navigate complex regulatory requirements and coordinate with City entities, neighborhood organizations, and County agencies allows clients to move their projects and events from concept to execution efficiently and successfully.

Key Updates

Raman will lose homelessness committee chair as mayoral race heats up, sources say

Council President Marqueece Harris-Dawson, a Bass ally, plans to split the Housing and Homelessness Committee in two, stripping mayoral challenger Nithya Raman of the leadership role she’s held since 2023. Raman called it political punishment for her campaign against Bass, while a Bass spokesperson defended the move by criticizing Raman’s committee performance and her time-limited subsidy program’s slow rollout. The shakeup comes as citywide unsheltered homelessness rose this year after two years of declines, even as it dropped 49% in Raman’s own district.

Port of Los Angeles to Increase Clean Ship, Truck Incentives; Invest $20 Million in Charging Infrastructure

The Harbor Commission approved an addendum to the Port’s 2025 clean air Cooperative Agreement with South Coast AQMD and the Port of Long Beach, adding stronger incentives for the cleanest ocean-going vessels and zero-emission trucks plus $20 million for regional zero-emission truck charging and fueling infrastructure. Officials tied the move to the ports’ Clean Air Action Plan, which has cut diesel particulate matter 90%, sulfur oxides 98%, and nitrogen oxides 73% since 2006. The addendum, already approved by South Coast AQMD and Long Beach’s Harbor Commission, took effect with L.A.’s sign-off.

What's Happening in LA

Spotlight Item

Proposed Long Beach Budget Would Eliminate 413 City Positions to Close $58.2 Million Deficit

Long Beach Mayor Rex Richardson and City Manager Tom Modica unveiled a proposed fiscal year 2027 budget that would eliminate a net 413 city positions, with city officials estimating about 180 occupied positions could ultimately result in employees losing their jobs if the spending plan is approved. The proposal is designed to close a projected $58.2 million structural deficit in the city’s General Fund through workforce reductions, service cuts and other ongoing savings. Although Richardson restored 70 positions that had been slated for elimination in Modica’s original proposal, hundreds of positions would still disappear across nearly every city department; the 413 figure includes both filled and vacant jobs. “This is the first step. We’re going to be doing that over the next several years to build up our emergency reserve and then also rebuild our operating reserve,” Modica said, urging the council to continue prioritizing reserve funding even as departments seek additional spending in future years. The proposed budget moved to the City Council for a series of public hearings beginning August 4, with community meetings held across the city August 5-11 and a digital comment card open through August 14. Council members may approve, reject or amend the proposal before adopting a final spending plan for the fiscal year beginning October 1. Richardson reaffirmed that homelessness would remain a city priority despite the reductions.

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