"People are hurting," said reality star Spencer Pratt. He was one of several neighbors who met with President Donald Trump's small business administrator on Monday.
He and others said it feels like red tape is still hampering their recovery from January's Palisades Fire.
"What we've heard are a lot of empty promises -- that permitting fees would be waived, that permitting would be waived. None of that's happened," Loeffler said.
Local officials have disputed Loeffler's claim, but many Palisades neighbors say it's true, including Pratt.
While wearing a "Newsom will never be president" hat, he continued his criticism of the governor's and mayor's response to the fire.
Pratt recently met in L.A. with Florida Senator Rick Scott, who, along with Wisconsin Senator Ron Johnson, announced a congressional investigation into the fire.
"People think this is political," Pratt said. "No Democratic senators asked me to tour my parents' burned-out lot, all my friends' and my neighborhood's burned-out lots. So if they had, I would've gone to Washington with them. But no, it was a senator from Florida who had to come over here... so already, this Republican senator cares more about us than our elected Democrat senators."
Pratt wasn't the only resident looking for more from their democratic leadership.
"I wish Karen Bass would come here more," resident Diane Bleak said. "If she could just come here like once a month or once a week and just show, just talk to us, just say, 'Hey, how are you? How's your day going?' It would really go far."
In the meantime, a local contractor says the residents' frustration is getting so high that it may soon turn to defiance.
"I think people are ready to just defy the government here, start building without permits, and really challenge the city. 'Come demolish my lot. See what happens.' There will be such a backlash," said Luke Melchior, the CEO of Melchior Construction.
Eyewitness News reached out to the governor's office, mentioning Loeffler's appearance and asking for an update on FEMA funding. What we got in response was a statement from a spokesperson that had the same kind of sarcasm seen in the governor's recent social media posts.
"Oh, Kelly Loeffler is gracing Los Angeles with her presence this week -- because nothing says 'disaster recovery' like a photo op and a whirlwind tour between TV interviews.
If she wants to actually help, she could start by speeding up loan approvals, fighting for real congressional dollars, and explaining why the economic injury disaster loans feel less 'express' and more like waiting for the next ice age.
Until then, Angelenos will just have to make do with lots of reassurances, photo ops, and maybe, just maybe, some thoughts and prayers."
There was no mention in the statement about FEMA funding.