Let's compare how the City and County of Los Angeles have handled government reform recently.
In less than a week, County Supervisors Lindsey Horvath and Janice Hahn unveiled a sweeping plan to expand their five-member board to nine, add an independently elected county executive and create a new ethics commission to investigate government misconduct, and the Board of Supervisors agreed to move forward with putting the changes on the November ballot.
In just a few months, voters could reform Los Angeles County's notoriously bureaucratic and dysfunctional government and make it more responsive to residents.
At Los Angeles City Hall, it’s been more than a year and a half since City Council members promised sweeping changes to governance after the latest scandal. But they’ve only put a pair of reforms on the November ballot, postponing major changes like expanding the size of the council.
In November, voters will be asked to approve an independent redistricting commission, similar to the one the state and county already have, so that City Council members cannot draw their own districts. diluted version of ethical reforms that fall short of what experts and academics recommend.
The most ambitious changes, including a proposal to expand City Hall, were sent to a Magna Carta reform commission. The commission will make recommendations on the size and powers of future councils, among other governance changes. But City Hall will decide which proposals (if any) will be put forward for a vote in 2026.
As City Council members dithered over details, wrung their hands over the ideal number of council districts and seized on any uncertainty as an excuse to delay changes that could limit their power, county leaders forged ahead, choosing progress over perfection.
The reason for such different approaches? Strong leadership.
Horvath, the newest member of the Board of Supervisors, said from the beginning that she would change county government. Her fellow supervisors asked for a report on possible reforms a year and a half ago, but the study hasn’t even begun. Frustrated by the slow progress, Horvath and Hahn put together a package of reforms that have been studied and discussed for decades, many of which had already been endorsed by other board members.
There was no unanimity on the board about the specifics of the proposal and the rush to get it on the November ballot. Supervisors Holly Mitchell and Kathryn Barger abstained from voting Tuesday on the motion to have county attorneys draft ballot language. But Horvath, Hahn and Supervisor Hilda Solis said they didn’t want to miss the rare moment when there is public support for the change, and a county charter commission would hammer out specific details later.
In the city, Council President Paul Krekorian had led the reform committee through detailed — sometimes painful — discussions to try to reach a consensus. While Krekorian said he wanted council expansion on the November ballot, he did not push his colleagues to be decisive. City voters have to wait for more comprehensive changes.
It's a shame because the interest in reform Opposition may weaken after this election. Calls for changes in city governance began in October 2022, when an audio recording was leaked of three council members making deplorable and racially divisive comments about their colleagues and constituents while plotting to gain political power.
The incident reignited concerns about the city’s botched 2021 redistricting process. In response to public outrage, the council created an ad hoc committee on governance reform and held public hearings across the city last year. A panel of academics funded by philanthropic groups recommended a series of reforms, including expanding City Hall, which has not changed in size since 1924 even though the population has nearly quadrupled.
While the focus has been on fixing City Hall, the county has also been in dire need of reform. Los Angeles County adopted its current charter in 1912, when the population was just 500,000 and before women could vote. It is a government representing 10 million people with no elected executive to lead it — only the oversight of five supervisors, each representing a district of about 2 million people.
Voters in the city and county have rejected previous proposals to expand the City Council and Board of Supervisors. But recent polls suggest that voters are willing to support a change in the structure of local government, even if it means hiring more politicians. Kudos to the Board of Supervisors for seizing the moment and moving forward with a major government reform proposal, and showing city leaders that while reform is complex, it doesn’t have to be difficult.
