A plan to increase the number of Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors from five to nine members, elect a county executive officer and establish an ethics commission was approved by a split vote on Tuesday, July 9.
The board directed the Office of County Counsel to draft an ordinance that would incorporate major changes to the way the county government operates as part of a county charter amendment. The supervisors at a later date must vote to place the measure before voters.
The board moved forward with the sweeping government reforms by a 3-0 vote with two abstentions. Supervisors Lindsey Horvath, Janice Hahn and Hilda Solis voted in favor, while Holly Mitchell and Kathryn Barger abstained.
“This is the most comprehensive reform package for Los Angeles County government in over 100 years,” said Third District Supervisor and board chair Horvath, co-author of the package.
“These reforms are long overdue and desperately needed. We cannot allow another 100 years to go by,” she added.
The newest supervisor, who took her seat on the board in December 2022, joined Fourth District Supervisor Hahn in writing a multi-pronged reform measure the board majority hopes will be approved by voters on Nov. 5.
Third District LA County Supervisor Lindsey Horvath, who represents the San Fernando Valley and the western county, spoke about a new initiative to reform county government at a press event on Wednesday, July 3, 2024 in downtown Los Angeles. (photo by Steve Scauzillo/SCNG).
Voter approval would begin a lengthy process, starting in 2026 with creation of a county ethics commission, followed by the election of a county executive officer in 2028.
Voters would begin expanding the number of seats following the 2030 U.S. Census and during elections starting in 2032. New supervisor districts would have to be redrawn before the election, a process that could become controversial.
Los Angeles County is more populous than 40 states. Each supervisor represents 2 million people in a county of 10 million, more than most members of Congress represent.
Yet it has the fewest representatives for such a large service area and population. In comparison, San Francisco City and County has 11 county supervisors. Cook County, Illinois has a population half the size of L.A. County with 17 county commissioners. The Los Angeles City Council has 15 members.
Dozens of speakers overwhelmingly supported the reform motion. Most said adding four supervisors would shrink each district, reduce the number of constituents in each to about one million, and bring representatives of other ethnicities onto the powerful board.
“This will allow more diverse voices on the board, reflecting all of Los Angeles County,” said resident Alissa Bernstein.
Andrea Mac, who lives in District 1, which has many Asian-American residents including the unincorporated area of Hacienda Heights, said the Asian American and Pacific Islander (AAPI) community has felt unheard. “Expanding the board will help Los Angeles County feel more heard,” she told the board.
Support also came from League of Women Voters of Los Angeles County, the TransLatin@ Coalition and LULAC, the League of United Latin American Citizens. Many individuals from unincorporated areas of Topanga and West Hills also were in support, saying they wanted to see smaller districts to effect better representation.
“We are ensuring the voters that it is not just adding more seats up here,” said Hahn, speaking from the raised board dais. “There’s a lot more to this that will make government better for them.”
Hahn played a video of her late father, Kenneth Hahn, who served on the board for 40 years. In the video he asked for more representatives on the Board of Supervisors. The video was recorded in 1972.
Voters have rejected an expanded board eight times, more recently in 1962, 1976, 1992 and 2000. In 2021, the Los Angeles County Redistricting Commission said it received numerous calls from residents about board expansion, and suggested it be explored. In February 2023, the board voted to examine the possibility of expanding the board beyond five members and authorized a study.
Many believed that the voters were concerned that adding more supervisors, which would require more staffers and equipment, meant higher taxes. Hahn and Horvath said the reforms would use existing budget dollars. Horvath said supervisors with smaller districts than others could hire fewer staffers and some county commissions would be dissolved.
“They (voters) know a bigger board is not bigger government, it is better government,” Hahn said.
But Second District Supervisor Holly Mitchell was very concerned about items in the package that could cost more money. These include creation of a director of budget and management who would prepare the county’s annual budget and establishment of a county legislative analyst.
Fifth District Supervisor Kathryn Barger argued that many items in the reform package could be done immediately, with just three votes of the board. She said she’ll propose starting an ethics commission at the next board meeting. She suggested items on ethics and transparent budgeting were included in the motion to appeal to voters.
“There are things we can do right now. We don’t have to wait until 2026,” she said.
Both Barger and Mitchell seemed to support expansion of the board, but weren’t sure if nine was the correct number. Barger wondered if there should be 11 or 15. “I’m not sure it makes sense for nine to still be an appropriate number,” Mitchell said.
Supporters of the reform package said the board needs to focus on policies and so-called “legislative actions,” while an elected CEO would be the executive branch. Experts said this would be similar to L.A. Mayor Karen Bass who proposes a budget, and the City Council tweaking it before approving it.
Fernando Guerra, a political science professor and founding director of the Center for the Study of Los Angeles at Loyola Marymount University, said voters don’t trust government because of its structure, delays and bureaucracy. He said these reforms would work toward reducing those roadblocks in the county.
“Trust in government has declined. But trust in government employees has not declined. It is the structure they are saying they don’t trust,” he told the board.
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