Saying democracy isn’t being served, two Los Angeles County supervisors proposed sweeping reforms that include expansion of their board from five to nine members, electing a county chief executive, and empowering an ethics commission to combat corruption.
Third District Supervisor Lindsey Horvath and Fourth District Supervisor Janice Hahn co-sponsored a detailed motion that will go before the board next week. The two spoke about reforms outlined in the draft motion at a press conference on Wednesday, July 3, held on the steps of the county headquarters in downtown Los Angeles.
They will be looking for a third vote in order to put the reform measure on the Nov. 4 ballot. If it makes it to the ballot and a majority of voters approve, a long process would ensue, 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 on the board after the 2030 census during elections starting in 2032.
The county government reforms would be the first major modification of the county’s charter in more than 100 years, Horvath said.
“It is time for transformative change. People are fed up with the status quo and fed up with a government not responsive to their needs,” said Horvath, during a speech that kicked off the media event.
Hahn added that she, as well as her late father, Kenneth Hahn, who served on the board for 40 years, always felt that five members was too few to properly serve the needs of residents living in the largest county in the nation.
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…
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