Editorial: To fix City Hall corruption, L.A. needs a stronger Ethics Commission (via latimesopinion )
to the City Charter that would give the commission more power and independence. But those proposals have been on the back burner while the City Council’s ad hoc committee on city governance reform focuses on creating an independent redistricting commission and deciding whether to expand the City Council.It shouldn’t take a scandal to get Los Angeles’ political leaders to embrace basic ethics reforms — like requiring lobbyists to say they are lobbyists at public meetings.
But ethics reforms got a boost last week — and not just because of the criminal charges filed against Price. A group of political science scholars releasedfor governance reform in Los Angeles, and they put a priority on empowering the Ethics Commission. Their rationale makes sense: If Angelenos are going to be asked to expand the City Council and create more politicians, they need to know they’re going to get the cleanest possible city government in return.
Any reform ballot measure should also guarantee a minimum budget for the commission, so politicians can’t cut its funding to pressure ethics staff. It’s also worth exploring having a larger commission with some nonpolitical appointees, who are not beholden to elected officials. L.A.’s commissioners are selected by the city’s elected leaders. Inthe seven-member Ethics Commission includes four commissioners appointed by elected officials, and those four commissioners pick the other three.
Could these changes prevent more corruption scandals? They could help. An empowered commission could potentially respond more quickly to ethical issues as they arise, without having to pass the gantlet of council skepticism or obstructionism.Give credit to political reformers: They’re not about to let a good crisis in City Hall go to waste.
Among the allegations against Price, for example, is that he voted on projects developed by companies that employed his wife, which creates a conflict of interest. Price recused himself in some instances involving his wife’s business, but not others, according to
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