On Oct. 28, Jewish community leaders and politicians held a press conference supporting Measure G, the Los Angeles County Government Structure, Ethics and Accountability Charter Amendment. The measure promises to expand the County Board of Supervisors as well as introduce an elected County Executive, establish open budget hearings and create an independent Ethics Commission. The press conference included Los Angeles County Supervisor Lindsey P. Horvath, California State Senator Henry Stern, Beverly Hills Councilmember John Mirisch and American Jewish Committee-Los Angeles Director Rick Hirschaut.
“The institutional inertia of Los Angeles County government has prevented change from coming, and that is what [LA County residents] so desperately deserve, and that is what Measure G will deliver.” Horvath mentioned that there had been motions passed which had not properly been followed up on in the past. She believes that Measure G would help alleviate that issue, and that it would create more transparency. Horvath is a co-sponsor of the ballot measure alongside Supervisor Janice Hahn.
The Beverly Hills City Council voted 4-1 to oppose the measure at its Sept. 17 Regular Meeting, citing concerns about the need for a County Executive. Mirisch was the only member of that body who voiced support for the measure.
“This is a baby step towards more transparency and better government,” said Mirisch. He compared it favorably to Beverly Hills’ Sunshine Task Force, a committee which meets once a month and is designed to study measures to advance greater transparency. After the press conference, Mirisch told the Courier, “This is a common sense reform… it isn’t even a radical reform. You want better representation for 10 million people in the 88 cities of LA County plus the unincorporated areas who are currently all only represented by five people.”
Hirschaut said that the American Jewish Committee is an apolitical organization, and he was at the press conference on his own behalf. He then compared the number of constituents represented by most U.S. House of Representatives members (around 750,000) to those represented by LA County Supervisors (almost 2 million).
Stern told the Courier a more personal story. His in-laws are Holocaust survivors and needed nursing home and in-home personal healthcare via county services. “Having good service, those intimate and crucial parts of your life, is so important. And if I weren’t a state senator I don’t know if I could have gotten them the care they needed.” He said that he believed having more Supervisors would also increase services.
A new study conducted by Loyola Marymount University’s Center for the Study of Los Angeles (StudyLA), found that many of the items in Measure G would be a positive force for representation and ethics within the county. The study addresses some arguments against the measure and argues for the necessity of the many proposed county changes included in Measure G.
Several county employee unions have come out in opposition to Measure G, including those representing firefighters and sheriff’s deputies.
