Would more LA County supervisors, public financing of candidates improve local governance?

In a wide-ranging motion, the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors voted Tuesday, Feb, 28, to explore expanding the board beyond five members, as well as examining ways to increase transparency and community input into board actions.

A third-party report was ordered by a unanimous vote of the Board that could require major changes in the governance of the Board, including giving the public weeks instead of only a few days to review proposed board motions, department head directives and a $44 billion county budget.

The motion, authored by Second District Supervisor Holly Mitchell and Third District Supervisor Lindsey Horvath, also asks the consultant hired to explore new rules when running for supervisor, including public financing of campaigns and creation of an ethics commission to call out candidates who violate campaign finance rules.

“It casts a broad net to yes, talk about expanding the size of the Board but also the way the Board conducts its business,” said Mitchell.

Horvath also mentioned the report would look at making remote public comments permanent, not just during an emergency such as the COVID-19 pandemic that is set to expire shortly. “A key part is expanding the number of county supervisors because our residents deserve representation that is greater than someone representing 2 million plus.”

Los Angles County has a population of more than 10 million, with only five supervisors. That means each represents about 2 million people and covers a disparate district with more than 400 square miles of territory. The action requires a report that looks at how other counties are run throughout the country.

For example, San Francisco City and County, a single entity, has an 11-member Board of Supervisors. And the city of Los Angeles has a 15-member City Council.

Several groups representing Latinos, Asian-Americans and Black who testified in support of increasing the board to 7, 9, or 11 or more members said the board needs representatives who look like them and can effectively consider their needs.

“It (expanding the Board) would allow under-represented and marginalized groups to have greater representation,” said Connie Chung Joe, chief executive officer of Asian Americans Advancing Justice — Los Angeles. “Keeping the number of board seats to only five dilutes our voice.”

New supervisorial districts would have to be carved out of existing supervisorial districts, shrinking the coverage area and reducing voters within each district. Once new districts are created, elections for the additional supervisors would have to be held.

The idea of expanding the board from five members to nine, 11 or 13 has come up numerous times since 1926. Expansion of the board was shot down by voters eight times.

In 1926, the year of the first expansion attempt, the county had a little more than 1 million residents. Today, the county has more than 10 million and each supervisor represents more people than most members of the U.S. Congress.

“In Vermont, U.S. Sen. Bernie Sanders represents less than 1 million people,” said First District Supervisor Hilda Solis. “We have a budget that is greater than most states.”

Most recently, in 2021, the Los Angeles County Redistricting Commission said it received numerous calls from residents about board expansion, and suggested it be explored. Solis said the Commission had a hard time keeping communities of interest together when redrawing the five supervisorial districts.

“People weighed in on the lack of representation, particularly among communities of color. In 2020, the county has 4.8 million Latinos and 1.5 million Asians. Those combined make up 60% of the county’s total population. There should be more voices reflected on this dais,” she said.

Any change to the number of supervisors would be considered a change in the county’s charter and that would require a vote of the people. In 2000, voters rejected by more than 64% a plan to increase board members from five to nine.

A consultant’s report will come back to the Board in six months.

“This creates an opportunity to look far and wide and learn the best practices around governance,” said Mitchell. It will be better for LA County.”