Other Governments

California Government

Chapter 7

Local Governments and the State

California and other states have unitary, not federal, forms of government in other words: Local Governments (counties, cities,

school districts, etc.) are creatures of the State Local governments can be created and

eliminated or divided and combined by the state government (a bill passed by the legislature and signed by the governor)

Failed effort to eliminate city of Vernon (here)

Subgovernments in California• State government alone cannot provide essential

services• Therefore, Californians are organized into many

“jurisdictions”: areas governed by authorities with lawmaking, executive, and/or enforcement powers to deliver essential services:– Counties– Cities or “municipalities”– Regional governments

• Examples: Southern California Regional Rail Authority (Metrolink); Northern California Regional Public Safety Training Authority

– Special districts• School districts, water authorities, air quality management

districts…

Subgovernments in California Patchwork of governments have been

assembled over time as needs arise Also arise from desire for self-rule or local

control Some are imposed by the state; others have

been created from the “bottom-up” Typically struggle for funding; revenues are

usually based on fees for services

General Purpose Governments:Counties

58 Counties in California In Unincorporated Areas, Counties serve the

functions normally performed by city governments

Most Counties are run by a Board of five Supervisors

Other County elected officials: Sheriff, District Attorney, Assessor

Counties provide many public servicesPUBLIC SAFETY Courts, jails, probation, public defense, juvenile

detention, sheriff, fire, emergency services

PUBLIC ASSISTANCE

Housing, homeless, food stamps, state welfare programs

ELECTIONS & VOTING

Voting processes, voter registration, vote counts

TAX COLLECTION Collect for Counties, cities, special districts, schools

ENVIRONMENT & RECREATION

Manage parks, public facilities, open space, waste removal and recycling, air quality, land use, water

PUBLIC HEALTH Hospitals, mental health clinics, drug rehabilitation programs

EDUCATION Libraries, schools

SOCIAL SERVICES Adoptions and foster care

TRANSIT Airports, railways, bus systems, bridges, road maintenance

VITAL RECORDS Birth, death, marriage certificates

Source: 2008-09 expenses: California State Controller, “Counties Annual Report,” June 30, 2010.

Top County Expenses

Public Safety, 33%Public Assistance, 30%

Health & Sanitation, 18%General Expenses, 10%

(Recreation, Cultural Services,

Education, 2%)

Paying for County Services Typically in short supply Main sources:

State funds, granted through agencies (34%) Federal government grants (20%) Property taxes (24%) Fees paid by users (12%) Sales taxes, licenses, rents, fines, permits (8%)

Source: 2008-09 data; California State Controller, “Counties Annual Report,” June 30, 2010.

General Purpose Governments: Cities 482 Incorporated Cities in California A few very large cities (e.g. Los Angeles) have a

“Strong Mayor” system Full time mayor and city council Mayor responsible for running the city on day-to-day

basis (over-seeing large bureaucracy) Most cities (e.g. Santa Monica)

have a “City Manager” form of government City council, Mayor are part time

positions, set policy The city council hires a city

manager who runs the city on a day-to-day basis, carries out policy

City Governments

Like counties, cities provide essential public services Overlap or supplement county services

Some cities “contract out” their services to the county

City councils make laws and execute then (possess legislative & executive functions) City laws are called “ordinances”

Cities Provide Essential Public Services

CATEGORY Approx % of

annual budget

Types of Services

Public Safety 27% Police, Fire, Emergency Services, Streetlights

Public Utilities 19% Electricity, Gas, Water Distribution

Transportation 16% Construction, Maintenance, Repair of Streets, Highways, Storm Drains; Public transit (Bus, Air, Rail)

General Government

11% Management & Support, Legislative expenditures

Health 10% Mental & physical / hospital & clinic services, waste removal (sewage & solid waste), cemeteries

Culture & Leisure

9% Parks, Recreation, Libraries, Museums, Golf Courses, Stadiums, Civic Auditoriums

Community Development

8% Planning, construction, redevelopment, housing

Cities Need Revenue to Pay for Services

• Largest Sources of Revenue: – Charges for Services, 38%– Other Taxes, 20%– Property Taxes, 8%– Licenses, Rents, Fines, Permits, 8%

• Strategy: “Fiscalization of Land Use”– Cities encourage RETAIL businesses, and

discourage costly housing or service-related construction, because cities keep 1% of state sales taxes

Special Districts• Geographic areas governed by an autonomous

board for a specific purpose– Can stretch across cities, counties, regions

• 4,700 in California• Examples:

– School Board– Mosquito abatement– Airport management

• Often invisible, but essential• Provide services not provided by cities or

counties• Pay for services through fees & assessments

Special Districts: School districts

• Type of special district• 1,000+ provide K-12 education in California• 72 Community college districts made up of 112

community colleges• Governed by elected boards of education

(usually 5 members)• Funded through state’s General Fund

• Approximately 40% (prop 98)• Other sources of school funding:

• Federal grants, donations, contracts, parcel taxes

Special Districts: Regional Governments• Groups that plan, regulate, and coordinate

land-use and development-related activities across counties and cities – Include representatives from local governments,

such as mayors, supervisors, specialists– Includes “Councils of Governments” (COGs)

• Plan infrastructure needs for future generations• No enforcement authority; make policy

recommendations only – Some regulatory bodies do have enforcement

authority• Air quality management districts (AQMDs)

Federalism

Critical funding for state, county, and local programs & services is provided by the federal government Money given in form of grants ($80 billion in

2010-11) Threat of cutting off money from federal

government can be used to push states to follow policy desired by federal government For example: federal government will not give a

state much needed funds to repair highways if the state doesn’t set drinking age at 21

Federalism Some rules or programs are required by the federal government,

but without funding Called unfunded mandates Also preemptive legislation, e.g. prohibiting California environmental laws

California and Californians pay more to the federal government than they receive Why? Many wealthy Californians pay a high income tax Decrease in military expenditures in California with end of Cold War (bases

closed) California has a younger population, so receives less money from Social

Security and Medicare

Tribal Governments• Tribes are sovereign entities within the state• 108 recognized tribes within California

– Run by tribal councils• Economic impact today often measured by

gaming operations– Congress has authorized states to negotiate compacts

with tribes operating casinos– States cannot tax tribes; can collect fees if negotiated

• On political issues related to tribal gaming, tribes spend millions of dollars

• Tribes are influential and involved in local governments where casinos generate revenue

• Poverty is still high on reservations (26% as of 2009)

Los Angeles

Los Angeles Politics Today Political Groups in Los Angeles

South Los Angeles Democrats (liberal) Groups of opposing public officials in African-

American community (U.S. Rep. Maxine Waters, Mark Ridley-Thomas, others)

East Los Angeles Democrats (liberal) Opposing factions in the Hispanic Community

(County Supervisor Gloria Molina, City Council member Richard Alarcón, others)

West Los Angeles Democrats (liberal) Predominantly Jewish, Waxman-Berman

machine, County Supervisor Yaroslavsky

Los Angeles Politics Today Political Groups in Los Angeles

LA County Federation of Labor and grassroots organizations (liberal) Effectively coordinate union efforts Leader, Maria Elena Durazo

Development and business groups (conservative) LA Area Chamber of Commerce Influential through campaign contributions

Neighborhood Councils? 90 Created in 1990’s – forum for local people to have a

voice, often critical of city hall, no formal powers Played role in defeating Prop B (2009), not much since

Los Angeles Politics Today Elected representatives of Los

Angeles LA City Mayor Eric Garcetti, four

year term, two term limit City Attorney and City Controller LA City Council

15 powerful individuals, term limits extended from 2 to 3 four-year terms in 2007 (by city initiative)

Far and away best paid (higher pay than US Cong, Fed Judges) and most perks of any city council in nation

Los Angeles Politics Today Elected representatives of Los Angeles

LA County Board of Supervisors 5 very powerful individuals, four year term, three

term limit

LA Unified School District 7 member board Superintendent responsible for running schools Conflict between the current LAUSD Board

President (Vladovic) and Superintendent (Deasy)

City of Los Angeles – ethnicity of elected officials over time

Year 1959 1960 1961 1962 1963 1964 1965 1966 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009

Mayor

City Attorney

City Controller

District 1

District 2

District 3

District 4

District 5

District 6

District 7

District 8

District 9

District 10

District 11

District 12

District 13

District 14

District 15

Rocky Delgadillo

Cindy Miscikowski

Nate Holden

Hal Bernson

Nick Pacheco

Mark Ridley-Thomas

Ruth Galanter

Jose Huizar

Tom LeBonge

Wendy Gruel

Ed Roybal

Greig Smith

Herb WessonMartin LudlowCharles Navarro Joe Hollingsworth

Bill RosendahlA

few

yea

rs in

bet

wee

n

James Corman

Patrick McGee

Ernani Bernardi

J . Ferrero

Thomas Shepard

L.E. Timberlake

Harold Henry

Janice Hahn

Antonio Villaraigosa

James Brown Eric Garcetti

Tom Bradley

Gilbert Lindsay Jan Perry

Jack Weiss

John Cassidy

Karl Rundberg Marvin Braude

Ransom Callicott

Paul Lamport

Bernard Parks

Tony Cardenas

City

Coun

cil

C. Lemoine Blanchard James Potter

Alex Padilla Richard Alarcon

John Gibson Jr.

Dennis Zine

John Holland

Ed ReyesLouis Nowell

Dan Hoye

Gordon Hahn Billy Mills

Rosalind Wyman Ed Edelman

Charles Navarro

Everett Burkhalter

City

Exec

utiv

es Antonio Villaraigosa

Laura Chick

Roger Arnebergh

Norris Poulson Sam Yorty James K. "Jimmy" Hahn

Ethnic Key: Jewish LatinoAfrican

AmericanAsian White

© 2009 Leavey Center for the Study of Los Angeles – 50 Years of Political Diversity in Los Angeles, 1959-2009. February 11, 2009

Elections 2013 Los Angeles City Election

Primary Election for Mayor and half of city council March 5, 2013, top two Eric Garcetti (33%) and Wendy Gruel (29%), rest 38%

Run off Election for Mayor of Los Angeles May 21, 2013 won by Eric Garcetti (54%) over Wendy Gruel (46%)

Garcetti first Jewish Mayor of Los Angeles (diverse) After the 2013 elections ended only one of the 15

Los Angeles city council members was a woman

Elections 2014 Los Angeles County Supervisors, two supervisors

term-limited out: Molina and Yaroslavsky

2013 and 2014 Elections

Past issues in Los Angeles

Major Immigration march, March 25, 2006

Spanish language radio and internet May 1, 2007 police over react day of (two weeks after)

Then LAPD Chief Bratton “takes blame” for police over reaction, but immediately re-appointed for 5 year term; city of LA ended up paying over $30 million to settle lawsuits against LAPD

May 1, 2008 and 2009 smaller demonstration

Past issues in Los Angeles

Los Angeles Police Department Rampart scandal resulted in a federal consent decree aimed

at getting the LAPD to reform, began in 2001 for 5 years, extended for 3 more years, finally ended 7/17/09

New LAPD Chief Charlie Beck Protégé of previous chief (Bratton, who resigned early to head up

consulting firm in New York) Long term LAPD officer, involved in cleaning up Rampart division

after scandal LAPD Chief is limited to two 5-year terms Chief is appointed by Police Commission, Police Commissioners are

appointed by Mayor, so, basically the Mayor appoints the Chief Some complaints that Mayor did not search widely for a new Chief,

one of the most prestige jobs in law enforcement in the country