Los Angeles’ once sleepy Charter Reform process just zeroed in on one of City Hall’s most powerful posts. The Charter Reform Commission is urging a fundamental rewrite of the City Attorney’s job, recommending that the civil law work move to a mayor-appointed law department while an elected city prosecutor handles misdemeanors. The idea is tucked into a 301-page package of proposed charter changes delivered to City Hall in early April and could reshuffle who signs off on contracts, settlements and legal advice. City Council committees are slated to crack open the package in early May, setting up a real political fight ahead of the November ballot.
What the commission proposed
The commission voted to split the current City Attorney’s duties in two, converting the civil representation role into an appointed position and keeping prosecutorial authority with an elected official, a move meant to separate legal advice for city departments from criminal prosecutions, according to the Los Angeles Times. Under the recommendation, the elected City Attorney would focus on prosecuting misdemeanors, while a new mayor-appointed law department would represent the city in civil litigation and handle day-to-day legal work. Commissioners pitched the overhaul as a structural fix, one they say would reduce conflicts when the city is both a policymaker and a defendant.
Why commissioners argued for it
Supporters say splitting the office would curb conflicts of interest, for example when the City Attorney’s team is negotiating police-related settlements or defending city policies, and would let the city recruit career lawyers who are not juggling campaign demands, according to LAist. Commission staff argued that an appointed civil attorney could “serve and represent city officials” without the fundraising and endorsement pressures that come with elections. Backers have folded the idea into a larger narrative about restoring public trust after a string of City Hall scandals that helped trigger the Charter Reform process in the first place.
City Attorney pushes back
City Attorney Hydee Feldstein Soto is not on board. In a formal letter to the commission, she warned that turning the civil law role into an appointed job would strip voters of a key check and balance, urging commissioners to “preserve the people’s fundamental right to select an independent arbiter of the law” and pointing out that earlier ballot attempts to make the office appointed were rejected, according to a March 23 filing with the commission (Office of the Los Angeles City Attorney). The letter walks through decades of debate over how to structure the city’s legal team and warns that carving civil and criminal functions into separate shops could create administrative friction and legal confusion. Feldstein Soto also highlighted historical votes in which Angelenos rejected appointed models and pressed the commission to keep the city’s chief legal officer elected.
Next steps and political stakes
The Commission sent its final report to the City Council on April 2, and nothing changes unless the Council puts the measures on the ballot and voters sign off, according to the commission’s official site (Charter Reform Commission). The City Attorney overhaul is bundled with a raft of other big-ticket ideas, including a proposal to double parks funding, expand the City Council and create a new inspector general. Supporters say the full package would help rein in corruption; critics worry it could simply rearrange who holds the real power at City Hall. The recommendations are the product of months of public comment and dozens of community filings ahead of the Council’s review, local coverage has noted (MyNewsLA).
Council calendar and public response
The Council’s Rules, Elections and Intergovernmental Relations Committee has the Charter Reform package on its agenda and on April 30 continued the item to a May 5 committee hearing, where members are set to take public comment and weigh community impact statements, according to the official docket (City Clerk). Neighborhood councils and advocacy groups have already started filing letters and impact statements, some warning against giving up an elected City Attorney and others pushing for sweeping structural change. That split is likely to make the May committee session the first big public showdown over the reform plan.
The battle over the City Attorney’s future is shaping up as one of the Charter Reform Commission’s most consequential recommendations. If the Council sends the measure to the ballot, Los Angeles voters will be asked whether to keep an elected legal watchdog or shift to a tightly run appointed legal machine. CBS Los Angeles aired video coverage of the commission’s recommendation on May 1, a burst of attention that is likely to grow as the Council heads into next week’s hearing.
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