The Brief

The Los Angeles city controller is making a series of proposals to the city’s Charter Reform Commission to strengthen the powers of his office, including one that would guarantee the controller’s right to conduct performance audits of programs run by other elected officials.

Controller Kenneth Mejia made six recommendations in all to the commission, which was established last year to examine possible changes to the charter, the city’s constitution. It will make recommendations to the City Council.

The role of the independently elected controller in city governance is one of the central questions it's considering. Mejia, who has sought to expand the bounds of the office, has at times been frustrated with the controller’s lack of power.

The proposal to allow the controller to conduct performance audits of programs run by elected officials follows Mayor Karen Bass’ refusal to allow Mejia to audit Inside Safe, her signature program to provide unhoused people shelter.

After learning of the dispute, U.S. District Judge David O. Carter ordered an independent audit of Inside Safe, which found major flaws with the program, including that the city was unable to track exactly how much it spent on homelessness.

“We tried to provide a performance audit but we weren't able to get cooperation,” Mejia told LAist.

Mejia said that’s why there’s a need to enshrine his power to conduct audits on other elected officials in the charter.

“We need that in there so we don't have to go through all the bureaucratic hurdles and opposition all the time,” he said.

Mejia noted the judge’s audit cost the city nearly $2.8 million.

In order to make changes to the charter, the City Council would have to place the recommendations on the ballot and the public would have to vote on them.

Controller's powers

There are differing opinions within city government on what the current charter says in regards to the controller’s powers.

According to the city charter, the controller’s powers include conducting “performance audits of all departments and may conduct performance audits of City programs.”

But city attorney officials say their understanding of the charter is that it doesn’t allow the controller to audit the performance of a mayoral program unless the mayor consents.

A spokesperson for Bass declined to comment on the issue, saying only that the mayor is looking forward to reviewing the recommendations of the Charter Reform Commission.

The chair of the 13-member Charter Commission, Raymond Meza, said he is still considering the proposal and wants to hear other members of the panel weigh in. But he noted the leaders who led the last overhaul of the city charter in 1999 testified before his panel that their intent was to give the controller the power to conduct audits of other elected officials.

“That to me made a very strong case that the controller does have the authority and if that’s not how it's being interpreted right now, then we should clarify that,” Meza said.

Former Controller Ron Galperin, who served from 2013 to 2022, said he was frustrated at the inability to undertake an audit of a program under another elected official. At the same time, he said such an audit could be used for political purposes.

“Imagine you would have a city controller who wants to run against the mayor and then doing an audit of them simultaneously,” Galperin told LAist. “That would create some questions.”

He said he supports expanding the ability of the controller to conduct audits of other elected officials’ programs.

Addressing public corruption

Major corruption scandals have rocked City Hall in recent years, involving current and former City Council members, as well as other public officials. Federal and local investigations have uncovered schemes involving bribery, fraud and "pay-to-play" politics.

Jack Humphreville with the Neighborhood Council Budget Advocates said you need only mention the name Jose Huizar to know the controller needs more auditing authority. Huizar is the former City Council member serving a 13-year federal prison sentence for public corruption.

“They’re not above reproach,” Humphreville said of the city’s elected officials. He added that he believes fraud, waste and abuse remain a problem at City Hall.

“We need a strong independent watchdog,” he said

Mejia proposed a range of other changes at the Controller’s Office that he said will strengthen its independence and effectiveness.

One would be to create an independent budget for the office.

Mejia proposed that the controller receive an annual appropriation from the City Council in an amount not less than a fixed percentage of the general fund.

“We need to be able to do our job freely from budget cuts or retaliation,” said Mejia. He noted his office lost 27 positions in the latest budget.

The reductions came as the city was facing a $1 billion budget deficit and nearly every department lost positions.

“We were in a budget deficit, but definitely the proportionality on hitting the Controllers Office, it wiped out all my positions that were vacant that we were trying to fill,” he said. “Other elected officials didn’t get a hit like we did.”

Designating the controller as CFO

Under Mejia’s proposal, the controller’s expenses and budget requests would not be subject to approval by any other city office or position when the controller operates within its budget. In addition, the controller would not be subject to hiring freezes when it operates within its budget.

Pomona College Professor of Politics Sara Sadhwani said an independent budget could stop the mayor and City Council from “meddling” in the controller’s audits.

“Kenneth Mejia comes from a further left political ideology that could potentially run counter to that of the mayor or council president, who are closely aligned,” Sadhwani said.

She said for the charter commission, the question is about independence of the Controller’s Office “regardless of who is sitting in that elected position.”

Another proposal from Mejia would be to designate the controller as the city’s chief financial officer, consolidating functions now dispersed among the mayor, the City Council, the City Administrative Officer, the Office of Finance and the controller.

The controller already performs many of the traditional CFO functions, including accounting, financial analysis, forecasting and establishing internal financial controls, according to Mejia.

Certain CFO functions, such as the control over the treasury and debt issuance, would be added.

Mejia argued appointing the controller CFO would increase transparency and accountability amid ongoing financial challenges.

“There’s no one steering the ship of the city financially, and that's what the CFO would be doing,” Mejia said. “We’d be the ones who would be responsible,”

“At the end of the day, the mayor and City Council would still make the budget and finance decisions,” he added.

Mejia made three other recommendations, including that the controller has the necessary experience and qualifications, that the controller may hire outside counsel when there is a conflict of interest with the city attorney, and that its fraud, wast, and abuse function be incorporated into the charter.

The composition of the 13-member commission includes appointees from Bass, City Council President Marqueece Harris-Dawson and Council President Pro Tempore Bob Blumenfield.

The commission is scheduled to submit its recommendations to the City Council in early 2026, with a formal deadline of April 2. Those proposals could be placed on the November 2026 ballot for voters to consider.

Hearings being held this week could decide whether California continues to have a say over what happens in federal waters off the state’s coast.

It’s part of the Trump administration’s efforts to supercharge industrial activities, including offshore drilling, rocket launches and desalination plants along California’s coast. At a hearing Monday at a Santa Monica hotel and at a news conference beforehand, speaker after speaker decried any effort that would allow the federal government to revoke California's ability to manage its coast.

A federal law called the Coastal Zone Management Act gives states with coastlines the right to review and veto projects that may conflict with state policies and economies. The law was signed by President Richard Nixon after a devastating oil spill off the coast of Santa Barbara and is credited with launching the modern environmental movement.

More than 50 years later, the federal government has called for a detailed review of California's compliance with the 1972 law.

In a May social media post, the Trump administration said California is standing in the way of economic progress and called the state’s coastal management practices “obstructionist” and “environmental extremism.”

California officials, including state Natural Resources Secretary Wade Crowfoot, dispute that, saying the state approves federal initiatives 96% of the time.

“ Never before in the five-decade history of this federal act has this sudden baseless review taken place on any state's coastal management program, and never before in the history of this act has a coastal management program ever been revoked,” Crowfoot said at a news conference in Santa Monica on Monday.  ”This federal administration is bent on industrializing our coast.”

The hearings, which are being administered by NOAA, could result in the federal government decertifying California’s rights under the Coastal Zone Management Act. A decision to do so would almost certainly be challenged in court, experts say.

That possibility has prompted Gov. Gavin Newsom to call on Californians to submit public comments on the issue.

“Give the Trump administration an earful,” Newsom said in a statement.

The hearings this week are solely for public comment. The review “seeks any new input from relevant stakeholders regarding spaceport infrastructure, offshore oil production, pipeline maintenance, desalination projects, and undersea cables,” according to a notice in the federal register. 

Such reviews have happened before — in 2024 a draft review by NOAA found the state’s coastal agencies had properly carried out the CZMA. The review, however, was not finalized due to the change in administration.

The latest review comes after the Trump administration gutted NOAA staff and funding. It has also aggressively worked to expand drilling off the California coast, while at the same time using taxpayer dollars to pay offshore wind companies to abandon their energy projects — something L.A. County Supervisor Lindsey Horvath highlighted at the Monday news conference.

“ L.A. County will soon achieve 100% renewable and reliable electricity. This is the change that we want to see,” she said. “Meanwhile, the Trump administration is recklessly starting foreign wars and skyrocketing the price at the pump.”

L.A. County Supervisor Lindsey Horvath also spoke Monday at the news conference ahead of the NOAA hearing in Santa Monica.

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Tina Calderon, Gabrielino Tongva and Chumash culture bearer, speaks at Monday's news conference.

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Horvath is part of a coalition of local, state, tribal, environmental, legal and business leaders who are calling the review a “takeover” of state and local rights.

Orange County resident Grant Bixby, who founded the Business Alliance for Protecting the Pacific Coast, pointed out at the news conference that offshore drilling makes up a tiny fraction of the state’s coastal economy, which generates between $44 billion and $50 billion a year, according to NOAA.

"Should we put 99% of the other employment at risk for the benefit of one dirty industry?” Bixby said.

Bixby recalled how the 2021 Huntington Beach oil spill turned the beaches into a “ghost town.”

The NOAA hearing was held in a ballroom at the Santa Monica Hilton.

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Among the speakers at the news conference and hearing, a clear theme emerged: The coast is an integral part of being a Californian, whether you’re lucky enough to live beachside or you live inland and have a favorite spot to call your own on hot summer days.

“The point is that we all love our beautiful saltwaters,” said Tina Calderon, Gabrielino Tongva and Chumash culture bearer, at the news conference. “These are sacred waters, and it's up to us to be the voice. It's up to us to cause no more human harm. We've done enough.”

Jackie, the bald eagle whose livestreamed life with her partner Shadow won the hearts of fans worldwide, has died, rescuers announced Monday.

The famous raptor, believed to be 14 years old, was receiving intensive care at the Ojai Raptor Center for severe anemia. She ultimately succumbed to her condition after a team of veterinarians struggled for weeks to figure out what was causing it.

Jackie remained critically ill despite receiving oxygen therapy, supportive treatment and around-the-clock monitoring. 

"We know this news will be deeply felt by the many thousands of people around the world who have followed her journey, hoped alongside us, prayed for her, and supported the people caring for her,” the Ojai Raptor Center said in an Instagram post. “Our team is heartbroken. It has been an extraordinary privilege to care for her."

Friends of Big Bear Valley, the nonprofit that launched the popular nest livestream in 2015, confirmed the news on social media.

“It is with great sadness and heavy hearts, to bring you the latest update from Ojai Raptor Center,” the nonprofit said to its roughly 1.3 million Facebook followers. “Please be kind to yourself, to others, to the FOBBV team and to those at the Ojai Raptor Center. Soar free Jackie…”

What happened to her?

The rescue center said on social media Sunday that she was “critically ill,” “unstable” and still in an "extremely serious” condition.

She was getting oxygen therapy, supportive treatment and around-the-clock care from vets and specialists across the country. But her red blood cell levels continued to drop well below normal after rebounding a bit after she was rescued.

Jackie was rescued in July by Big Bear’s Dana Point Park after a brief fight with two other eagles. Jackie was weak, vulnerable, underweight and unable to fly, according to the Ojai Raptor Center.

The center said the fight is likely what left her grounded, but her condition suggests she had been sick for some time.

How Jackie’s Big Bear saga started

Jackie was the matriarch of the famous Big Bear bald eagle nest since around 2017. She’s believed to be the first bald eagle chick hatched in Big Bear Valley in recent history, according to the nonprofit.

The pair believed to be her parents, Ricky and Lucy, left the area around 2016. The young Jackie then started hanging out in their old nest, where the livestream camera had been installed.

Jackie took on her first mate, a bald eagle known as Mr. B, and laid her first clutch of eggs in the nest the following season. Shadow came into the picture in the summer of 2018, refusing to leave until Mr. B eventually flew away from the area, according to Friends of Big Bear Valley.

Jackie and Shadow were mates ever since. They successfully raised six chicks together — Sandy and Luna this season, Sunny and Gizmo last year, Spirit in 2022 and Simba in 2019.

Amid growing frustration with both major political parties, voters are open to some big changes.

A new poll, commissioned by supporters of election reforms and shared with NPR, shows there is significant support for upending winner-take-all U.S. House elections and single-member congressional districts and instead moving toward proportional representation, a system that elects multiple representatives in a single district in rough proportion to a party's vote share.

Earlier this summer, about 500 democracy and legal experts sent a letter to Congress urging members to consider proportional representation as a solution to the redistricting brinksmanship set off by President Donald Trump last year.

"There should be little doubt that the single-member district system is failing to deliver fair and representative outcomes," they wrote. "We urge Congress to adopt a proportional system of representation, solving the gerrymandering problem at its source."

According to the poll conducted by the advocacy group Fix Our House and liberal think tank New America, half of 1,000 respondents said they support proportional representation, with nearly a quarter opposed. A third of those who participated said they were not sure whether they supported it or not.

Lee Drutman, a senior fellow at New America, said he was surprised to see how much backing there is for proportional representation, despite the idea being fairly obscure in the United States.

"It really did shock me how supportive people were of the various principles of proportional representation across the board," he told NPR.

While support was highest among younger, more educated, more left-leaning voters, Drutman found that 6 in 10 Trump voters who have an opinion on proportional representation said they back it, too.

American voters want more political parties

Pollsters also walked respondents through some of the tradeoffs of proportional representation — including that it can lead to multiple parties having to find a way to work together.

"For every one of those questions, people prefer the proportional system with multiple parties," Drutman said, "even if it leads to a coalition government that is maybe not quite as efficient."

He said voters also weren't very concerned when asked about the possibility of proportional representation leading to some more extreme political parties.

"One thing people said is they already think the parties are pretty extreme right now," Drutman explained. "So that's not quite the fear that some in the political class think it would be."

Jocelyn Kiley, director of political research at the Pew Research Center, said voters writ large have been in a "prolonged period of disaffection with politics and the political system."

She said Pew has found there is a lot of openness to reform, with nearly 70% of respondents to its polls saying they wish, at least somewhat, there were more political parties to choose from.

Kiley said detailed knowledge of what any election reform would look like is rare among voters. And she said that when many reforms "move from theory to practice," they often hit some resistance.

"People want to understand exactly how that reform will impact them," she said.

Room for a national conversation

Drutman told NPR the new poll numbers mark a starting point for what could be a national conversation about how to break out of the country's two-party system.

"People are dissatisfied," he said. "People are frustrated. People don't have a language for how to talk about alternatives because they haven't really heard all that much about the alternatives, because we haven't had a national conversation about the alternatives yet. So, there's a lot of room to have that conversation."

Drutman said only about a quarter of the respondents were aware that there are alternatives to a two-party system, and even fewer people could name an alternative when pressed.

In fact, only about 2% of the participants in the poll could name proportional representation off the top of their heads, said Dustin Wahl, executive director of Fix Our House,

"But when asked about the kind of underlying values beneath it and the component parts, there was widespread support from all across the political spectrum," Wahl said. "And that's not something we would have expected to see necessarily four years ago, for instance. But as the problems grow, the desire for solutions grows, as well."

Proportional representation is currently the most widely used electoral system among the world's democracies. Wahl points out that the U.S., along with the likes of Canada and Australia, has a system that was abandoned long ago by other countries.

"Arguably the only reason we don't use proportional representation is because it wasn't used anywhere in the world at the time of [America's] founding," he said. "And we just kept doing elections the same way."

The poll also found a majority support (54%) for expanding the House, with 150 new members.

There are bills in Congress, with all Democratic co-sponsors, that would study or move the U.S. to a system of proportional representation, but Wahl said any bill that doesn't include expanding the House is "politically dead in the water" because without expansion, lawmakers have to choose to potentially vote themselves out of office.

"That [150-seat expansion] gives you enough of a cushion so that members, incumbents know that they're very likely to hold on to their seats," he said. "It wouldn't run into the problem, at all, of candidates or of sitting members of Congress thinking that they're going to lose their seats because their elections would be totally untouched."
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