Long Beach : Task Force Recommends Giving Mayor More Power

The Long Beach mayor should wield more power and the City Council should reduce the number of its committees and hire consultants, a citizens advisory group told local officials Tuesday.

The council will meet Wednesday and July 22 to consider the recommendations made by the Citizens Task Force for Effective City Government and to study possible revisions to the City Charter.

The task force, a group of local attorneys, business leaders and activists, met weekly for two months and reviewed information from other California cities before making its recommendations.

“Fine tuning of the city’s government structure is needed,” said Alex Bellehumeur, the group’s chairman and a harbor commissioner. “We were sensitive to the need for a careful balance between the city manager, the mayor and the council.”

The council should be required to muster six votes to override a mayoral veto as opposed to the five needed now, the group said. And the mayor, who now has no vote, should be able to cast a vote to break council ties, task force members said.

“This would strengthen the mayor’s citywide leadership role,” said attorney Chuck Greenberg.

The vice mayor should head a committee to review mayoral appointments to city commissions, such as the Harbor Commission, the task force suggested. Currently, a council committee appointed by the mayor reviews the appointments.

Mayor Ernie Kell was on vacation Tuesday, but Vice Mayor Jeffrey A. Kellogg and other council members said they will consider the recommendations.

Councilman Warren Harwood, however, called recommendations to strengthen the mayor’s power outrageous.

“The problem here is that City Council is not allowed to exercise its powers,” Harwood said. “Strengthen the mayor and that’s the answer to our problems? I say baloney.”