Group Follows Councilman’s Lead : Politics: The California League of Cities backs a scaled-down state Constitution at the behest of Santa Clarita official Carl Boyer III.

The California League of Cities has passed a resolution originating with a delegate from Santa Clarita that calls for a shorter, simpler state Constitution and changes in the structure of state government.

Citing the 460 amendments to the state Constitution since it was adopted in 1879, as compared to 26 changes made in its federal counterpart, the league asked the newly formed state Constitution Revision Commission to consider paring down the document.

“Our Constitution is an unholy mess,” said Santa Clarita City Councilman Carl Boyer III, a longtime advocate of dramatic change in the state document. “All I want is a (state) Constitution that the average person can read in the same length of time that they can read the U. S. Constitution.”

The action last week at the league’s annual meeting in San Francisco came just one week after Gov. Pete Wilson signed a law establishing the 23-member commission, which will analyze the state’s primary governing document and make recommendations to the Legislature on changes.

Critics of the current Constitution say it encourages inefficiency, divides government with legislative majorities of one political party and chief executives of another, ensures protection of the status quo through campaign finance laws and has been made overly long and rigid by the initiative process.

“Over the last 25 years, a lot of things have been added to the Constitution . . . and so you have had things piling up and building up,” said Craig Reynolds, chief of staff for state Sen. Lucy Killea (I-San Diego), who wrote the measure creating the commission. “Is that in the long-term best interests of the state?”

The cities, Boyer said, view the last five years of state budget crises as examples of how the Constitution has narrowed the options of state government and allowed the state to balance its budget on the backs of cities. The league wants the new commission to recommend revisions in the way that the state manages its money, he added.

“Start over from scratch and deal with everything,” said Boyer, who teaches government, economics and history at San Fernando High School. He said his students have a hard time studying the 134-page state Constitution because of its unwieldiness.

More coverage of the Santa Clarita and Antelope valleys appears today on B4.