First Phase of CEO’s Restructuring Plan to Target 2 Agencies

With the bankruptcy finally over, county Chief Executive Officer Jan Mittermeier has immediately embraced another contentious issue: making government leaner and more efficient.

Mittermeier is expected to unveil on Wednesday the first piece of her much-anticipated plan to revamp county government. The next day, the Board of Supervisors is tentatively scheduled to consider her recommendations during a special meeting.

Details of the proposal are closely guarded, but officials said it will probably focus on two of the county’s largest agencies: the General Services Agency and the Environmental Management Agency.

A key objective, according to insiders, is to bring the agencies more under the control and oversight of Mittermeier’s county executive office--a prospect that troubles some activists who oppose granting the CEO greater powers.

The initiative is part of a larger restructuring program that will unfold over the next two years and could bring major changes in the way cities, the county and special districts interact and provide services.

So far, Mittermeier has only released a general overview of her reform vision. But she insists that the county must cut costs if it hopes to effectively operate under the constraints of the bankruptcy recovery plan, which requires Orange County to repay $800 million in bonds over 30 years.

“It’s the next critical step,” she said. “It’s not going to happen overnight.”

Supervisors are withholding judgment until they receive the recommendations, though most have expressed general support for restructuring in the past.

Some critics, however, are already lining up to attack Mittermeier’s plan, fearing it is a bid to garner more power for her office.

“If this plan puts more power in the hands of an unelected CEO, that means less accountability for elected officials,” said Laguna Niguel Councilman Eddie Rose. “The people want the Board of Supervisors to be more accountable, not less.”

Both the GSA--which handles maintenance, real estate, voter registration and libraries--and the EMA--responsible for planning, parks, transportation and building--have already suffered significant budget reductions because of the bankruptcy.

The EMA’s operating budget was cut by 13% last year, to $82 million. The agency will lose more than $500 million in tax revenue over the next 20 years, forcing delays in the development of new parks and roads.

Less publicized but also significant are the financial woes facing the GSA, which saw its budget slashed by 38% last year, to $22 million, and its work force cut by 21%, to 874 positions.

As a result, the county has sharply curtailed its preventive maintenance programs on everything from elevators and roofs to plumbing and air conditioners.

Officials fear that if some maintenance isn’t soon restored, expensive equipment could break down prematurely, costing the county more money than it is saving by deferring the work. Safety is not considered an issue because inspections are required by law.

“We are afraid that if we don’t do regular, routine maintenance, we could have some major problems,” said Robert A. Griffith, the agency’s director. “The useful life of a system is much greater if it is maintained properly.”

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The cutbacks have also caused problems in the GSA’s purchasing department, where officials reduced staffing by 40% on the assumption that the bankruptcy would result in fewer orders. But the workload has not substantially decreased, and purchases that used to take about two weeks to process now take as long as six weeks, Griffith said.

Unlike other county agencies, the GSA encompasses a broad range of departments that in some cases have little connection to one another.

The agency was formed in the mid-1970s as an umbrella organization designed to create a better chain of command among its departments and improve efficiency and oversight.

The GSA departments are primarily in charge of activities that serve the county bureaucracy, such as purchasing and maintenance.

But the agency also handles some public services such as libraries and voter registration. A few departments have left the GSA over the last 20 years, including John Wayne Airport and Integrated Waste Management.

While workers wait to see how restructuring will affect their departments, some observers are already debating the merits of a stronger role for the chief executive officer.

Business leaders and some government reformers have long advocated a strong county CEO to run day-to-day operations in much the same way a company president or city manager does.

“A CEO is a model that we think is conducive to efficient and effective government,” said Todd Nicholson, executive director of the Orange County Business Council. “It’s worked time and time again in both the public and private sector.”

The Board of Supervisors created the CEO job last year in response to criticism that the county needed a strong manager in the wake of the bankruptcy, which stemmed from a $1.64-billion loss attributed to former Treasurer-Tax Collector Robert L. Citron’s risky investment practices.

The CEO has more power than the old county administrative officer, including control over most county departments. But Mittermeier has said that county government must undergo a fundamental reappraisal of how it operates and provides services, with an eye on reducing costs.

A county charter proposal would have established an even stronger CEO but was soundly rejected by voters in March.

Ravi Kumar, professor of operational management at USC, said that the idea of a strong CEO has merit.

“Accountability is the key,” he said. “You want to have one person who you can point to . . . as being responsible for the organization.”

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But others fear that a restructuring plan that places more power in the hands of a nonelected bureaucrat would reduce government’s accountability to the public.

“Giving more to the CEO goes against what the voters said in the March election,” said Patrick Quaney, a charter opponent and anti-tax activist. “It totally ignores what the people want.”

Quaney and others also take issue with the county’s plan to release the restructuring plan on Wednesday and have the supervisors consider it the next day. “That doesn’t provide any time for public involvement,” he said.

Mittermeier’s proposal comes a week before the expected release of separate reform recommendations by a citizens committee formed more than a year ago to take a comprehensive look at the way county government operates.

Attorney William R. Mitchell, vice chairman of the committee, said that the two reform efforts will benefit the public.

“Where you find commonality, it provides assurances to the public that these are areas that need to be changed,” he said.

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Targeted for Change

The first phase of a long-awaited county government restructuring plan will be unveiled this week. Though details have not been released, the plan is expected to focus, in part, on two key county agencies: the General Services Agency and the Environmental Management Agency. Here is an overview:

GENERAL SERVICES AGENCY

* Responsibilities: Purchasing, maintenance, engineering, architecture, libraries, voter registration, real estate and data processing.

* Budget: $37 million in 1994 and $22 million in 1995--a 38% cut.

* Staffing: 874 employees.

* Bankruptcy status: Budget cuts forced the agency to curtail preventive maintenance programs and combine some departments.

ENVIRONMENTAL MANAGEMENT AGENCY

* Responsibilities: Planning, building and safety, transportation, redevelopment, housing, public works, flood control, and harbors, beaches and parks.

* Budget: $95 million in 1994 and $82 million in 1995--a 13% cut.

* Staffing: 1,267 employees.

* Bankruptcy status: The agency will lose more than $500 million in revenue over the next 20 years, forcing delays in new park and road developments and redevelopment projects.