Charter Commissioners, City Council Members Are Sworn In

For the first time in California history, 15 elected commissioners were sworn into office Monday to overhaul a city’s governing blueprint, Los Angeles’ 72-year-old charter.

During the same ceremony, Cindy Miscikowski took the oath of office to replace her former boss, 11th District Council member Marvin Braude, a 32-year City Hall veteran.

Braude’s last official act was to administer the oath of office to Miscikowski and seven reelected council members. Afterward, they hugged and kissed Braude.

“I can’t imagine anything more symbolic and terrific than to have Marvin do the ceremony,” Miscikowski said later.

The Charter Commission, which was created primarily due to the work and funding of Mayor Richard Riordan, will meet for the first time Monday in City Hall.

However, in his 30-minute inaugural address, Riordan never recognized the charter commissioners sitting behind him on the stage and only once mentioned the need to rewrite the document.

Several City Hall insiders have suggested that Riordan has lost interest in the commission since voters elected eight union-backed members and only four Riordan-backed candidates. Two other candidates shared the support of labor and the mayor.

In an interview later, Riordan said he is still committed to the commission, but has yet to collect the $2 million in contributions that he promised to amass to fund its 18 months of work.

“This charter is not about unions and management,” Riordan said. “It is about making the city more manageable. It is about giving a voice to people in neighborhoods.”

The mayor said he will make good on his promise to contribute at least $300,000 from his own pocket to fund the commission. He also said he has talked with leaders of the city’s unions about teaming up to get contributions from nonprofit foundations and other sources.

On Wednesday, the City Council will discuss a proposal to financially assist the commission, even though the council has already vowed to fund its own 21-member appointed reform panel.

Despite the unresolved questions about their funding, the elected charter commissioners expressed optimism about completing their charge.

“It’s a historic opportunity to be part of changing the way the city government works,” said Charter Commissioner Rob Glushon.