Davis Accused of Filling Posts Too Slowly

Mette Adams was exhilarated last April when the California State Student Assn. named her its choice to represent the state university system’s 360,000 students on the Board of Trustees.

As one who returned to college later in life, she had seen firsthand what a degree could do to better her life. And after a year as chairwoman of the state’s student association, Adams was confident that she, like few others, could bring a student’s perspective to the boardroom.

“I thought, ‘Great, I can’t wait to start,’ ” said the 40-year-old Sonoma State student.

Only the formality of the governor’s appointment stood between Adams and her task. But she found herself in the same kind of limbo faced by hundreds of others hoping for appointments to boards and commissions in Sacramento--appointments that Gov. Gray Davis has been painstakingly slow to make. Month after month passed, with no call from the governor’s office.

The Cal State student trustee may be among the least pressing appointments of the 2,500 under Davis’ control--even to a governor who proclaims education his top priority. Having begun his second year in office, Davis has filled 823 posts, said spokesman Michael Bustamante. He added that Davis will make appointments throughout his term, but all 2,500 may never be filled.

Davis defends himself against criticism that he is taking too much time, noting that he is answerable to voters. He has said that he makes a point of talking either in person or by telephone to each appointee.

“The people I appoint need to more or less reflect my world view,” Davis said in December. “If they don’t, it’s really a fraud on the electorate because the only person they got to vote on was me.”

He has not filled openings on the Board of Corrections, the Fair Employment and Housing Board, the Fish and Game Commission, the Gambling Control Board and many others. In some instances, boards have been forced to delay votes until a quorum can be rounded up. Davis has made temporary appointments so boards could decide key issues.

For some boards and commissions, the lack of appointees has caused work to slow, if not stop. At the Commission on Aging, 19 of the 25 members are Gov. Pete Wilson’s appointees. That means that the commission can conduct business, but it is hesitant to propose legislation in areas such as elder abuse because incoming commissioners may not share their views, said Peggy Shuchter, the commission’s government affairs coordinator.

On the California Medical Board, which licenses doctors, eight of the 17 governor-appointed seats are vacant. The board’s licensing division, with four of seven members missing, does not have a quorum. The vacancies haven’t caused a problem yet but could if the situation persists, said Linda Whitney, legislative coordinator for the board.

Davis’ aides say that he is moving faster on appointments than his predecessor, Gov. Pete Wilson. They also say that the pace has quickened in recent weeks.

Ann Bancroft, spokeswoman for Davis’ education agency, said she has had no word about the Cal State holdup.

“This is an important term; it’s the beginning of a new century and CSU students are without representation,” said Assemblywoman Gloria Romero (D-Los Angeles), who carried a bill last summer that added a second student trustee.

Despite recent letters to Davis urging him to fill the vacancy, Romero said she has heard nothing.

“My urgent hope,” Romero said, “is that the governor will move expeditiously . . . with the appointments. It’s been eight months and the school year is now almost over.”

When university policymakers debated how to squeeze a few extra classes from crowded facilities, Adams and two other nominees sat idly by. When trustees made new rules about students who need remedial help, no student cast a vote.

The void has the California State Student Assn.--the body authorized to forward nominees to the governor--perplexed and frustrated. “Especially in a higher education institution, to have a student perspective is probably one of the most important things,” said Virginia Whitby, the association’s director of university and administrative affairs.

“Even though the current [student association] executive committee goes every month and meets with the chancellor, a lot of conversation goes on during the down time,” Adams said. “And without a student trustee, we’re not in that loop anymore.”