Councilwoman, Executive Battle in Controller’s Race

Despite its long-standing reputation as a cutting-edge kind of place, Los Angeles has never elected a woman to citywide office.

But with Councilwoman Laura Chick and business executive Laurette Healey as the two main contenders for city controller in the April 10 primary, that particular glass ceiling is all but certain to shatter.

True, each of the higher-profile contests for mayor and city attorney features a woman among the main contenders: state Controller Kathleen Connell and Deputy Dist. Atty. Lea Purwin D’Agostino, respectively. But both of them face tough odds against some better-financed male candidates.

Chick and Healey, by contrast, practically have the race to themselves. Former city Treasurer J. Paul Brownridge fell short of the number of voter signatures needed to run and, unless he mounts a successful court challenge, will not be on the ballot.

Author and investment banker Mervin Evans did make the ballot. However, Evans, 48, has run so often and for so many offices (never getting more than 10% of the vote) that few who know politics take his candidacy seriously.

So it seems a good bet that the woman who breaks Los Angeles’ gender barrier in citywide contests will do so for the city controller’s office--a relatively obscure but important watchdog post.

The controller, with an annual salary of $146,356.10, is basically the city’s bookkeeper, with accounting and auditing responsibilities that were enhanced under the city’s recently implemented, voter-approved new charter.

Incumbent Rick Tuttle, prevented by the city’s term-limits law from seeking reelection to the job he first won in 1985, has evaluated scores of municipal operations, frequently making recommendations, if not big headlines.

For Tuttle’s immediate predecessors, Ira Reiner, then James K. Hahn, the controller’s office proved to be a steppingstone to higher office--Reiner to Los Angeles County district attorney and Hahn (now running for mayor) to city attorney.

Chick, 56, who is “termed out” after eight years representing the San Fernando Valley’s 3rd Council District, said her work on the council, and particularly as chairwoman of its Governmental Efficiency Committee, makes her the best candidate.

“The controller’s job is about delivering accountability to the public. . . . It’s about not only stretching the dollars but fixing what’s broken with how we operate,” Chick said.

She cited her knowledge of how the city works, her years as head of the council’s Public Safety Committee and some of the programs she has initiated.

For example, Chick launched a program to crack down on litter, graffiti and other eyesores in her district by developing a system in which trash collectors can quickly report problems they spot on their rounds. She also formed neighborhood advisory councils to give community members more say in planning decisions.

She has lined up an array of endorsements, including Tuttle’s, and many from federal, state and local elected officials, labor unions, Democratic Party organizations and some women’s groups, including the National Organization for Women.

Chick, a former social worker and council aide who successfully challenged her boss in the 1993 elections, declared her interest in the controller’s race early, apparently scaring off some potential competitors.

Mayor Richard Riordan, who has clashed with Chick over police hiring and other issues, tried unsuccessfully to interest then-Deputy Mayor Noelia Rodriguez and state Sen. Richard Alarcon (D-Sylmar) in running against Chick.

Entering Race With Riordan’s Backing

In January, however, Laurette Healey, the chief financial officer and owner of an entertainment manufacturing and distribution firm, entered the race with Riordan’s strong backing.

Healey, 46, a lesbian and a breast cancer survivor, has raised money for breast cancer research and produced the Equality Rocks 2000 concert to combat hate crimes. She met Riordan, long active in education causes, through her work with after-school and mentoring programs.

“I now feel seasoned enough to enter the political arena,” Healey, whose father was a longtime New York state legislator, recalled as her approach to Riordan about a possible run for office. A Valley resident, Healey said she initially considered running for Julie Korenstein’s school board seat, but quickly concluded that controller was the right place for her.

The controller job requirements were “identical to the management decisions I’ve made over the last 20 years,” Healey said. “Taxpayers will know I am one of them, and I am a very seasoned businessperson. . . . I can analyze situations quickly and act decisively.”

She became chief executive of a publicly held company at 33.

Although Chick has raised nearly $400,000 for the race, Healey believes she can catch up quickly. Her campaign got a high-profile boost last week when Riordan and his wife, Nancy Daly Riordan, hosted a fund-raiser for her at their Bel-Air home.

Political activist David Mixner and television producer Norman Lear also have endorsed Healey.

Chick and Healey have yet to meet in public debate, but already things are getting contentious.

Soon after The Times ran a story about how some local political consultants also work as paid lobbyists and thus try to influence the council members whose elections they helped engineer, Healey called on Chick to order her consultant to quit lobbying or resign from her campaign.

“It is even the perception of impropriety that we must guard against,” Healey said in a written statement faxed to reporters.

Chick refused to comment, calling the gambit “a negative, personal attack” and urging Healey to stick to the issues.