Acting City Legislative Analyst Gets the Job

After nearly a year of trying to find a new chief legislative analyst, the Los Angeles City Council offered the job Wednesday to Gerry Miller, who has been filling the role in an interim capacity since December.

The council has quarreled for seven weeks over who should get the job, and early in the summer, Miller was told that he was not a finalist. He appeared to be out of the running until recent days, when he again expressed interest in the job.

The council interviewed six candidates in a 10-hour closed meeting Tuesday. In an unusual move, even council staffers were banned from the meeting to keep the proceedings secret.

But word leaked out before Wednesday morning’s council meeting that Miller had gotten the job. In an open session, the council approved his selection on a 12-0 vote, with one member absent.

The legislative analyst helps the council craft motions that are legal and financially sensible. Many council members often vote according to the analyst’s policy recommendations.

Longtime Chief Legislative Analyst Ron Deaton left the post last year to become general manager of the city Department of Water and Power. At the time, he was the highest-paid city employee, with a salary of nearly $261,000.

Miller’s salary has not been determined.

A committee led by Council President Alex Padilla brought two finalists before the full council in a rancorous closed meeting in early August. But several other council members said they were upset that both were from outside the city.

Miller “fought for the job and fought for it well and that made a big impression” with the council, Padilla said.

Miller, 45, began working for the city in 1985 and became the executive officer for the chief legislative analyst in 1998.

In his usual reserved manner, Miller had little to say: “I hope to continue to support the council and help them achieve their policy directions.”