LA Charter Commission Votes to Create Chief Financial Officer, Overriding Community Opposition

Los Angeles city officials and community members gather at a Los Angeles Charter Reform Commission meeting on Feb. 26. Many attendees spoke in opposition to a proposal to create a city chief financial officer, which they said would shift power away from the city controller’s office, after Los Angeles City Controller Kenneth Mejia urged the public to attend and comment. (Hermes Padilla/For Emerson College.)

LOS ANGELES — The LA Charter Reform Commission voted to advance a proposal creating a new chief financial officer position that would assume key functions currently held by the independently elected controller, in what critics say would consolidate the mayor’s power and disenfranchise voters. 

After a shocking social media post from the Los Angeles City Controller Kenneth Mejia urged community members to oppose the proposal, more than 45 public speakers turned out at the Commissioners' Chapter meeting Feb. 26 at Los Angeles City Hall to defend his office. Nearly all commenters opposed Measure 1b, which critics argued concentrates power under the mayor and city council while eliminating a crucial check on city finances.

"This puts us further in the dark," said Nicole Levitt, a community member said at the meeting. "To not have an elected official who is reachable the way Kenneth Mejia has made himself approachable and accessible—we're grasping for information."

Tim Riley, a City District 1 coffee shop owner, told commissioners his customers feel Mejia is "the only form of government that we have felt has represented us."

"None of us wants this," Riley said. "We want to see where our tax dollars are going for once."

Mejia warned the proposal would "double down" on what he called a broken status quo.

"I was shocked yesterday to discover the CFO option that would consolidate many of my office's functions, a very newly created CFO, under the mayor and council," Mejia said at the meeting. "I urge you to reject any proposal that directly or indirectly takes away any of the material communities and responsibilities."

Marlene Fonseca, legislative director for the EAA Union, which represents most controller's office employees, cautioned that appointing rather than electing the city's financial overseer invites future abuse.

"Any changes going forward are dangerous territory, but we don't know who's gonna be the next mayor," Fonseca said.

A representative for Mayor Karen Bass argued the new position would complement rather than replace Mejia's role, insisting the controller would retain audit and fraud investigation powers while the CFO would handle "long-term strategic vision" for city finances.

"The purpose of establishing a CFO is not just consolidating a list of roles and responsibilities, but it's the creation of a position also providing long-term strategic vision for the city's finances," the representative testified.

The commission's recommendation now heads to the City Council, which could place the charter amendment on the November ballot for voter approval. Opponents vowed to continue fighting the change.

"This is a once-in-a-generation opportunity to fix what's broken," said Amy Marla, a public commenter. "Failure is not an option.”