Open Letter: Ratepayer Advocate Needs ‘Fire in His Belly’

DEAR MAYOR GARCETTI--I’m breaking my long silence with you to comment on the article about "Calls to oust DWP ratepayer advocate" by Emily Alpert Reyes in today’s Los Angeles Times. I would not support removing Fred from his post just as I didn't support the removal of Ron Nichols as General Manager of the DWP.

You know that, as a representative of the city-wide Neighborhood Council Oversight Committee for the DWP,  I supported the passage of the charter amendment, that was overwhelming approved by the voters, to create the Office of Public Accountability (OPA) to oversee the DWP.

I was very disappointed in the way that the elected and appointed officials of the city went about enabling the new Office after the election. Fred Pickel (photo) was a decent choice for the head of OPA but he had his hands tied in many ways from the outset by City Hall.

He has most of the attributes to do a great job for the City and the Ratepayers. Unfortunately, he lacks one important attribute – he doesn’t appear to have the “fire in his belly” that would make him a strong advocate for the people.

Fred is a strong auditor of what is going on at DWP. He needs an associate who will use the “Bully Pulpit” implied by the existence of the OPA to get the Ratepayers informed and involved in strengthening the governance of the DWP. You have it in your power to create such a role. Send the Council a proposal to have the OPA staffed with a Ratepayers’ Advocate selected by representatives of all the stakeholders of the DWP.

This proposal is similar to the solution prepared by the ad-hoc committee established by Austen Beutner when he was General Manager of the DWP. I am proud that I was able to serve on that committee.

At the time the Charter Amendment was voted on by the Council, I believed that the ad-hoc committee’s solution was much stronger than the charter amendment. I backed the charter amendment anyway because I believed that a popular vote would insure that the OPA would, in time, become the strong advocate for the ratepayers. I was naïve.

My lack of understanding of the many ways that the existing city government could thwart the will of the voters created undue optimism in the success of the charter amendment. You have the ability to restore the promise of the OPA. Will you do it?

(Chuck Ray is a long time neighborhood council activist and Vice Chair of the DWP MOU Oversight Committee.)

-cw

 

 

CityWatch

Vol 13 Issue 93

Pub: Nov 17, 2015

{module [1177]}