Legislators Look Homeward for Future in Politics

SACRAMENTO —  For years, Los Angeles city lawmakers seemed to get together only when they flew home.

The 28-member delegation was considered a sleeping giant, only rarely rousing to exercise its collective political muscle on behalf of Los Angeles.

But as the Legislature recently concluded its session, some members of the city’s Statehouse delegation began to wake up with a new eye on local concerns, agreeing on more than just flight schedules.

Facing voter-imposed term limits, legislators scrambled to stake out high-profile local issues that would win points with the folks back home. Instead of term limits shattering their political futures, the restrictions have prompted some lawmakers to consider rerouting their careers through Los Angeles City Hall.

One ambitious Los Angeles legislator, who asked not to be identified, said that the heightened awareness of district issues goes beyond political self-interest. He suggested that Los Angeles lawmakers, most of whom are Democrats, are tailoring proposals to fit local issues because they are “frustrated by not being able to shape state policy” under Republican Gov. Pete Wilson or his GOP predecessor, George Deukmejian.

Their efforts started to pay off last week.

Wilson signed into law a measure--sought by Los Angeles Latino legislators--that scuttles a controversial plan to build a prison near downtown. Wilson also signed a proposal--opposed by Mayor Tom Bradley--that allows the city to snatch $44 million in port funds to cushion the blow of state cuts. And the governor went to South-Central Los Angeles to sign a measure by Assemblywoman Marguerite Archie-Hudson (D-Los Angeles) that gives tax breaks to companies that rebuild in areas of the city ravaged by last spring’s riots.

Still awaiting action by Wilson is a bill that would establish a super agency to revitalize the Los Angeles River.

Assemblywoman Lucille Roybal-Allard (D-Los Angeles), who fought the proposed prison, says the riots heightened the need for lawmakers “to pull together” for the city. Meanwhile, she said, term limits are forcing legislators to reorient the way they view their jobs.

“Everyone is looking for an opening where they can move to,” said Roybal-Allard, who is now running for Congress. Assemblyman Richard Katz (D-Sylmar), who sought the port fund transfer, is expected to enter next year’s contest for mayor. Assemblyman Terry B. Friedman (D-Los Angeles), who also worked behind the scenes for funds for Los Angeles, has made no secret that he would like to run for city attorney. And Assemblyman Richard Polanco (D-Los Angeles), who had once supported the proposed Los Angeles prison, took a high-profile role in championing the plan to kill the facility, fueling speculation that he was seeking redemption from voters should he decide to run for the state Senate or seek a City Council seat.

Finding common ground among lawmakers is not easy in a delegation that ranges in ideology from Assemblyman Paula Boland (R-Granada Hills) on the right to Assemblyman Tom Hayden (D-Santa Monica) on the left. A few years ago some Los Angeles-area lawmakers, whose districts also encompass suburban areas, split with their urban colleagues in a fight for a larger share of money for schools.

Instead, Los Angeles legislators form ad-hoc coalitions: coastal lawmakers band together to fight offshore oil drilling plans; San Fernando Valley representatives battle to buy parkland in the Santa Monica Mountains; Latinos tenaciously rally to kill the prison.

On the rare occasions when Los Angeles legislators mobilize as a delegation, it is usually because there is a threat to the city’s treasury.

Such was the case when Katz, Friedman and others this summer sought to unify Los Angeles lawmakers. With the deepening state budget crisis, Katz said, “this year we had to band together . . . to keep Los Angeles from falling below the basic service level.”

But all was not a love fest among legislators. Hayden said he was surprised that Los Angeles issues failed to gain a higher profile in the Capitol. “The Los Angeles riots got virtually zero response from the Legislature,” Hayden said. He dismissed Katz’s actions as “just political juggling.”

Still, with term limits threatening their political lives, lawmakers are looking homeward to latch onto a local cause. Assemblyman Richard E. Floyd (D-Carson) said that almost every Los Angeles legislator is maneuvering for a spot on the City Council.

“It’s an excellent job,” said Floyd, who pointed out that, unlike legislators, council members “don’t have to maintain two residences.” And, as of now, there are no term limits.