Strong Mayor Government Takes Effect in San Diego

SAN DIEGO - San Diego started the new year by becoming the sixth of America's ten largest cities to implement a strong-mayor form of city government. Newly elected Mayor Jerry Sanders has been granted new authority, but has the office of mayor really been made stronger?

Voters approved the "strong-mayor" ballot measure, formerly referred to as Proposition F, in the November 2004 general election. Under the new system, the mayor no longer has a vote on the City Council, and no longer presides over public council meetings, although he will continue to preside over closed-door meetings. The measure grants him new executive powers to oversee the day-to-day operations of the city and hire and fire top administrators.

Other powers the mayor now has include the ability to veto council decisions and the authority to prepare the budget.

Originally scheduled to take effect under former Mayor Dick Murphy's administration, the city government was to have had fourteen months to make the transition. It now falls to the new mayor to oversee the city's conversion to the strong mayor form of government amidst the already daunting problems he is facing, including the $1.4 to $1.7 billion pension deficit crisis, the estimated $19 million city budget deficit, and the general feeling of distrust and disgust expressed by many San Diegans in the wake of numerous scandals that have rocked City Hall over the past two years.

Despite Sanders' campaign promises to end the business as usual approach to city governance, little change was seen in the way city affairs were conducted during the mayor's first month in office. The only major actions were the City Council's approval of contracts to buy new police cars and upgrade the nearly obsolete emergency services communications system.

Sanders came out swinging on Jan. 2 by calling for the resignation of all upper and mid-level managers during a mid-day press conference. The move seems to be preemptory, however.

Although he estimated there were about 300 managers in city government, the mayor admitted that no one presently knows exactly how many upper and middle managers the city currently employs.

Sanders also said that his team will study the current structure to determine what should be altered. The study will assess city contracts, personnel, information technology and administration.

Sanders categorized the city government as "complicated and overly bureaucratic." He also promised that he wouldn't hire anymore outside consultants to help tackle the city's problems. The use of advisers during the pension crisis has cost the city more than $24 million, so far.

"We're trying to save money and we won't be using outside people," said Sanders. "We aren't going to be doing any more deficit spending either, by borrowing from the pension or giving out budgets that aren't honest," he said.

There is much conjecture about the roles and relationships at City Hall under the new form of governance, starting with the mayor, who will no longer preside over the City Council.

Under the new strong mayor government, the president of the City Council, Scott Peters, will set the legislative agenda instead of the mayor. Although the mayor will have the ability to veto measures passed by the City Council, he will no longer have a vote, and the veto can be overturned by the same margin it takes to pass the measure in the first place.

While the mayor will be charged with formulating the budget, the budget will have to be approved by the council. The mayor has the authority to hire and fire city officials, but new hires must be provided for in the city budget.

Weighing into the give-and-take the loss of control over committee appointments has some critics thinking there is no real increase in the political power the mayor will wield.