A Tight Deadline

Six months. That is the amount of time the Commission on Revenue Efficiency has to gather its facts and prepare recommendations on how the city can improve collections on money owed and find new sources to fill the city’s coffers. The seven-member ad hoc commission has gotten off to a quick start, meeting once a week at City Hall to hear presentations by city departments. The limited lifespan of the commission is not seen by its members or the City Council as a bad thing. Instead, it points to the urgency of what the commission is addressing as the city faces a $200 million deficit in the current fiscal year. “It doesn’t do the city any good to come up with recommendations 18 months from now,” said Michael Gagan, a public affairs consultant who has also held positions in the state government. Joining Gagan on the commission are Ron Galperin and David Farrar, both attorneys; former City Council member and current president of the Board of Harbor Commissioners Cindy Miscikowski; union official Cheryl Parisi; Brandon Shamin, president of the Beacon Management Group; and private investor Mark Ames. Galperin, a journalist before turning to law, serves as the commission’s chairman. His goal is not just to have the city quickly collect what it can on debt but also take a wider view to address the bureaucratic culture that led the city to be in the financial position it finds itself in. To bring in more money, Galperin would like the city to be more entrepreneurial and make available goods and services to municipal and county governments. For instance, there are city-owned asphalt plants not operating at full capacity that could provide asphalt to other cities, Galperin said. Proprietary software developed by the city could be licensed out as well, he added. In Gagan’s view, the city has historically been parochial in its thinking – taking care of itself was all it needed to do. Different mindset That mindset won’t cut it anymore. The Terminal Island Water Reclamation Plant operated by the Department of Public Works is a regional asset, Gagan said, and the renewable energy project being done there could become a revenue generator. It is that kind of thinking that brought the seven together on the commission. Council President Eric Garcetti, who appointed two members, called the group one of the most impressive the city has. Through the end of April, the commission heard presentations from the city’s finance department, Animal Services, police department, city attorney, Department of Transportation, and the Bureau of Sanitation. After four meetings, Gagan was struck by the lack of uniformity in city departments to handle billing and collections. Still, Gagan does not put his support behind centralizing the collections process as has been recommended to the city in at least two reports. The Police Department, he said, does a fine job in collecting fees related to responding to false alarms and would not want to see that replaced. What has also struck Gagan is the willing cooperation of the representatives from the departments. They were not defensive when questioned by the commission and were honest about their respective deficiencies, Gagan said. Farrar echoed that assessment. The city employees were sincerely interested in wanting to do a better job in bringing in money the city is owed, Farrar said. “The city gets points for trying to be as transparent with us as they can be,” Farrar said.