5, 6, & me: on WCPN tomorrow

I'll be on 90.3 WCPN's Reporters' Roundtable tomorrow morning, talking about Issues 5 and 6, the dueling county reform efforts. I'll be talking with host Dan Moulthrop, Dan Bobkoff of Ideastream, and Laura Johnston of the Plain Dealer from 9:06 to 9:23 a.m. and 9:33 to 9:50 a.m.

The Issue 6 charter (our 500-word version)

Have you read the Issue 6 charter? No?

We sympathize. Although the ballot proposal, written by some Democratic politicians and Republican businessmen, would give Cuyahoga County a brand-new government, it’s 28 pages long, and it reads kind of stiff. So we figured it needed an editor and a ghost writer. We've cut its 11,700 words to an easily understandable 500, with our improvements in red.
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CHARTER OF CUYAHOGA COUNTY

PREAMBLE

We, the people of Cuyahoga County, Ohio (wow! just like the Constitution!), desire a county government that provides for the separation of administrative and legislative powers, instead of three guys deciding everything in closed meetings, and for a more representative and accountable form of governance that will notice if someone allegedly steals $1.2 million in cash. We, the people, adopt this Charter of Cuyahoga County.

SECTION 2.01 COUNTY EXECUTIVE.

The County Executive shall be the chief executive officer of the County, like a mayor, with the power to appoint, suspend, discipline and remove all County personnel, propose budgets and veto anything the county council passes, which will either give us a better government or improve efficiency by replacing several political machines with one huge, all-powerful one.

SECTION 2.02 COMPENSATION.

The initial salary of the County Executive shall be $175,000 per year, or $30,000 more than the governor, because obviously, only losers would want this job if it paid $110K.

SECTION 3.04 COUNCIL DISTRICTS.

(1) Initial Districts. The eleven districts from which the members of the Council shall be elected at the November 2, 2010 general election are gerrymandered to elect four white Democrats, four black Democrats, and three Republicans. Everybody happy?

SECTION 3.09 POWERS AND DUTIES OF THE COUNCIL.

(12) To establish by ordinance a code of ethics, which shall guide and inform County officers and employees in a manner that will avoid conflicts of interest, self-dealing, casino chips, really good deals on home improvements, and other violations of the public trust.

SECTION 5.02 FISCAL OFFICER: POWERS, DUTIES AND QUALIFICATIONS.

(3) Qualifications. The Fiscal Officer shall be a certified public accountant and shall have had at least five years’ experience in the management of financial matters of political subdivisions, instead of being Frank Russo.

SECTION 9.01 HUMAN RESOURCE COMMISSION.

The Human Resource Commission shall be responsible for administering an efficient and economical system for the employment of persons in the public service of the County according to merit and fitness. Employment according to campaign contributions, clambake ticket sales, limo rides to Caesar's Windsor and cash bribes will be phased out over a 12-month period.

SECTION 12.03 FORFEITURE OF OFFICE.

A County elected official shall forfeit that office if the officer knowingly violates any express prohibition of this Charter, including Section 12.04 hereof;

SECTION 12.04 REPORTING OF OFFERS TO INFLUENCE OFFICIAL ACTION.

Any elected or appointed County officer who receives or who has specific and personal knowledge of any offer by any person of anything of value to be given to a County officer or employee for the purpose of influencing such officer or employee in the performance of such officer’s or employee’s official duties shall promptly report the matter or lose their job, whether they take the bait or not. Pretty badass, huh?

SECTION 13.01 OFFICES ABOLISHED. THE TIM HAGAN AND PETER LAWSON JONES RETIREMENT ACT.

Officials elected to terms ending in 2012 go home two years early.

Cuyahoga League of Women Voters: Issue 6 "greatly reduces patronage, duplication and waste"

In all the coverage of Issues 5 and 6, I haven't seen the League of Women Voters, Cuyahoga Area quoted much. The good-government group has wanted a county executive government for Cuyahoga County since 1979. It helped circulate petitions to get Issue 6 on the ballot and is now promoting the proposed county charter at public forums. (The last three forums are this week in Westlake, Beachwood and Fairview Park.)

The group issued its endorsement last month, but I just read it recently. I'm posting it here because it makes some arguments I haven't heard elsewhere. Its website also links to more analysis: a summary of the charter, a list of checks and balances in it, and a set of 20 arguments for the charter and responses to common arguments from the anti-6 campaign.

One small update: 14 of the 29 charter commission candidates have the county commissioners' support. (There were 15 on that slate, but one dropped out.)

Also: The Cuyahoga Area LWV is one of three League of Women Voters chapters in town. It serves most Cuyahoga County suburbs. A separate Cleveland chapter seems to be neutral on 6, while the Shaker Heights chapter is pro-6.
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NOVEMBER 3, 2009 BALLOT QUESTION 6: "Shall a county charter be adopted, providing for an elected county executive, an elected county prosecutor, eleven county council members elected by district, and all other officers appointed by the county executive whose appointments are subject to the confirmation by council and who shall serve at the pleasure of the county executive?"

The League of Women Voters recommends: VOTE YES! Here's why:

1. Separation of Legislative (policy-making) from Executive (administrative) powers permits numerous effective checks and balances to hinder or prevent overreaching by a single strong County leader, while providing Ohio's largest county with executive focus and visible, accountable leadership.
2. A Council of 11 will represent the county's diverse districts and have the power to pass ordinances, investigate wrongdoing in the bureaucracy, and debate County policies in the open.
3. Appointing rather than electing 7 of the 8 "row offices" (Recorder, Auditor, Sheriff, Coroner, Engineer, Clerk of Courts and Treasurer) leads to a unified, professionally administered executive branch that greatly reduces patronage, duplication and waste.
4. New safeguards against corruption and abuse of power include mandatory internal audits, centralized employment standards, a code of ethics covering conflicts of interest, a whistle-blower mandate, possible recall elections, and a charter amendment process.
5. Powerful new focus on both economic development and regional collaboration brings limited Home Rule flexibility that will enable new initiatives to reverse county decline.
6. This charter is backed by 53,000 petition signatures and a bipartisan group of political and civic leaders including the League of Women Voters. It is drawn from the best features of the Summit County charter, the 1996 Barber Commission draft, the Municipal League's Model County Charter, and suggestions by the drafting group, municipal law specialists, and other contributors. Diverse opinions were sought, respected and incorporated.

BALLOT QUESTION 5: "Shall a county charter commission be chosen?"

This question was put on the ballot in mid-July by the County Commissioners, who also support 15 of the 30 candidates running for the 15 Charter Commissioner seats. If this issue passes, the county charter commission must meet the Ohio constitutional mandate to study county government and various options for reform and to draft a charter for voter consideration in November 2010. The 30 candidates will appear on the ballot without political affiliation. The League of Women Voters neither supports nor opposes this issue or any candidates.

Three studies of Cuyahoga's government structure and operations have taken place since 1995, and nine since 1935. The League of Women Voters has published a brochure detailing its own study findings -- "A Citizen Guide to Cuyahoga County Government," available on line. It is our opinion that another year of study would be a costly delay of reforms already well crafted and ready to go. No one can know what degree of independence or reform the County Commissioners' own panel might produce.

Patmon gets newspaper endorsement -- from Renner's Independent

"Bill Patmon Must Win!" shouts the cover of The Independent, the new alternative newspaper from ex-Scene writer James Renner. I'm sure the mayoral challenger would rather have gotten endorsed by the Plain Dealer or Crain's or the Call & Post -- Renner's endorsement editorial, titled "How you should vote if you're not a total d-bag," is unlikely to pop up on billpatmonformayor.com. {Update, 10/29: Wrong!}

Still, it must have cheered Patmon up to travel the city this week and see his proud, slightly smiling face next to the cover type, "Why this man should be Cleveland's next mayor." (The October issue, available at several bars and bookstores, is the third edition of the alternative monthly, which includes lots of cheeky political coverage and the whodunit crime investigations Renner's best known for.)

Jackson, Renner argues, has "fumbled away any real involvement in the Med Mart deal, a development opportunity the city should have had a say in." Patmon, he says, "has a plan, in fact several, for Cleveland ... real, doable improvements." The challenger outlines a few in an interview with the paper: using Cleveland Public Power to create green jobs, creating an immigrant welcome center, and breaking the school system into five sub-districts.

Two weeks before Election Day, Patmon is tearing into Jackson on the Cleveland schools, calling his education record "a dismal failure." Patmon has an op-ed in Sunday's Plain Dealer that notes the city's schools have a much lower graduation rate than any other big Ohio school district. Cleveland's district has more administrators and pays its top administrators more than the Columbus school district, which has more students enrolled, he adds.

I'd link to Patmon's op-ed, but it hasn't been posted on cleveland.com. His op-ed from last weekend, criticizing the plan to move the port, is online, along with the mayor's pro-port op-ed.

Kucinich, LaTourette practice trust falls, wear Snuggies on Jay Leno show

People who know Cleveland politics really well know that U.S. Reps. Dennis Kucinich and Steve LaTourette are friends, that they've worked together on bills and speak well of each others' leadership. (LaTourette defended Kucinich from his fellow Republicans in my Dec. 2007 Kucinich profile, "The Missionary.")

So when D.L. Hughley, comedian and correspondent for The Jay Leno Show, went to Washington in search of health-care common ground, he turned to the unlikely Northeast Ohio congress-buddies. After a few seconds of debate on whether health care is a right and whether we should nationalize any more of our economy, Hughley got Dennis and Steve to sing "Kum Ba Ya" together (with LaTourette on mini-guitar), practice trust falls together, play on a swingset, and wear Snuggies while watching Leno.

The interview took place in Kucinich's office, under an unusually large photograph of Kucinich and his famously young, crimson-haired wife.

Citizens' petition against Russo dropped

The petitioners who asked for an exam of Frank Russo's books have dropped their request, satisfied that state auditor Mary Taylor is going to do a performance audit.

It's a quiet ending to a great bit of political theater, in which local Republicans used an obscure, ancient law to try to scrutinize an FBI-raided government office, and the implicated official responded with punishing subpoenas.

Now that we know the feds think Russo took $1.2 million in bribes, and now that other elected officials have successfully called for the sort of review the petitioners wanted months ago, the residents have concluded their work is finished.

Zanotti, Jones debate Issues 5, 6

Could a new Cuyahoga County government do more to spark economic development? That question led to the most intense exchange between Peter Lawson Jones and Martin Zanotti at their City Club debate today.

The county commissioner and Parma Heights mayor dueled over Issues 5 and 6, the two county reform plans on the November ballot.

Zanotti said Issue 6 -- which would create a new county government led by an executive and council -- would make economic development a top priority. Jones defended the county's economic development record while arguing for Issue 5, which would create a county charter commission to write an alternate reform plan.

“Our county government today has no long-term economic plan, because it’s not its mission,” Zanotti argued. “Issue 6 is the only true reform measure on the ballot this November that will offer concrete plans to meet our challenges head on.”

Zanotti explained how the county charter proposed in Issue 6 would create a new economic development commission to help the new government write a five-year economic plan. (Here's the proposed charter -- details are in Section 7.)

Jones, who’s pushed hard for the county to do more for economic development, said Zanotti's proposal wouldn't add much. “Issue 6 says we'll have a director of development,” Jones countered. “We already have that. Issue 6 says, we'll have a department of development. We already have that. It says we’ll have an economic development commission. … We already have something called CuyahogaNext Advisers, that’s been active for the last five years, advising the county government how to spend our funds [to encourage] economic development, and that has created such projects as innovation zones and the North Coast Technologies Opportunity Fund.”

Almost half of the county’s discretionary funds go to economic development already, Jones said. County government can't do much more because almost all of its funds are earmarked by the state for social services and the justice system. In Ohio’s government structure, “Health and human services is the primary function of county government,” Jones argued. “We’re doing as best we can in economic development, in terms of setting aside discretionary dollars.”

“So, Mayor Zanotti,” said moderator Dan Moulthrop, “much of that couldn’t really change.” That set Zanotti off.

“Wrong. I don’t agree with that for a minute,” Zanotti said. There are 5,800 employees that work for the county.” (Actually, it’s 8,500, Jones corrected him.) “Are they all working in the right department? Are they all necessary? ... The patronage that is rampant throughout Cuyahoga County right now is at the core of what needs to be changed, and [that’s] how we will come up with the funds necessary to provide for critical economic development opportunities.”

The Issue 6 charter would replace patronage and duplicated positions with standard hiring practices and a county-wide human resources department, he said. “We’ve got to take those savings and invest it in health and human services and economic development.”

Jones said Issue 6 supporters have failed to say how much money their plan would save."“I don't think I’ve seen an election yet where one side hasn’t said, 'If you just let me in, I’m going to slash the number of [employees],'" he said. The county government is already about to reduce its work force to the lowest level in 20 years, Jones said.

When attention turned to Issue 5, the debate got more vague. Jones' plan would set up a commission to write a charter, and though the slate of commission candidates Jones supports has criticized Issue 6, they've said little about what reforms they’d prefer. The uncertainty seemed to frustrate the moderator.

“What guarantees are there for voters that passing Issue 5 will improve the climate of accountability and transparency in government?” Moulthrop asked.

“Of the slate members I happen to be supporting," Jones replied, "13 of them have already pledged that county government campaign finance reform will be one of first things they tackle, and it will be in the charter." Later, Jones added that the Real Reform Done Right slate has pledged to fulfill their duties in the state constitution by writing a charter next year and putting it on the Nov. 2010 ballot – and they’ve promised to hold multiple meetings across the county, address economic development in the charter, and not to run for any of the offices the charter would create.