Legislation Aims to Keep Communities in 1 District

Spurred by the frustrations of residents in Van Nuys, who are represented by five different Los Angeles City Council members, Assemblyman Bob Hertzberg (D-Sherman Oaks) will introduce legislation today to keep communities within single political districts as much as possible.

Hertzberg said redistricting after the 2000 census should conform as much as possible to existing neighborhoods.

He sponsored similar legislation last year that was vetoed by Gov. Pete Wilson. Hertzberg believes it has a good chance of becoming law this time around.

“I don’t think there was a single bill that I’ve been asked about more in the San Fernando Valley,” Hertzberg said. “People really want me to introduce this one again.

“We have this unique situation in Los Angeles with one huge city with over 100 communities, and the districts do not reflect that,” he said. “You have a problem and you’re a member of the Van Nuys chamber, and people ask you, ‘What side of the street do you live on?’ We’re trying to create district communities.”

Van Nuys residents have long complained that it is extremely difficult to get anything done in their community because it has been so carved up politically. For example, Don Schultz of the Van Nuys Homeowners Assn. said it took him two years just to get some community identification signs erected around Van Nuys because he had to talk to so many politicians.

“It was like reinventing the wheel,” Schultz said. “Having to sell something to five different elected officials makes no sense. Van Nuys is Van Nuys. Why do you want to break it up?”

Since redistricting is such a heated topic, however, with numerous groups and elected officials looking to benefit from the drawing of new boundaries following the next U.S. Census, opposition to the bill is likely.

A representative of the Los Angeles City/County Latino Redistricting Coalition, which is hoping to influence the process to increase Latino political representation, said Tuesday he had preliminary concerns about the potential effects of Hertzberg’s legislation.

Hertzberg said he realizes the bill is not likely to be well-received by politicians looking to gerrymander districts, but hopes that it gathers enough community support to overcome such obstacles.

“The ambitions and personal careers of politicians is what is preventing this from happening,” he said. “The community interest should be coming first.”

The redistricting legislation, which would apply to cities and counties, is part of a trio of bills Hertzberg said he will introduce that deal with local government issues statewide.

Hertzberg also plans to push for a report card-type system to judge the performance of local governments, and for a requirement that state agencies post available grants on the Internet.

Using the census as a basis, cities and counties must adjust the boundaries of their local political districts every 10 years to ensure each district represents close to the same number of people. In establishing the boundaries, city leaders may now give consideration to geography, topography and what is called “communities of interest,” but do not have to.

Hertzberg’s bill would require them to specifically consider the protection of local communities as part of the redistricting process.