Council keeps risk-management functions with city administrative office, refers amendment to committee

The Los Angeles City Council on April (date not specified) voted to retain the city’s risk-management functions in the city administrative office and the Office of Administration and Research (OARS) under an ordinance approved by the full council. The council also voted to send a competing amendment asking that risk management be moved to the newly created Office of Finance to committee for further review.

Council members and city staff debated whether moving risk management to the Office of Finance would improve accountability or instead undermine other charter-mandated duties of that office. “This is not a turf war. This is not an attempt to just keep something in the office without a business reason,” Bill Fujioka said, urging that risk management remain where its functions can be coordinated with budgeting and loss-prevention work. “They work with the mayor and council on effective ways to budget for liability exposures and disaster losses,” he told the council.

Supporters of the amendment argued moving risk management to the Office of Finance would create a single, accountable place to supervise loss-prevention across departments. “If it’s broken, you try to fix it,” Councilmember Wax said in support of the amendment, adding that a department reporting only to the mayor could be held responsible if problems persist. Opponents said transferring the function to an office that will be newly created on July 1 and lacks a general manager risks disrupting ongoing reforms. “It will not be created in July 1. There is no general manager,” said a city attorney representative (mister Deaton), advising the council that the ordinance should retain the functions in OARS until organizational details are in place.

Councilmember Chick urged patience so recently adopted joint labor-management reforms to workers’ compensation could take root. “Give that process a chance to become embedded,” she said, arguing that moving the function now could undermine the momentum of those changes. Councilmember Goldberg likewise warned against a premature transfer that could disrupt a nascent joint labor-management effort she described as vital for lowering workers’ compensation costs.

The council first voted 8–7 to send the amendment that would move risk management to the Office of Finance to committee. On the ordinance before the full council—retaining the functions with the city administrative office/OARS and setting the reporting relationships required under the new charter—the council approved the committee report as amended by a 14–1 vote. Council discussion and staff presentations stressed continued monitoring and a possible review of the organizational arrangement after the new offices and managers are in place.

The action preserves the status quo for the immediate charter implementation period while providing a path for reexamination once the Office of Finance is fully established and its general manager is in place.

Looking ahead, councilmembers said they expect follow-up briefings from the new Office of Finance’s leadership and that the council could revisit the transfer later if evidence shows a change would improve outcomes.

Votes at a glance: the council voted 8 ayes, 7 noes to send the transfer amendment (motion 7a) to committee; later the council approved the committee report/ordinance retaining risk management in OARS, 14 ayes, 1 no.