Health Commission votes to empower three commissioners to seek neighborhood council liaisons

The Los Angeles Health Commission voted to authorize three commissioners to draft and pursue a letter to the Department of Neighborhood Empowerment (DNE) to explore having neighborhood council liaisons attend or receive commission reports.

Commissioner Ron Kato framed the proposal as a way to increase community awareness and said the department could help formalize liaisons so neighborhood councils know how to present health concerns to the commission. "We have 99 neighborhood councils in the city of Los Angeles," Kato said, noting each council’s potential to raise local issues and the opportunity to connect this effort to investments tied to the upcoming Olympics.

Staff guidance: City staff advised that liaisons would come from neighborhood councils, that the commission would need to agendize a draft letter and post it as public record before sending it to DNE, and that DNE’s general manager (Carmen Chang) would decide whether to agendize the idea for their meetings. Staff also cautioned that current state-law and Brown Act rules place limits on remote participation and that neighborhood council members would likely need to appear in person to testify under current rules.

Vote and outcome: A motion to empower Commissioners Kato, Lemos and Calfani to draft the letter was made and seconded and the chair declared the motion approved after recorded 'Aye' votes during the meeting.

What’s next: Commissioners discussed drafting a letter and agreed the item would be agendized for further action with a draft posted as required for public records so DNE can consider the proposal.