Rose Institute Receives Haynes Foundation Grant For Research on Implementation of L.A. County Governance Reform
The Rose Institute of State and Local Government at Claremont McKenna College has been awarded a $100,000 one-year planning grant from the John Randolph Haynes and Dora Haynes Foundation to elevate local perspectives in Eastern Los Angeles County as the County implements major governance reform.
In 2024, voters approved Measure G, the most sweeping change to LA County government in more than a century and the nation’s most significant local government reform in recent history. Among other changes, Measure G will expand the County Board of Supervisors from five to nine members and create an elected office of County Executive.
Rose Institute Director Ken Miller said, “Cities on the eastern periphery of this massive, complex county often struggle to have their concerns heard at the county level. This project will focus on them; researchers at the Rose Institute will conduct roundtables and individual interviews with city managers in the County’s eastern region to understand how, in their view, Measure G can best be implemented to serve residents in their respective cities.”
The Rose Institute has chosen to work with city managers because, as their cities’ chief executive officers, their supportive engagement will be critical for Measure G’s successful implementation. Moreover, at this early stage of the transition, city managers can provide keen insights into the most pressing challenges (and opportunities) for cities in adapting to Measure G reforms.
Through this in-depth survey work, the project hopes to inform the deliberations of the Los Angeles County Measure G Governance Reform Task Force, as well as public understanding of this important transition.
“The Haynes Foundation is pleased to support this planning grant to bring the often overlooked perspectives of local leaders in the eastern parts of Los Angeles County to the attention of County governance reformers,” said Dr. Raphael Sonenshein, executive director of the Haynes Foundation. “As we profoundly reshape governance for more than 10 million county residents, the circle of engagement and responsiveness needs to be wider than ever before.”
Rose Institute Board Chair Ryder Todd Smith said, “The Rose Institute has a strong reputation for providing objective, non-partisan research on issues facing local governments in Southern California, including topics such as housing affordability and the regulatory costs of doing business in the region, and city executive leadership. I appreciate the trust the Haynes Foundation has placed in the Rose Institute to surface the viewpoints of local leaders with regard to governance of America’s largest county.”
The Rose Institute’s Measure G research team will be led by Director Ken Miller, Assistant Director Bipasa Nadon, and Research Affiliate Abhi Nemani, the former Chief Data Officer for the City of Los Angeles.
This grant is part of the Haynes Foundation’s focus on LA County Governance Reform through its Governance and Democracy Program.
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About the Rose Institute of State and Local Government
The Rose Institute of State and Local Government was founded at Claremont McKenna College in 1973. A leading resource for information on California state and local governments, the Rose Institute pursues research projects on elections, government institutions, public opinion, and policy. It also maintains extensive state and local demographic, economic, and political databases. For more than 50 years, the Institute has fulfilled its mission to enhance the education of students at CMC, produce high quality research, and promote public understanding on issues of state and local government, politics, and policy, with an emphasis on California. For more information, visit https://roseinstitute.cmc.edu/.
About Claremont McKenna College
Claremont McKenna College is a private, 1,300-student residential liberal arts college located east of Los Angeles in Southern California. Since 1946, the College’s mission has been to prepare students for thoughtful and productive lives and responsible leadership in business, government, and the professions. Renowned for its Open Academy commitments to freedom of expression, viewpoint diversity, and constructive dialogue, as well as expertise in economics and government, Claremont McKenna also features an accomplished faculty of scholars and committed teachers in the humanities, sciences, and social sciences. Students are drawn to the College’s unparalleled offerings, including 11 research institutes and centers; the ability to conduct research one-on-one with faculty; and access to leaders, artists, and visionaries who engage with students at the Marian Miner Cook Athenaeum. Claremont McKenna is a member of The Claremont Colleges. For more information, visit cmc.edu.
About the Haynes Foundation
The Haynes Foundation has been a force for change in the Los Angeles Region (comprised of the counties of Los Angeles, Ventura, San Bernardino, Riverside, and Orange) for over nine decades. The Foundation’s founders, Dr. John Randolph Haynes and Dora Haynes were passionate advocates of involved citizenship who believed that through social science research, the Foundation not only could identify critical social and political problems in Los Angeles but also offer solutions to them. The Foundation awards major research grants on governance and democracy in the Los Angeles region, archival grants, doctoral dissertation fellowships, and faculty fellowships. For more information, visit http://haynesfoundation.org/.