Confronting real crises, Sacramento needs an empowered mayor. Vote yes on Measure A

Does Sacramento need a mayor with the power to deliver results for the entire city? This is the main question Measure A, the Sacramento Mayoral and Community Equity Act of 2020, asks voters to consider.

Today, Sacramento’s mayor — though elected by citywide vote — has little power. Despite the title, Sacramento’s mayor is merely a glorified member of the City Council. Our “weak mayor” form of government gives the non-elected city manager the power to hire and fire officials like the police chief.

Mayor Darrell Steinberg presides over City Council meetings while City Manager Howard Chan presides over the city bureaucracy. And while Mayor Steinberg often gets blamed when things go wrong, the city charter provides our mayor with no real authority.

Measure A would change this by reforming our city government to give the mayor executive authority to act on behalf of the entire city. This “strong mayor” reform would empower the mayor to create a city budget, subject to approval by the City Council. It would also give the mayor — who would be limited to two terms — power to direct the city manager.

If Measure A passes, the mayor would no longer have a vote on the council. Instead, Sacramento would add a 9th council member in 2022. In addition, the City Council would be able to select a council president from its own ranks to manage meetings as the mayor does now. The mayor would be charged with managing the city and delivering on a campaign platform for improvement.

Mayor Steinberg has made the most of his limited powers, using his political experience to pass necessary reforms. For example, Steinberg worked to ensure the passage of Measure U to provide millions of extra dollars a year for city and community services.

The COVID-19 pandemic disrupted Steinberg’s plan, blowing a hole in the city budget and forcing it to divert Measure U funds to pay for core city services. Fortunately, however, Steinberg convinced the City Council to honor the promise of Measure U by using federal coronavirus stimulus to replace the redirected funds.

This was a success for Steinberg, but his efforts to address other problems — like the city’s homelessness crisis — have often been slowed by foot-dragging members of the City Council, who answer to their districts and have no responsibility to the city as a whole.

That’s the mayor’s job. Now, as the coronavirus crisis intensifies all of our existing challenges, Steinberg is asking voters to grant him the power to pursue a citywide vision for Sacramento. Voters rejected a similar proposal in 2014, but the idea merits reconsideration in 2020.

Some of Measure A’s opponents depict it as a tyrannical “power grab,” but such claims don’t hold up. Measure A contains strong checks and balances. For example, the mayor would need council approval for the budget. In addition, the council could reject a mayoral decision to fire the city manager with a two-thirds vote.

This resembles the government we have on the state level, where the governor must respect the powers of the California State Legislature — and vice-versa. It’s also similar to the form of government at work in many of California’s largest cities, including Los Angeles, San Diego and San Francisco.

Measure A would increase accountability by giving Sacramento’s mayor the power to execute a greater vision for the city. This would allow voters to hold the mayor directly responsible for making progress in key areas, like addressing homelessness, attracting more affordable housing and reforming the police department.

The proposal also contains provisions to:

• Require the city to examine the impacts that budget and policies have on social equity and small businesses.

• Establish a permanent Ethics Commission and a new Fair Housing and Human Rights Commission.

• Adopt a participatory budgeting process to seek community input on certain budget items.

Measure A would also reserve a portion of the city budget for key needs like youth programs, job training and solutions for homelessness. “The city would be required to set aside $40 million each year for inclusive economic development and youth services, including at least 25% for youth services,” according to The Sacramento Bee.

Steinberg’s efforts to set aside money for Sacramento’s poorest and most underserved residents has triggered opposition from a powerful union, the Sacramento Area Fire Fighters Local 522. The union opposes Measure A because it doesn’t like the mayor’s plan to guarantee budget funding for children and the poor. Consider this Exhibit A for why Sacramento needs Measure A, which will allow Steinberg to make good on his promises and address our city’s most pressing problems.

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Measure A’s supporters include: The Sacramento Central Labor Council; Latino Economic Council of Sacramento Chair Jim Gonzalez; and Greater Sacramento Urban League President & CEO Cassandra Jennings. Opponents include: The Alliance of Californians for Community Empowerment (ACCE); the Democratic Party of Sacramento County; and the Sacramento Area Fire Fighters Local 522.

Measure A’s opponents say we’re better off with the status quo. But when you look around our city, with its growing homelessness crisis and festering inequality, do you agree?

The people of Sacramento deserve a real mayor — and Steinberg deserves a chance to deliver on a more formidable agenda for the city. And what if Sacramentans don’t like the reform after a few years? Measure A contains a sunset provision that allows voters to return to the current form of government in 2030.

Sacramento faces real crises, and our city needs a real mayor to confront them. The status quo wasn’t working before the COVID-19 pandemic hit, and it’s not working now.

The Sacramento Bee Editorial Board recommends a vote of yes on Measure A.