It is an honor to be selected as Chairman of the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors for the upcoming year. I would like to thank Supervisor Mark Ridley-Thomas for an outstanding year as Chairman.  He led us through a challenging year, and we as a County are stronger because of his leadership and direction.

This is a bittersweet time for the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors.

In the upcoming year, we will be saying goodbye to our colleagues Supervisors Gloria Molina and Zev Yaroslavsky, who have served over 40 combined years on the Board.

In a matter of months, this Board will have a dramatically different look and feel. When Zev and Gloria ride off into the sunset next year, they’ll be taking with them irreplaceable knowledge and experience. While the term-limit ship sailed a long time ago, there is no doubt that this County has benefited enormously from steady, consistent leadership. I fear that term limits will make priorities more short-termed as well. I sure hope I am wrong.

This will be my final time serving as Chairman and to me, it will be the most meaningful. We face a number of great challenges, but our Board is strong and united, focused on good, responsible government for the 10 million residents of this great County.
I am proud that we have been able to work through some very critical issues and remain fiscally responsible.  We’ve dealt head-on with the problems that have come before us.  We have never kicked the can down the road.  Frankly, there is nowhere we can kick it!
Despite our different political viewpoints, this Board doesn’t get bogged down in partisan bickering like our colleagues at the federal and state level.  We can’t.  The buck stops here.

Los Angeles County is at one of the most significant crossroads in its 163 year history. In 2016, Supervisor Ridley-Thomas will be joined by four new Supervisors. For the five of us, this is our last chance to shape the future of this great County, ensure its viability for years to come, and set an example for those who will take the helm after us.

There is no question we are facing significant challenges across every realm of our responsibilities. Public safety, healthcare, and child welfare will require our seasoned leadership now more than ever. That doesn’t mean however, that we should set aside opportunities to look beyond those challenges. To that end, as Chairman, I am establishing two main focuses that will keep Los Angeles County on a path to prosperity and success for all residents: Innovation and Customer Service. I know that these terms can get thrown around a lot.  But it is important for us to think about them on a daily basis as we serve the 10 million residents of the largest county in the nation. We as a County, from the Board, to department heads to front-line employees, must look at how we serve our residents and ask ourselves, “How can we do this better?”

From the way our residents apply for assistance at a DPSS office, to the way someone casts a vote in an election, to how businesses open their doors; it’s time to bring this County into the 21^st century. Interacting with the County should be as easy as making a purchase on Amazon.
But, we must realize that innovation should not just be updating old technologies and developing apps for smartphones. It should be about changing our overall culture to be more responsive to the needs of our residents. We need to commit ourselves to move away from the mentality that: “This is the way we’ve always done things.”

As we head into 2014, the need for greater innovation and customer service is coming to us in perhaps the biggest way this County has ever seen: the Affordable Care Act.

It doesn’t matter whether you were for it or against it, come January 1, 2014, it goes into effect.  There are major ramifications for Los Angeles County and we’ve been working hard to prepare for it. Under the Affordable Care Act, there will still be over 2 million uninsured residents in Los Angeles County that we are responsible for. Kaiser doesn’t have that challenge, neither does Cedars, Molina, or Blue Cross. As before the ACA, it will fall to us to care for those who have nowhere else to go. We need to make common-sense advancements and investments in order to attract new customers to our healthcare system, or we will only be left with non-paying customers.  Then, we need to bridge these innovations into the way we interact with our patients.  In the end, it is about the relationships and trust between our healthcare providers and our patients.

Healthcare reform could well be the greatest challenge this County has ever faced and I believe we are more than up to it. We already have some first-class medical facilities, and some of the best healthcare professionals in the country, but we are often thought of as being a system of last resort. We need to change that misconception and get our story out to the public. Though we will focus our efforts on changing our culture, we must not forget our most vulnerable constituents who will continue to rely on the County as a safety net.

I think our most important job as County Supervisors is to protect those who would have no voice without us, particularly our children.  Over the last two years, I have been focused on the issue of young girls, some even 10 years-old, who are being sexually exploited for money by pimps. Once again, it’s Los Angeles County at the forefront of this fight. I’m proud of what we have been able to accomplish so far in spreading the word and getting these girls the critical services they need to survive. But over the next year, I want this County to remain vigilant and aggressive about preventing this horrific crime and helping the young girls who are able to survive. Like the Safe Surrender program, this is an all-hands-on-deck issue.  It’s not just DCFS or Probation: it’s all of us.

We are the largest county in the nation. When it comes to public policy, our voice is amongst the loudest. We have 39 departments, working to meet the needs of 10 million residents.  I know how hard our employees work, often in very challenging environments, under extraordinary pressures. But sometimes I think we get caught-up in our own challenges, without stepping back to look at the big picture. I’ve said it before and I will say it again: County departments become too close-minded and get tunnel vision because they do not communicate with other departments.

Each department works within its own silo, and oftentimes spend time, energy, and funds to meet the same outcomes. One probation officer’s parolee could be a social worker’s client. We all serve the same population.

To tear down these silos and encourage our departments to work together, I am establishing the “Chairman’s Challenge.” At the end of the year, an award will be given to the two or more departments that work together to develop and implement an innovative program or initiative that helps us meet the needs of our residents in a way that we haven’t always done things. Fresh.  New.  Not what people expect from government.

As Albert Einstein once said, “We cannot solve our problems with the same thinking we used when we created them.”

We have an opportunity to write a new chapter of County government that will be smarter, more efficient, better serving, and easier to work with. We can leave this County in a better place.

We have a lot of work to do to get to where we want to be. And the work starts now.

Last week, we held our annual Public Safety Luncheon to honor the men and women who stand in harm’s way. From the heroism of TSA Agent Gerardo Hernandez at LAX, to the courage of the Granite Mountain Hotshots running towards the flames, we had so many recent examples of the best of our country coming together to protect all of us.

Against this backdrop of courage on our shores, we also paused to reflect on the ongoing commitment of those who serve in our armed forces, whose own sacrifice gives us the freedom we enjoy today.

When danger and disaster strike our County, our Country, and our communities, the men and women of law enforcement, public safety and the military are the first to raise their hands to help.

And while “thank you” will never be near enough, our prayers continue to be with all who serve the public, and with their families and friends. Each one of our men and women who wears the badge shows bravery every day.

As we reflect on this courage, service and commitment, we know that there are countless people whose lives have been saved or changed forever because of what they do. To those who serve, we offer our heartfelt respect, our ongoing prayers and our deepest thanks for what you do each and every day to protect our nation and our neighborhoods.

Following a devastating typhoon that wiped out entire communities in the Philippines, Los Angeles County is encouraging residents to donate to local relief organizations to assist with recovery efforts. Thousands are feared dead or missing, and many more have been displaced. Severe damage to infrastructure, including harbors, airports, and roads have made the situation in the Philippines even more critical. In these desperate times, I urge you to lend a hand if you are able. To make a donation, you can visit the International Red Cross or the website of the Philippine Consulate in Los Angeles for a list of Philippine government-sanctioned organizations.

Last week, our feeling of security was once again shattered when a man with a gun shot his way into Terminal 3 at LAX, killing a TSA agent and wounding others.

This was a senseless act of violence that, if not for the heroic actions of our first responders, could have been much worse. My heart goes out to the victims and their families as they begin to rebuild their lives.

Tragedies like what happened at LAX on Friday often leave us shaken and asking the question, “Why?”

When I was Mayor of Cerritos, our city experienced an air crash that killed people in the air as well as on the ground. I can still vividly remember the horrific things I witnessed that day. The crash impacted the lives of our residents, both physically and emotionally. Many still cope with that tragedy to this day.

When unexpected tragedies occur, the Los Angeles County Department of Mental Health is an incredible place to turn. Sudden events like the shooting at LAX or the Cerritos Air Crash make us question our sense of safety. Speaking to a professional can help restore your feeling of security.

If you are coping with a recent tragedy, I encourage you to call the confidential 24-hour ACCESS helpline at 800-854-7771 to speak with someone who can provide you with ways to help yourself, your family and others.

After 18 years of imprisonment, today Sara Kruzan is finally a free woman. Freedom is something she’s never experienced before. Sara was forced into prostitution by a sex trafficker when she was only 11 years old. For years, she was abused, exploited, and sold on the streets for money.

Sex trafficking is a disgusting crime happening right here in our state and nation. In the past, young girls arrested for prostitution were judged by society as criminals. Through education, survivor and prevention programs, and legislation, we continue to work to reverse this injustice. Sara’s release is a giant leap towards justice for all the true victims of this horrific crime.

It is time we put the true criminals behind bars and show that we will not let the exploitation of young, innocent girls continue in our own streets and neighborhoods.

Over the weekend, Governor Jerry Brown granted freedom to Sara Kruzan, who has been imprisoned for the last 18 years for killing her former pimp. Sara was originally sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole, but former Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger commuted her sentence to 25 years-to-life with the possibility of parole.

Now in a matter of months, Sara will be a free woman. Freedom, however, is something she’s never experienced before. Sara was forced into prostitution by a sex trafficker when she was only 11 years old. For years, she was abused, exploited, and sold on the streets for money.

In the past, young girls arrested for prostitution were judged by society. Through education, survivor and prevention programs, and legislation, we continue to work to reverse this injustice. Sara’s release is a giant leap towards justice for all the true victims of this horrifying crime.

When she is finally released, I look forward to meeting with Sara to discuss new ways to help young girls who are being exploited.

Early this morning, President Obama signed a bipartisan bill into law that ended a federal government shutdown that spanned 16 days and raised the nation’s debt ceiling. The new bill funds the federal government through January 15, 2014 and extends the country’s debt limit until February 7, 2014.

While we all breathe another sigh of relief that the government shutdown was averted, again, we know this is only short-term.  There is no victory here, for either party or for any branch of government.  We got through another deadline, but didn’t solve any of the big challenges facing our nation.

Our elected officials in Washington need to develop a long-term strategic budget by working together.  If they need a lesson in how this is done, they can see the example of local governments across this nation who cannot play these games, but must solve the problems impacting their communities.

This go-round had Los Angeles County a few short weeks away from not being able to provide those most in need with the basic necessities of food and shelter. These are people who are struggling to make ends meet and feed their families in an economy which has still not recovered.  It is my hope that in the next few months, we will see more courage from leaders in Washington to put partisan grandstanding aside and do the tough work of negotiation and problem-solving so that we don’t face this situation yet again in January.