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LWV League of Women Voters of California Education Fund

Smart Voter
Los Angeles County, CA June 3, 2014 Election
Candidates Answer Questions on the Issues
Supervisor; County of Los Angeles; Supervisorial District 1


The questions were prepared by the League of Women Voters of Los Angeles and asked of all candidates for this office.     See below for questions on Foster Care, MTA, Oversight of Sheriff's Department

Click on a name for candidate information.   See also more information about this contest.

? 1. What steps do you think the Board of Supervisors should take to improve the foster care system and in particular to provide safe emergency or temporary placement for infants and children?

Answer from Hilda L. Solis:

It is clear to me that a great deal of attention and focus is needed to improve the county's child-welfare system. The county child-welfare agency is faced with a number of problems that need to be addressed collectively. It is clear that there are problems when DCFS social workers are burdened with large caseloads, inadequate training, technologies that are not up to date and a need for better coordination with local law enforcement and other agencies charged with caring for our children.

Answer from Juventino "J" Gomez:

Internal Audit of the system, added staffing, continual training of management and line staff,accountability of management and the possibly of revamping of existing department Policy and Procedures to start.

Answer from April A. Saucedo Hood:

Social workers need to be better trained to identify abuse. It is unacceptable for any child to die due to sloppy investigations. Caseloads need to be reduced by either hiring experienced social workers or reorganizing DCFS. Policies and procedures need to be uniform and streamlined.

? 2. The County Supervisors sit also on the board of the Metropolitan Transit District. What would be your top priorities for the MTA?

Answer from Juventino "J" Gomez:

Safer/cleaner/customer friendly service. Student/Veterans/Disabled/Senior outreach/promotions of quality service and salary saving for those groups. More direct service where required to other transportation hubs i,e,Airports, Trains, etc. Additional MTA lines where necessary.

Answer from April A. Saucedo Hood:

I believe the MTA needs to begin looking at long term solutions to attracting new riders. Los Angeles County will continue to grow and more vehicles will be added to our already congested roadways. Recently, MTA has lost several experienced executive managers due to restructuring. I would ensure that we continue to attract and hire the best transportation experts from around the country to lead MTA.

Answer from Hilda L. Solis:

In addition to the rail system not reaching LAX, another pressing issue is the lack of parking at Metro stations--especially in East L.A and MacArthur Park. The neighborhood of East of L.A. and MacArthur Park has one the highest rates of ridership, however, these Metro stations have little to no space available for public parking. The lack of public parking in these communities inhibits the potential for increased ridership for people living in those areas but who do not live directly adjacent to the Metro stations. As a MTA board member, I would propose to the MTA board that the issue be investigated further to assess opportunities for expanding stations to include public parking. I also will focus on the construction of the Gold Line extension to Pomona, and expanding MTA service in the San Gabriel Valley.

? 3. Do you support the creation of an independent oversight commission for the Sheriff's Department?

Answer from April A. Saucedo Hood:

I oppose the creation of an independent oversight commission. It would be difficult to create a true independent commission because members would be appointed and lack the necessary expertise to make meaningful recommendations. Without changes in the current law, all decisions would still be up to the elected sheriff. Any independent oversight commission would have little influence or decision making power. I do support the newly formed Inspector General. I believe the Sheriff's Department is in need of a culture change. No amount of oversight can change the culture of an agency. Change starts at the top level management and trickles down to the line level employees. Furthermore, we need to re-evaluate how the Sheriff's Department hires and trains deputies.

Answer from Hilda L. Solis:

Transparency and accountability reform are key to turning around our Sheriffs department. While protecting the civil rights of all, we must also ensure that our law enforcement has the proper training and opportunities within the department in order to provide the highest standards service possible. I will work closely with the Inspector General and watch closely the reform efforts. I would like to see the recommendations by the commission fully implemented and then reassess and measure progress. I would support a citizen's commission that would provide public input and greater accountability + ideally a commission that has statutory authority.

Answer from Juventino "J" Gomez:

I would require to evaluate the make up and authority of this agency. And if we are adding another layer of staffing and where the funding would come from before making any decision.


Responses to questions asked of each candidate are reproduced as submitted to the League.  Candidates' answers are presented as submitted.

The order of the candidates is random and changes daily. Candidates who did not respond are not listed on this page.


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Created: July 9, 2014 18:43 PDT
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