Neighborhood councils get some power

The city's grass-roots system of neighborhood councils got new power Tuesday when the Los Angeles City Council voted to allow the panels to introduce public-policy proposals - but only if individual members disclose their personal finances.

The unanimous vote came after two hours of intense debate on requiring community volunteers to file the same financial-disclosure forms that elected officials, commissioners and some city employees must file. Kerry Cavanaugh in the Daily News.

The vote was considered a win-lose by neighborhood council activists who had long pushed for the authority to officially introduce ideas into city government.

"It represents a significant expansion of the ability neighborhood councils have to impact legislation," said Jason Lyon with the Silver Lake Neighborhood Council and the Neighborhood Council Review Commission. "But it's going to have a lot of consequences they didn't anticipate. It will create a morass of paperwork and increase bureaucracy."