An Update on DWP Reform

One of the barriers in the way of restoring trust in the DWP are questions about how ratepayer dollars are being spent by non-profit safety and training institutes affiliated with the DWP union.
Reforming the Department of Water and Power is at the core of my Back to Basics agenda for Los Angeles. It is essential that every ratepayer dollar is being spent appropriately, and we going to make sure that’s the case.

On Wednesday, the City Council passed a proposal to more forward with the principles that we’ve been fighting for — that collaboration with our city workers on safety and training can serve the public interest, provided there are strict accountability and transparency measures in place. Our proposal requires audits for the past five years and annual audits and public reports going forward.

If ratepayer money is going to be spent, the ratepayers have the right to follow the money and know where it’s going. The DWP is a public utility — so we must make sure it’s accountable to the people of Los Angeles.

If the DWP union agrees to this proposal, it would mark another step toward restoring trust in the department — and it will allow us to focus more on it’s core mission of reliable electricity and water service.

We’ve made great strides in reforming dwp — we negotiated a new worker contract that saves billions through pension reforms and salary freezes.

I appointed a new, reform-minded commission and general manager.

And I instructed DWP to benchmark its work rules and operations against public and private utilities across the country.

Now, with this proposal, I look forward to the next chapter in making sure DWP is the best run utility in the nation.