LA CHARTER ASSEMBLY: NEW Measures of LA City Govenrment!

There is no all-encompassing measure of the performance of the city of Los Angeles, or its city council or its members. But there are a number of data and measurement tools inside and outside government.

Here is what there is, from various city websites:

To measure its performance, the City of Los Angeles uses a multi-layered system that balances internal data tracking, independent audits, and public-facing dashboards. Because LA operates under a "Strong Mayor" system, accountability is split between the executive (Mayor), the legislative (City Council), and the independent "watchdog" (City Controller).

Here is a breakdown of how performance is measured across service delivery, council districts, and official accountability.

1. Service Delivery Performance

The city tracks how well departments function using real-time data and annual targets.

• MyLA311 Data Portal: This is the primary tool for measuring service responsiveness. It tracks the volume and "days-to-close" for requests like graffiti removal, pothole repair, and bulky item pickup.

• Performance Measures Dataset: Hosted on the LA Open Data Portal, this dataset tracks over 10 years of specific departmental KPIs (e.g., the Bureau of Street Lighting’s repair times or LAFD’s response speeds).

• Department-Specific Dashboards: Certain departments maintain their own metrics. For example, LA City Planning publishes a Performance Management Unit (PMU) dashboard tracking case processing times for land use entitlements.

• Innovation and Performance Commission: A 9-member appointed body that reviews city operations and recommends improvements to service delivery systems.

2. Performance by Council District

Measuring performance at the district level is often done to ensure equity in how resources are distributed across the city’s 15 districts.

• Control Panel LA (City Controller): This site provides a granular look at city spending and service delivery by district. Users can see:

  • Discretionary Fund Spending: How much "discretionary" money each council member is spending and on what.

  • Service Maps: Visualizations of things like parking citations, homeless housing units, and infrastructure projects specifically by district.

• Budget Advocates’ Service Report Card: This is a community-led initiative by the Neighborhood Council Budget Advocates. They survey residents to "grade" the city on services provided specifically in their neighborhoods, creating a citizen-driven performance metric.

• Neighborhood Council Data Liaisons: Many of the 99 Neighborhood Councils appoint "Data Liaisons" who use the city's GeoHub to monitor local service trends and advocate for their district's specific needs.

3. Performance of Officials

Measuring the performance of individuals—both elected and appointed—is governed by the City Charter and Civil Service rules.

Recent Accountability Updates (2025–2026)

• Homelessness Response Metrics: In late 2025, the City Council adopted 35 specific performance measures to track the impact of homelessness investments, including "time to house" and "retention in permanent housing."

• Ethics Commission Expansion: A 2024 Charter amendment (Measure ER) increased the independence and budget of the Ethics Commission to better monitor the conduct of elected officials.