The way this charter change is structured, the process by which one is appointed involves just as much politics. Except, it's
a politics of pleasing an elite circle rather than voters.
The proposed reforms would keep the appointment power in the mayor’s
hands, but he would have to choose the eight citizen members from
candidates proposed by a 10-person nominating committee.
That committee would be made up of the presidents or chancellors of
seven local universities and the chairmen of the New Orleans Chamber of
Commerce, New Orleans Regional Black Chamber of Commerce and Urban
League of Greater New Orleans.
One ostensible advantage of the reform is that it stipulates that the nominees have some sort of professional expertise. Although, the net is cast so widely there that it becomes meaningless.
The new state law would require for the first time that the board
members have experience in presumably relevant fields such as
architecture, engineering, finance, law, public health, urban planning,
science, construction or business administration.
The main qualification is still pretty much just having the correct friends.
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