The Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors this week appointed Michael K. Woo, the Governance Reform task force’s nominee, to the county’s first independent Ethics Commission. Woo joins Wilma A. Franco, Ed.D., and Amanda Susskind, whom the board appointed on Sept. 15. With three of its seven members seated, the initial commissioners can now nominate the four remaining members.
“This commission could represent a new era of accountable, transparent, and honest government in Los Angeles County, and set a high standard for other California counties,” said Woo.
Woo served on the Los Angeles City Council from 1985 to 1993, representing the 13th District, including Hollywood, Silver Lake and Los Feliz, and was the first Asian American elected to the Council. As chair of the Council’s Ad Hoc Committee on Governmental Ethics, he steered the 1990 ethics reform ordinance approved by city voters, which established the Los Angeles City Ethics Commission.
He later served on the Los Angeles City Planning Commission from 2005 to 2012 and as dean of the College of Environmental Design at Cal Poly Pomona from 2009 to 2019, where he is now dean emeritus.
“When the new Ethics Commission begins its work, earning the public’s trust will come down to the people who serve on it,” said Nancy Yap, chair of the Governance Reform Task Force. “Michael Woo’s experience across public service, higher education, and civic leadership has given him the thoughtful judgment to help the Commission earn the public’s trust from its very first meeting.”
The Task Force selected Woo on September 16 after a public recruitment that opened July 6 and drew more than 370 eligible applicants from across the County. Its Ethics Ad Hoc Subcommittee reviewed the applications and interviewed approximately 20 semifinalists before advancing six finalists to public interviews, and Task Force members deliberated for six hours before making their selection.