"I still have some problems" with the legislation, said Negrete-McLeod, whose district does not include L.A. Unified territory. "But she said that it's only for five years and so if it doesn't work, we'll see that it doesn't work."
Nunez said that many members were nervous about the bill because it had gotten so much publicity, and many needed to be reassured that the provisions would apply only to L.A. Unified.
"It allows the superintendent the freedom to run the day-to-day operations of the school district without being hamstrung by a school board that oftentimes micromanages that school district," he said.
"These are school board members that have a larger staff than Assembly members and they hold back progress sometimes by getting involved in too much detail," he said.
Assemblyman Mervyn Dymally (D-Compton) voted against the bill, as he had said he would, out of fear that the plan would diminish African American influence in the district.
Assemblywoman Jackie Goldberg (D-Los Angeles) recused herself from voting for the bill on the Assembly floor and earlier in the day in the Assembly Education Committee, which she heads. She said she is a candidate to replace Romer and recused herself "out of an abundance of caution."
"I've checked -- there is no legal conflict of interest," she said, "but I think there's an ethical conflict of interest in choosing between the two sides on this."
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Times staff writer Duke Helfand contributed to this report.
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Begin text of infobox
Big man on campus
The school legislation that passed Tuesday doesn't provide everything that Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa originally sought. Here's a checklist:
What he wanted:
Clear authority over the Los Angeles Unified School District.
What he got:
Shared authority with the school board, the superintendent and a newly created council of mayors, as well as direct authority over three high schools and their feeder middle and elementary schools. The school district has 53 comprehensive high schools.
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What he wanted:
A superintendent who would not be micromanaged by the school board.
What he got:
A stripped-down school board with limited authority to review the budget and no direct management of its own staff.
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What he wanted:
The ability to choose the superintendent.
What he got:
Veto power over the choice of a superintendent. A future superintendent must be a consensus choice by Villaraigosa, a school board majority and the mayors of cities that constitute at least half of the L.A. Unified students who live outside the city of Los Angeles.
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What he wanted:
Top priorities include addressing lagging student achievement in middle and high schools and lowering the dropout rate.
What he got:
The bill is silent on specific strategies, but gives the mayor more influence over district decisions.
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What he wanted:
A plan that would survive legal challenges.
What he got:
A bill that practically invites lawsuits -- outcome unknown.
Compiled by Times staff writer Howard Blume
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How they voted
Here are the votes cast on the Los Angeles Unified School District measure Tuesday by California Assembly members with districts in L.A. County.
Yes
Karen Bass (D-Los Angeles)
Rudy Bermudez (D-Norwalk)
Ronald S. Calderon (D-Montebello)
Edward Chavez (D-La Puente)
Judy Chu (D-Monterey Park)
Hector De La Torre (D-South Gate)
Dario Frommer (D-Glendale)
Jerome Horton (D-Inglewood)
Betty Karnette (D-Long Beach)
Lloyd Levine (D-Van Nuys)
Ted Lieu (D-Torrance)
Cindy Montanez (D-San Fernando)
Fabian Nunez (D-Los Angeles)
Fran Pavley (D-Agoura Hills)
No
Mervyn Dymally (D-Compton)
Bob Huff (R-Diamond Bar)
Jenny Oropeza (D-Long Beach)
Keith Richman (R-Northridge)
Sharon Runner (R-Lancaster)
Audra Strickland (R-Thousand Oaks)
Did not vote
Jackie Goldberg (D-Los Angeles)
Paul Koretz (D-W. Hollywood)
Carol Liu (D-La Canada Flintridge)
Dennis Mountjoy (R-Monrovia)
Mark Ridley-Thomas (D-Los Angeles)
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Los Angeles Times
