Home Rule Charter Reforms

New Orleans needs structural changes to restore balance between City Hall and the City Council. Neal is proposing targeted amendments to the Home Rule Charter New Orleans’ local constitution to strengthen the City Council’s oversight role while preserving essential partnerships with City Hall.

These reforms draw analytical lessons from comprehensive governance reviews in cities like Detroit, which identified key principles for rebalancing municipal power after crisis-era dysfunction. Following Detroit’s financial crisis and emergency management era (2013-2014), the Detroit Charter Commission undertook a full review to modernize structure, strengthen checks and balances, and restore democratic accountability.

Key reform principles include:

Clarifying legislative oversight powers for the City Council, particularly over procurement, budgeting, and departmental performance
Codifying transparency and citizen participation mandates, including access to public records and engagement processes
Defining limitations on mayoral emergency powers and enhancing Council’s role in key executive decisions
Strengthening independent offices (Inspector General, Ombudsman) to enforce internal accountability

Though Detroit’s 2021 charter revision vote didn’t pass, the governance principles remain highly relevant and are widely cited as a model for post-crisis charter reform. Neal’s proposed amendments mirror Detroit’s intent: strengthening legislative oversight and restoring balance in a governance system where one branch has absorbed too much power.

This is the first step toward creating a more balanced power dynamic between City Hall and the City Council.