[the urban politician]

Bill Daley looking all the more appealing, he proposes to shrink the number of Alderman to 15. An excerpt from today’s Chicago Tribune:

So, not only is Daley proposing reducing the number of Chicago’s aldermen, but also stripping away some of their unchecked powers. He said many mayors — including his brother Richard M. Daley, Harold Washington and Rahm Emanuel — have taken steps to strengthen city ethics along the way, but more fundamental changes are needed.

“Now, we have this latest scandal on top of years of scandals, I think it’s time in the 21st century that we fundamentally look at the way we’re structured and the way we do things,” Daley said. “Surely, Emanuel, Rich and Harold Washington all pledged to bring a cleaner government, but some of the things I’m proposing now are stepping back and saying, ‘Wait a minute. Maybe we need to change the way government works, change the system in order to get the results the public wants.’”

So on top of shrinking the City Council, Daley said he would put an end to the tradition of aldermanic privilege, which gives an alderman final say over any building and zoning decisions in his or her ward. In addition, Daley proposes limiting aldermen to three terms in office, making alderman a full-time job by prohibiting outside income, and banning immediate family members of aldermen from doing business with the city.

Daley also would give the inspector general’s office the same oversight over the City Council that it has with the mayor, and he would require city agencies to publicly report every time an alderman contacts their office, including the purpose.