As the momentum for a California Constitutional Convention builds, a proposal from Steven Hill, Director of the Political Reform Program, to empower citizen delegates has generated considerable interest. In an op-ed in Sunday's Sacramento Bee, Hill explains that the citizen delegates would be "randomly selected to produce a scientifically representative sample of all Californians." Hill points to Post-Katrina New Orleans and New York City after September 11, 2001, as examples in which citizen delegates responded to a crisis in order to rebuild their cities. In the case of New Orleans:

After federal and state authorities grossly mismanaged the recovery, New Orleans initiated a process to engage thousands of hurricane victims -- many of them scattered to 20 other cities -- to propose their own recovery plan...The results of this 21st century town hall were so well crafted -- and had the credibility of coming from the residents themselves, just average folks - that they were incorporated into the redevelopment plan for the rebirth of an iconic American city.

California has been in its own kind of self-inflicted crisis and the time is ripe for citizens to step up and rebuild the nation's largest state. Writes Hill, "It is time to draw upon the genius of what has always been the Golden State's greatest resource - Californians themselves."

For more information on a California Constitutional Convention, visit ReformCalifornia.org and RepairCalifornia.org.

Please contact Liz Wu with media requests at (510) 295-9859 or wu@newamerica.net.