Here in Portland, we have the "city commission" form of government. This is the same one they have in most major cities with a population of less than 10,000. All the bureaus are managed on a day-to-day basis by the elected politicians, who initially know absolutely nothing about the areas they're assigned to. Just when they figure it out, they switch to another bureau.

This is supposed to insure that the lifelong bureaucrats who work in the municipal agencies don't get too much power.

And of course, what it really does is insure that the lifelong bureaucrats who work in the municipal agencies have entirely too much power.

Mayor Vera "Lame Duck" Katz is going to reshuffle the bureaus one more time before she steps down, and the 86.3 people who follow city politics carefully are all abuzz about who's going to get which new assignment.

An unnamed source has given me a handwritten list, purportedly in Katz's own handwriting, with her tentative choices for the new assignments. I can't vouch for its authenticity, but the list is written on some very, very ostentatious designer stationery, which indicates it's coming from the mayor, all right.

Here is what it reveals:

Buy PGE: Sten
Buy Portland Beavers: Sten
Sell Water Supply: Sten
Billing: Sten
Abandoned Resources: Sten
Tram Color Scheme: Katz
Sister Cities Where It's Warm and I Won't Have to Drive: Katz
Secret Planning: Saltzman
Neighborhood Involvement Appearance: Saltzman
Quiet Rage: Saltzman
Outrageous Noise: Leonard
Harley Riders Liaison: Leonard
Homer Williams Wealth Building Committee: Katz, chair; Sten, co-chair
Zoning: Saltzman
Zoning Out: Katz
Something That Will Make Him Look Bad (Police Review?): Francesconi
Salvage Local Economy: Vacant
Vision for Portland: Goldschmidt's clients