EDITORIAL EMPOWERING PARENTS.

THE Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors has given the state's 1996 ``Megan's Law'' a much-needed shot in the arm.

The legislation, named for a New Jersey girl who was raped and killed by a known child molester in her neighborhood, was designed to let parents know whether any sex offenders are living nearby.

But the California version of the law has never lived up to its promise. Parents can only find out about local sex offenders by going to the local sheriff's department or paying $10 to get two names at a time on a state-operated 900 number.

Under the supervisors' plan, conceived by Michael D. Antonovich, the county will start showing a map on its Web site indicating where all of its 18,000 sex offenders live, and making special note of those deemed to be ``high risk.'' Armed with the information on the maps, parents can then go through the usual channels to obtain the sex offender's name, history and photograph.

Through this simple reform, the supervisors have made Los Angeles County a safer place for all children and eased the worries of parents.