It’s official—Assemblywoman Audra Strickland is running for Ventura County’s treasurer –tax collector seat, as previously reported. Shortly after learning of her plans, County Supervisor Kathy Long, in what appears to be a nakedly political move to disqualify Strickland’s candidacy, announced that an ordinance should be adopted that would prohibit anyone that is not a formally trained financial expert from occupying the post.

Long, a Democrat, cited a state law that passed in the wake of Orange County’s financial meltdown in 1995. The law requires the treasurer to possess experience in a senior financial management position in a public agency, be a CPA or CFP, or have a degree in accounting, finance or a related field.

But it only takes effect in counties that adopt it. The Ventura County Board of Supervisors declined to do so at the time and it had not been an issue until Long resurrected it after word spread that Strickland was interested in the position.

Why is this law necessary now? Does Long not have any confidence in her constituents’ ability to recognize a qualified candidate? Apparently she has her doubts about them after they elected her to oversee 1.65 billion taxpayer dollars despite only having a degree in education.  If the professional criteria that she’s suddenly advocating for treasurer existed for her position, she’d be immediately disqualified. Maybe she doesn’t want her voters to make the same mistake twice.

“It’s not about me. It’s not about her,” Long said. “Taxpayers need to be able to feel that whoever’s holding that job has some qualifications. It’s about a position that oversees millions in taxpayer dollars.”

Long insists that her stance is not politically motivated, that it was triggered by Matheney’s announcement that he would not seek another term after serving as treasurer since 2002. She just wants to make sure that all the candidates are “qualified”. But if it’s not a political swipe at Strickland as Long claims, why did she fail to bring up the matter prior to Matheney taking office seven years ago, or his reelection four years ago? Did she not care enough about taxpayer dollars back then to protect them with professional standards?

Matheney was well qualified when the Board appointed him in 2002 and Long—a supervisor since 1997—professed great confidence in him, which is why she claims it wasn’t necessary until now to dust off the old state law. But her confidence in his judgment invalidates her denial of any political motivation—for Matheney has endorsed Strickland to succeed him.

"As the sitting county treasurer-tax collector and having worked with Audra Strickland for the past five years, I know better than anyone that Audra is well qualified in the most important parts of the job—taking care of the public,” Matheney said. “In the areas that matter most, Audra Strickland is well qualified to be our next treasurer-tax collector.”

If we believe Long’s assertion that her confidence in Matheney’s judgment precluded her from adopting the state law in the county, and Matheney judges that Strickland has the ability to serve ably in the same capacity he did, shouldn’t Long have confidence that Strickland can do the job?

I think Long knows that she can. Strickland is a member of the legislature in one of the biggest economies of the world and can handle a county treasurer-tax collector seat. Long’s proposal drips of politics and her denial to the contrary damages her credibility.