ALAMEDA COUNTY
Alameda County supervisors will wait another week before appointing a new treasurer-tax collector while the powerful Service Employees International Union Local 1021 decides which of the four candidates to endorse.
The four candidates are former Fremont Mayor Bill Harrison, accountant Henry Levy, Castro Valley Unified School District assistant superintendent Dr. Candi Clark, and current assistant county treasurer Gregory Lawson. Another applicant, Thomas Wierzba, did not participate in the interview session and was excluded from consideration. The appointee will serve the remainder of Treasurer-Tax Collector Donald White, who announced his retirement last year, and if they choose, run for the office in June 2018.
After the county supervisors spent nearly two and a half hours interviewing the four candidates, they declined to begin deliberations, which would have likely led to an appointment being made Tuesday morning.
Instead, Gary Jimenez, an executive board member for SEIU Local 1021 and representative from the Alameda Central Labor Council, asked the Board of Supervisors to postpone their selection until their endorsement is made official, possibly late Tuesday. The labor unions interviewed treasurer-tax collector candidates on Monday and could not convene their executive board to make an endorsement in time for Tuesday’s special meeting. [Note: Alameda Labor Council voted to endorse Levy.]
The labor union, which represents the largest number of county employees, and the central labor council should be allowed to weigh-in on the choice, said Supervisor Nate Miley. No other board comments were made and Board President Wilma Chan moved to schedule the appointment to its April 25 meeting.
However, Supervisor Richard Valle, possibly labor’s most loyal supporter on the board, referenced SEIU Local 1021’s endorsement while interviewing Harrison. Valle said he would not make a decision before learning who the union had endorsed.
The influence of SEIU Local 1021 suggests the appointment is between Harrison and Levy, a well-known certified public accountant who has done work on many East Bay political campaigns, serving as treasurer. Levy was Supervisor Miley’s campaign treasurer during the 2016 June primary. Harrison, also a certified public accountant, served during the same election as Supervisor Scott Haggerty’s campaign treasurer. Alameda County counsel deemed neither supervisor has a conflict of interest in choosing the appointment of the next treasurer-tax collector.
Harrison told the board he does not view the treasurer-tax collector position as a stepping stone in government and that his skill set fits well with the job. “This is a place where I can combine my passion for government, my passion for business, and my passion for community service together.”
Harrison owns a Fremont accounting business. If appointed, he plans to work full-time as county treasurer-tax collector and sell the business if elected in 2018 to a full four-year term. Levy recently sold his interests in his accounting firm, which he started in 1988. “It’s a good time for me to think about this,” said Levy.
Whereas, Harrison has received SEIU endorsements in the past as a Fremont councilmember and mayor his politics run somewhat moderate, a fact not unknown to the union and central labor council. Levy, on the other hand, has a background steeped in labor activism. Before becoming an accountant, Levy was a machinist and served as a shop steward for his union.
Levy told the board that he believes fervent opposition to public employee pensions is “completely overblown and I think it’s politically-motivated.” Levy added he would use the authority of the treasurer-tax collector’s office to be an activist and educate the public on the issue of unfunded liabilities.
Both Harrison and Levy suggested the county’s rate of return on investments could be improved. “There’s more we can do,” said Harrison, although he added, the need to look at benchmarks in other counties before making a further determination. Levy agreed, he said, after seeking information at the county’s rate of return from other locales. “There’s a feeling out there that Alameda County is lower than other counties,” said Levy.
ebcitizen.com 
By MW:
The only surprising abut this is that the AC Board of Supervisors is openly admitting that they are waiting for the “suggestion” of the SEIU before making their decision.
In other words, they way it normally works with governmental bodies is first they have a secret and illegal meeting to get everything choreographed, arranged, AND FIXED, and then followed by the window dressing of an open to the public meeting at which they pretend to actually and seriously consider the various ideas and proposals.
LikeLike
By MW:
Rather than having politicians, and in this case the members of the AC Board of Supervisors, go through their choreographed charades of pretending that they make their decisions on merit, and although usually their decisions are made on the basis of who provides them with the most in bribes, AND ALTHOUGH SOMETIMES WE SLIGHTLY SANITIZE THE WHOLE THING BY REFERRING TO THE BRIBES AS LARGE ELECTION CAMPAIGN CONTRIBUTIONS, let's be more honest and straightforward about the process, and by having an open to the public auction before all votes by politicians and boards, and with politicians getting to keep fifty percent of the bribes paid and the other fifty percent going to the public treasury.
NOTE: That already is somewhat close to the system for selecting US Ambassadors to the major party posts, in other words the large European counties in which a major function of the Ambassador is being a social butterfly, acting glamorous, and attending a lot of parties. In other words, when was the last time someone who was not a major source of election campaign contributions was selected to be the US Ambassador to a major western European country!!
For further details, go to Wikipedia and look up “M. Larry Lawrence,” and who was also known by such names as Maurice Larry Lawrence, M.L. Lawrence, Larry Lawrence, and Larry “The Liar” Lawrence.
In regard to Lawrence, and who was a close associate not only of the Clintons, but also Feinstein, Willie Brown, and John Burton, his “qualifications” for Ambassador were summed up by the high ranking member of the State Department who commented on national TV, “HE GOT HIS AMBASSADORSHIP THE OLD FASHIONED WAY – HE BOUGHT IT.”
So let's also have Alameda County use the Clinton/Lawrence system for deciding who is the best and most qualified person to be the Treasurer-Tax Collector.
LikeLike
The emperors have no clothes.
LikeLike