11 Seek a Rare Open Seat on Board of Equalization

A rare open seat on the little-known but well-paid state Board of Equalization has drawn a field of 11 candidates in the June primary, including three Democrats of modest prominence who have been frustrated in previous attempts to advance their political careers.

The scramble for the $82,000-a-year job has been touched off by the retirement after 28 years of Richard Nevins, whose 4th District includes Los Angeles County exclusive of the San Fernando Valley and Westwood-to-Malibu areas.

Because Democrats outnumber Republicans by nearly 2 to 1 in the district, the key battle will be the June primary, when Los Angeles County Assessor Alexander Pope, state Sen. Paul B. Carpenter (D-Norwalk), former state Sen. Nate Holden of Los Angeles and four lesser-known candidates bid for the Democratic nomination.

Carpenter Ahead in Funds

It is difficult to identify an early favorite because there have been no independent polls on the race. However, the leading contenders have been gathering funds and endorsements for a last-minute burst of campaigning that could cost nearly $1 million.

In the contributions derby, Carpenter, relying on his Senate campaign fund, had an early lead. He reported nearly $200,000 on hand at the close of the last filing period in March. Holden had about $143,000 and Pope about $78,000.

The board that they want to serve on has a reputation as a comfortable political backwater--outside the limelight but with pay among the highest of any state elected official and such perquisites as state cars and personal staffs.

The taxes that the five-member Board of Equalization administers--sales, gas and cigarettes--touch the wallets of Californians every day. In addition, the board hears appeals on disputed property, income and corporate tax bills and oversees the administration of county assessor offices.

It is the only elected tax appeals board of its kind in the nation, and the longevity of its members has been one its trademarks. In the 107-year history of the board, only four incumbents are known to have lost reelection bids. The average tenure is 10 to 15 years, and a recently retired board member holds the record for service in a state elective office--44 years.

While obscure, the board does wield considerable power in arcane areas of tax law. Its rulings and interpretations can mean millions of dollars to companies.

Prominent law firms and tax specialists, who also contribute to some board members’ campaign coffers, represent large businesses and utilities before the board.

The board’s decisions occasionally break into the headlines, as they did several years ago when board members ruled that a large share of the income of Standard Oil of California (now Chevron Corp.) was non-taxable through the firm’s California headquarters. The ruling saved the company $20 million to $30 million, Nevins estimated.

But in the 4th District race, the debate has not focused on policies or practices of the board. Instead, the candidates have stressed their experience, promised to deal with average taxpayers fairly and vowed to use the office to push for tax breaks and state income tax simplification likely to be popular among voters.

Nevins, who is remaining neutral in the primary contest, has been providing candidates with information on the board’s work and “doing everything I can to keep them from talking about abortion, atomic energy and Guatemala.”

Complex Arguments Difficult

Carpenter, 58, who lost a 1982 bid for U.S. Senate, said the low visibility of the race makes it “very difficult to make complex arguments . . . plus the subject matter isn’t very sexy. I don’t think the campaign is likely to be fought out on the issues.”

Citing his 12 years in the Legislature, Carpenter has argued that he would bring badly needed legislative experience to the board, which he said has been “singularly unsuccessful” in getting tax changes enacted. He estimated that the non-taxed “underground economy” in the state generates $30 billion to $70 billion per year because “many people do not feel the process of taxation is fair.”

The board should correct that, he said, by pushing repeal of unfair tax laws. For example, he cites the “double taxation” that applies to certain kinds of personal and business property because the taxable value includes sales tax paid on the items.

Carpenter’s opponents say that if he is truly interested in legislative tax reform, he should remain in the Senate where he can rewrite tax laws. They contend that the former businessman and teacher, who moved into Nevins’ district last year from Orange County, is really looking to boost his state salary and pension benefits.

“I confess I don’t find (a larger pension) offensive,” he said, but added, “I’m not interested in retiring so I haven’t looked at that.”

Pope, an attorney who unsuccessfully tried to unseat Los Angeles County Supervisor Deane Dana in 1984, has cited his eight years’ experience as county assessor. He said he too would be “leading the charge” for tax law changes.

As an adjunct to his campaign, he is pushing for passage of legislation that would raise some homeowners’ tax exemptions and begin to reduce inequities in tax bills on side-by-side homes caused by Proposition 13.

Pope says the board is “the logical step up for me. It deals with the property tax system at the statewide level. . . . I have a perception of the revenue system in the state and how it can be improved.”

But Pope has had to defend his record as assessor in the wake of recent criticism by Los Angeles County Supervisor Pete Schabarum, a political foe, that he has not managed post-Proposition 13 changes in assessment duties well. Pope insists that his office has done as well as possible, considering the loss of about one-third of his staff to budget cuts.

Pope also has been criticized for his direct-mail campaign literature. The envelopes bear an assessor’s office seal and bold letters say “Important Tax Information” in a design similar to official county tax envelopes. Inside is a memo from Pope to his staff directing them to take steps to reduce the tax on the recipient’s home.

However, the memo is stamped “Proposed” and only would be effective if the authorizing legislation is enacted. Pope has defended the mailers, which Holden has attacked as deceptive.

Holden, a former state senator who has run unsuccessfully for Congress and Los Angeles City Council, is not pushing any specific tax change. Instead, he points to his experience--four years in the state Senate, as well as his current work as an aide to Los Angeles County Supervisor Kenneth Hahn. Holden said he would concentrate on being a “real effective advocate” for taxpayers who is “sensitive to business.”

In a mail-dominated campaign in which endorsements will figure prominently, Carpenter will play up the support of Reps. Howard Berman and Henry Waxman, the Los Angeles Democrats who head an influential Westside political organization. He also will use endorsements of state Sens. Art Torres and Joseph Montoya and Reps. Estaban Torres and Matthew G. Martinez, all Eastside Democrats.

Pope claims the support of his former boss, ex-Gov. Edmund G. (Pat) Brown, as well as Rep. Glenn M. Anderson (D-Harbor City), and Los Angeles City Council members Howard Finn and Joy Picus of the San Fernando Valley.

Holden said he has endorsements from Hahn, Reps. Julian C. Dixon (D-Los Angeles) and Mervyn M. Dymally (D-Compton), and state Sens. Bill Greene, Diane Watson and Alan Robbins, all Los Angeles Democrats.

Among the lesser-known Democratic candidates running low-budget campaigns, the most aggressive has been David Welsh, a certified public accountant and a director of the business-oriented Los Angeles Taxpayers Assn. Handling many business clients, including some in tax cases before the board, he claims that he is the most qualified candidate. “I kind of resent people running for the board who are just looking at it as a political steppingstone or a place to retire,” he said.

Other Democratic candidates are Joseph E. O’Green, a West Covina business tax examiner; Mike Greenspan, a Glendale real estate appraiser, and Helen Banos Howard, a Norwalk businesswoman.

In the Republican primary, H. Stanley Jones, part-time city treasurer of Inglewood and a financial planning consultant, is facing Gordon E. Rudolph, a Sierra Madre land developer and former City Council member.

The Libertarian candidate is Stephen I. Malmberg of Los Angeles. The Peace and Freedom candidate is Lewis McCammon of Los Angeles.

In the Santa Monica-to-San Francisco 2nd District, incumbent Democrat Conway Collis is facing farmer and former Fresno Assemblyman Bert De Latto in the primary. On the GOP side, the candidates are A. John Shimmon of San Francisco, Collis’ former deputy and a longtime Board of Equalization staff member, and Claude Parrish, a Studio City business executive and controller who has been active in the party.

In the 3rd District, which sprawls through much of eastern California and San Bernardino, Orange and San Diego counties, Republican incumbent Ernest J. Dronenburg Jr. is facing primary challenges from Ed Kelly of San Bernardino, a senior Board of Equalization auditor, as well as Jerry Lee Wilson, a sporting goods retailer from Patton in San Bernardino County.

The Democratic candidates are T. Leon Berry, a Laguna Hills college administrator, and Mark F. Buckley, a deputy assessor and accountant from Huntington Beach.