Matt Fong for State Treasurer

There are two qualified candidates for state treasurer, the post now held by Kathleen Brown, the Democratic candidate for governor. Phil Angelides, former Democratic State Party chairman, is a successful businessman and developer. His Republican opponent, Matt Fong, is a lawyer and for the last 3 1/2 years has been a member of the state Board of Equalization. Both have considerable practical skills as well as years of experience in Sacramento. Our preference, based on the comprehensiveness of his proposals for increasing efficiency and cutting costs in government, is Fong.

The state treasurer performs a number of important functions: as administrator inthe sale of state bonds and notes; as a member of a number of commissions that relateto the marketing of bonds; as disburser of state funds spent by the controller’s office and other state agencies. Among the treasurer’s most important responsibilities is managing California’s huge $20-billion investment portfolio. Both Angelides and Fong are committed to investing more of this portfolio in California. Such a boost in investment could potentially create tens of thousands of jobs and help finance the construction of thousands of homes.

Fong, the son of former longtime Secretary of State March Fong Eu, impresses with his grasp of detail when discussing state financial issues. He also deserves credit for taking a lead role in shaping legislation to abolish the Franchise Tax Board, which collects income taxes, and to consolidate its responsibilities with those of the Board of Equalization, which handles sales taxes and a host of other taxes. This would not only cut bureaucratic duplication but would put all accountability for taxes onto the elected officials of the board. Overall, we believe that, while Angelides has much to offer in public life, Fong would perform more effectively as treasurer, and we recommend his election.