O.C. Seeks Way to Keep Finance Professionals on Panel

The county has crafted a plan designed to allow members of the Treasury Oversight Committee to continue monitoring investment policies, despite a new state law that might have forced their resignations.

The law, Senate Bill 866, requires counties to establish investment watchdog panels. But it prohibits members from working for bond underwriters, brokerages, securities dealers or financial services firms for three years after leaving the panel.

The county’s oversight committee was formed before that bill passed. All five members are professionals in the fields of finance and investing and fear the law would prevent them from working in the business.

Under the compromise proposal unveiled Wednesday, members of the panel would take seats on a second committee created by the Board of Supervisors. Officials said members of the new panel, tentatively named the Technical Advisory Committee, would not be subject to the law’s restrictions.

Treasurer-Tax Collector John M. W. Moorlach would then select new members for the oversight committee and submit their names to the Board of Supervisors for confirmation. In addition to five members from the public, the oversight committee would consist of Moorlach, the auditor or finance director, a member of the Board of Supervisors and representatives from school and college districts.

Jeffery M. Thomas, chairman of the oversight committee, said Wednesday that the proposal secures a watchdog role for residents with firsthand experience in finance and investing.

“This allows the very people who know what’s going on to participate,” Thomas said. “We can continue to be a resource to the treasurer.”

Thomas and the rest of the committee have long criticized the state law, saying its wording discourages professionals from helping oversee the treasurer’s office. Earlier this month, members said they probably would resign before Jan. 1, when the law takes effect.

Some committee members asked county officials to determine whether they could face any legal ramifications by essentially working around the employment provision in the law.

The technical advisory committee would meet with Moorlach monthly to provide input on investment policies and other matters.

Moorlach said he sees the committee as a “board of directors” with whom he would consult about significant issues. With investment professionals excluded from the panel, Moorlach said, he would try to tap academics and retired executives to serve.

Thomas and other committee members said it was crucial that the duties of the two panels be clearly established so that their actions do not overlap. While the oversight committee would be responsible for the formal audit, Moorlach said the technical advisory panel would be free to report any concerns about investment policies to the Board of Supervisors.