Sybert, Sherman Tussle Over Liens

Republican congressional candidate Rich Sybert accused his Democrat rival, Brad Sherman, of failing to pay taxes on time for a Culver City condominium--but Sherman countered that the whole matter was an error prompted by the death of his father.

In a news conference in Chatsworth, Sybert produced documents that showed Sherman owed taxes of $367.79 in 1993 and 1994. A third document said that he owed $739.38 to the Tara Hill condominium association in Culver City.

Sybert denounced the liens as evidence that Sherman “violated the public trust” and is unfit to represent the 24th District, which includes most of Thousand Oaks, Malibu and parts of the San Fernando Valley.

Sherman responded that Los Angeles County, unbeknownst to him, reassessed the condo’s taxes after it was sold in 1989. The county did so because Sherman’s father, who died in 1987, was listed on the deed.

A death triggers a reassessment if the deceased person had a financial interest in the property, Sherman explained. His father was listed on the documents because Sherman, buying his first property a decade earlier, needed a co-signer to get a loan.

The reassessment bills never reached Sherman because he moved and changed jobs, and property tax bills are not forwarded.

Sherman said he discovered the liens while doing research on his own background before the primary election last spring and paid $367.79 to clear up the bill, rather than waste time and energy to appeal the matter.

That way, if the issue had been raised in the primary, he could say, “I paid the fees as soon as I knew they were outstanding” instead of the less definitive “I don’t owe the money and I’m appealing the assessment.”

Sherman said he owed no money to the condo association and has proven that to the county, which purged that lien from its books.

“All it comes down to is I paid $300 I didn’t owe,” Sherman said.