Oceanside Chamber Urges Yes Vote on Measure K

Oceanside’s Measure K, on the March 3rd ballot, asks the Oceanside voters to decide whether the City Clerk and City Treasurer should be appointed to office by the City Manager rather than the current system of election to 4-year terms. The Oceanside Chamber of Commerce recommends a “Yes” vote on Measure K.

Recently, Chamber CEO Scott Ashton and Executive Committee Member, Marva Bledsoe each submitted Letters to the Editor on this topic to outline why the Chamber believes “Yes” on Measure K is critical. The following are their submissions…

Letter from Chamber CEO Scott Ashton

Yes on Measure K is about government accountability. Oceanside’s current system of electing our City Treasurer and City Clerk does not allow for proper vetting of candidates. In fact, the only requirements are to be an Oceanside resident, 18 years of age or older and to be able to win an election.

Our current City treasurer was not elected on a platform of relevant skills and qualifications. In fact, he had no experience that qualified him for this position.

The positions of Treasurer and Clerk hold a great deal of responsibility and should not come down to a popularity contest. The Treasurer and Clerk should be hired by our City Manager after a thorough vetting process to ensure that the most highly qualified candidates are selected. In the case of the City of Oceanside, our Treasurer is responsible for a $350 million investment portfolio. What I found to be compelling was a 2010 paper by the National Bureau of Economic Research which concluded that “an appointed rather than elected city treasurer reduces city borrowing costs by 13% to 23%.”

Oceanside’s financial future is at stake and we must not leave it to chance.

Our City Clerk serves as our compliance officer for federal, state and local statutes. Without the right skills and training, our City Clerk could create serious problems for our City. Our former elected City Clerk, Zack Beck endorses Measure K and signed the ballot argument in favor of the measure.

I strongly disagree with the notion that Measure K somehow reduces the voting power of our citizens. Even with the conversion of these positions from elected to appointed, the Oceanside voter still maintains ultimate control of the direction of the City through the election of our Mayor and Councilmembers.

Please join me in voting yes on Measure K for better government accountability.

Scott Ashton CEO, Oceanside Chamber of Commerce

Letter from Chamber Executive Committee Member Marva Bledsoe

I urge you to vote YES on MEASURE K!

As a 42-year resident of Oceanside, I have watched our city mature and evolve over the years. I have witnessed the growing complexities of municipal government in general and ours in particular. To meet these ever-expanding, multifaceted demands, it is imperative that we have a highly qualified professional City Treasurer to oversee our city finances including our $350 plus investment fund and a City Clerk with the qualifications necessary to serve as our compliance officer for local statutes.

Currently, in order to fulfill these intricate responsibilities, all someone has to do is win a popularity contest in an election. The candidates are not required to have any qualifications for the job. Their only supervision or quality-control is at the hands of the voters every four years.
We need to have the two critical functions of the City Treasurer and City Clerk performed by skilled professionals who meet minimum qualifications. They must be appointed by the City Manager who can supervise and evaluate their job performance on an on-going basis.

Your YES vote on Measure K will ensure proper government accountability.

Marva Bledsoe