No financial decision that will come before the Sonoma County Board of Supervisors in the next few years will be more important than the one it made Monday — appointing a successor for Rod Dole.
For reasons that still defy clear explanation, Dole publicly announced his retirement within weeks of being sworn in as auditor-controller, having been re-elected without opposition. Dole then threw his support behind Assistant Auditor-Controller Donna Dunk, who was appointed on an interim basis and was one of three finalists for the position.
But on Monday, the board wisely chose to appoint an outsider to fill the post — a position in dire need of some outside perspective.
On a unanimous vote, the board appointed David E. Sundstrom, 59, of Orange County to hold the cumbersome title of Sonoma County's auditor-controller-treasurer-tax collector. Sundstrom has served as auditor-controller of Orange County for the past 15 years, overseeing a $5.5 billion operation, a staff of more than 400 and a department budget of about $45 million. Moreover, he served during a tumultuous time, assuming the role of finance chief after Orange County had fallen into bankruptcy. He helped raise its bond rating form junk status to AA- while instituting valuable reforms.
In addition, he has served on a national government accounting standards board that is calling for more stringent standards concerning the accounting of unfunded obligations, standards that will assure more public awareness.
While Dunk was the preferred choice among longtime county officials, Sundstrom was the favorite among those pushing for reforms of the county's pension system.
Sonoma County needed change. It needs a controller who will help the county navigate the rocky shoals of budget deficits to find the "new normal," the right balance between public employee benefits, public service, declining tax revenues and soaring debt.
What's evident is the county isn't there yet. Sonoma County faces another $16.8 million budget deficit next year. In addition, taxpayer-paid retirement costs for county employees are up 360 percent in 11 years and are expected to more than double in the next decade.
Overall, the county faces unfunded liabilities of $240 million, not including $515 million in outstanding pension obligation bonds. Sonoma County now has the distinction of having the highest per-capita pension bond debt of any county in California.
In addition, as Staff Writer Brett Wilkinson reported Saturday, the county's unfunded retiree medical obligations over the next 30 years are now at $298 million and are growing.
Given all of that, it's concerning to us that Sundstrom is being offered an annual salary of $208,644 — for a position that was paying $186,000 just two years ago. But given that Sundstrom is being appointed to fill out the remainder of Dole's term — and this was his salary when he retired — supervisors had little discretion on what they could offer.
Nevertheless, by going with Sundstrom, the supervisors send a clear message that the county is ready for a new direction on its fiances. It's a welcome message.
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