West Hollywood City Councilmember Jeffrey Prang confirmed Wednesday he will run for the Los Angeles County Assessor’s post up for election in June 2014.
Prang, who works for the county assessor as a special assistant, joins challengers Omar Haroon, John Loew, John Morris and John Wong, who have already filed statements that allow them to begin fundraising for the contest. The candidate filing period does not open until February.
The county assessor’s office has recently been rocked by allegations that Assessor John Noguez, who was elected in 2010 and still officially holds the top position, abused the office by trading bribes for lower property tax bills.
Noguez has been on paid leave for more than a year since an investigation was opened against him by the district attorney. He is charged with 30 felony counts, including accepting bribes, perjury and misappropriation of public funds. Noguez says that he is innocent.
The LA County Board of Supervisors was expected on Tuesday to appoint Assistant Sharon Moller to take over as chief deputy assistant in Noguez’s absence.
Prang had been serving under Santos H. Kreimann, who ran the office since Noguez’s leave of absence in June 2012. Kreimann was recently appointed to an executive position in the county’s chief executive office.
Prang, like each of the other city council members, has a full-time “day job” in addition to serving as an elected city official.
Prang, a long-time friend of Noguez, began his latest stint working for the Assessor’s Office in March 2012 after nine months of unemployment, and just as the investigation into Noguez and his office intensified. He has stressed that the crimes Noguez is alleged to have committed occurred prior to his employment by the office.
“It was not exactly an auspicious beginning to a new job,” Prang said in October 2012, shortly after Noguez was charged. “I had no inkling this was brewing, and frankly had I known probably would have given it second thought.”
Prang first met Noguez 20 years ago when he began work under then-Assessor Kenneth Hahn, and the two become stronger friends through the years. Noguez even attended Prang’s swearing in as mayor of West Hollywood on April 16.
Just prior to working with the Assessor’s Office, Prang was Assistant City Manager for the city of Pico Rivera until that position was eliminated.
Prang has described his role with the Assessor’s Office as “liaison to the LA County Board of Supervisors, handling government affairs inside and outside of the county, community relations and legislation.”
More details to come …
Does this mean he will leave the WeHo council!? I guess not seeing he spent so much $$$ to get elected but may be why he is playing “Queen” maker with Heidi Shink.