2 More Set Sights on Controller’s Job

Two more people have taken out nomination papers to run for Ventura County auditor-controller, including an Oxnard accountant who says he will challenge the qualifications of Simi Valley Mayor Greg Stratton to run for the job.

Clifford L. Wigen, 60, of Simi Valley and Richard Morrisset, 41, of Oxnard, both certified public accountants, said they plan to run for the controller’s job, which is responsible for overseeing the county’s $836-million budget.

Other candidates who have taken out papers for the position include Stratton, Ventura accountant Scott Weiss, and Thomas O. Mahon, who was appointed auditor-controller by the Board of Supervisors last year after serving more than 20 years as assistant controller. Mahon and Weiss have also questioned Stratton’s qualifications for the job.

Morrisset, who is also an attorney, said he does not believe that Stratton has the accounting experience to legally qualify for the controller’s job, which pays $128,000 a year including benefits. He said he will take Stratton to court once he files his nomination papers.

“I think it’s cut-and-dried,” Morrisset said. “He’s not qualified.”

Stratton, director of the software department for Teledyne Systems in Chatsworth, said he believes that he has the experience and educational background necessary for the job and is prepared to stand up to a legal fight.

To qualify for the controller’s position, a candidate must be a certified public accountant or have served as county auditor or deputy auditor for at least three years, or possess a certificate or diploma from a school of accountancy.

Because there are no more schools of accountancy in California, Stratton said he believes that his master’s degree in business administration--including 10 units in accounting--from Cal Lutheran University qualifies him for the job.

“All that the law requires is that you have the education to be a CPA, and that’s what I have,” Stratton said. He said his education qualifies him to take the CPA exam, noting that Mahon is also not a CPA.