California Board of Equalization Member Michelle Steel announced tonight, at a Newport Mesa Tea Party meeting, that she’s going to run for O.C. Supervisor John Moorlach’s seat in 2014.
I would imagine that a lot of candidates will be running for Moorlach’s seat. But who will he endorse?
When Moorlach first ran for the O.C. Board of Supervisors, the OCEA spent a fortune trying to elect Stanton Council Member Dave Shawver. That was an epic fail. Who will labor get behind this time?
Who is Steel? Here are a few excerpts from her state bio:
Elected to the Board of Equalization in 2006, Michelle Steel serves as California’s senior-ranking Republican constitutional officer. A successful businesswoman and renowned taxpayer advocate, Steel represents more than eight million people in the Third District, which includes the counties of Imperial, Orange, Riverside, San Diego, and portions of Los Angeles and San Bernardino.
Michelle Steel has distinguished herself as the state’s leading tax fighter. Her hallmark first-term achievement was the discovery, that the Board of Equalization had delayed the return of millions of dollars in security deposits owed to California businesses. Following her investigation, the agency refunded tax security deposits worth upwards of $50,000 each to over 5,500 small businesses, and procedures were changed due to Steel’s decisive leadership. To date, over $100 million in security deposits have been returned to taxpayers.
As Southern California’s elected taxpayer advocate, Steel is on the frontlines of California’s perennial battle against higher taxes. In 2008, she successfully led the fight against a new iTax, a $500 million tax on digital downloads.