Ahead of the June primary election, the Southern California News Group compiled a list of questions to pose to the candidates who wish to represent you. You can find the full questionnaire below. Questionnaires may have been edited for spelling, grammar, length and, in some instances, to remove hate speech and offensive language.

Name: Claude Parrish

Current job title: Orange County Assessor

Age: n/a

Incumbent: Yes

Other political positions held: Board member, Board of Equalization

City where you reside: Tustin

Campaign website or social media: n/a

What do you think is the most important role of the county assessor, and how should that service to the county be delivered? (Please limit your answer to 200 words or less.)

Valuing all legally assessable property in the county and developing values with fairness and impartiality. Produce the property tax assessment rolls in accordance with the laws of the state of California and Board of Equalization rules, handbooks and guidance. Assist property owners in understanding their property valuations, providing accurate information in a timely and courteous manner. This assistance is provided through our office’s public service counters, over the telephone and through our website. To allow claimants all exemptions and exclusions that they are qualified for, in a timely fashion.

Public service continues to be an important priority, and I created an office in Mission Viejo, rent-free in the city hall, to serve the residents of south Orange County. Additionally, we now have staff in the County Service Center to aid with public assistance.

Encourage employee development by providing access to relevant training opportunities using on-the-job and classroom training, and via Zoom and Teams. Additionally, provide employees with every promotional opportunity they are entitled. Finally, I commit to creating a positive, service-oriented culture which attracts and retains the best and the brightest employees.

Which new initiatives or programs do you hope to create to better serve those needing the services of the assessor’s office? (Please limit your answer to 200 words or less.)

To extend the deadline for filing annual assessment (tax) appeals from Sept. 15 to Nov. 30. This will allow taxpayers 75 additional days to file an appeal if they disagree with the assessed property values. It is my continuing priority to produce the assessment rolls of value on time with timely transmittal to the auditor-controller. Over my last three terms in office, I have always delivered the assessment roll ahead of the July 1st statutory deadline. The obvious benefit of this is timely mailing of the tax bills by the county tax collector, which provides the much-needed finances for the county, our schools, firefighters and other government services.

It has been my ongoing commitment to provide property tax related assistance to the Orange County residents. That is why I created a taxpayer’s advocate, who is a public defender for the taxpayers of Orange County. Since its creation, the advocate has helped more than 11,000 county residents with questions regarding application of exemptions, real property valuations, parent-to-child property transfers (intergenerational transfers), base year property transfers, and change of ownership assistance.

Additionally, I recently created a business tax resolution specialist who assists Orange County business owners with business property and vessel assessment issues.

I am committed to reducing the number of tax appeals by fair and accurate valuation and by assessor staff contacting taxpayers or their representatives to resolve the case expeditiously. Having always maintained an open-door policy, I take calls from the public. Since public service is an important priority, all calls to me are personally answered by me and the caller will not be screened by anyone.

Looking at the county’s yearly budget, what would you like to change about the way the funds for the assessor’s office are allocated? Which project or need, if any, has not received the funding you think it should be getting? (Please limit your answer to 200 words or less.)

The one area that the county should increase funding for my office is in the number of employees that are allocated to my office. I have gone from a high of about 290 filled full-time positions when I first took office to the current low of about 248 employees. The workload over the years has increased, as has the complexity of the property valuations.

How do your background and experiences make you the most qualified candidate for this office? (Please limit your answer to 200 words or less.)

I am currently the elected Orange County assessor for the last 11 years and my experience as assessor makes me the most qualified candidate to seek another term in office.

I was previously elected to the State Board of Equalization, Third District, where I served as both its vice chairman and chairman and instituted a taxpayer-friendly approach to serve the 8 million residents of the district from 1999 through 2006. At the Board of Equalization, I chaired the Customer Services Committee and implemented a new 800-telephone line able to answer more complex tax problems for tax professionals.

Additionally, I chaired the Property Tax Committee, which was responsible for creating property tax rules, assessors’ handbooks, and auditing the operations of the 58 county assessors of California.

I previously served as Los Angeles County insurance commissioner and held positions in management, finance and the securities industry. I am currently licensed by the Board of Equalization as a certified property tax appraiser.

As the county assessor, how will you meet the diverse needs of Orange County residents? (Please limit your answer to 200 words or less.)

My office assists constituents through the public service counters at my main office, the south county office and the County Service Center. Many assessor staff are bilingual and speak the most frequently spoken languages other than English. My office website can be translated in six other languages, and I have made every effort to explain the property tax law and procedures in layman terms on the website.

I created both the taxpayer’s advocate and business tax resolution specialist positions to provide constituent assistance for property tax matters. I take calls from the public, which sets me apart from many other elected officials. My staff and I attend forums and meetings to explain property tax laws and procedures.

I advocate on behalf of my constituents by lobbying the California Legislature if there are bills that need my support or oppose those bills that are not in the best interest of my taxpayers.