Norfolk revenue commissioner faces primary battle [The Virginian-Pilot]

June 08--NORFOLK -- Sharon McDonald says she's moved beyond the highly publicized missteps of her latest term in office, but she is finding that when it comes to getting re-elected, the past is never far behind.

McDonald, 57, is running for her fifth four-year term as commissioner of the revenue. The Democratic primary is Tuesday.

Sherry D. Battle-Edmonds, who ran for treasurer in 2009, qualified Friday as an independent in the race. The Republican Party will announce its candidates today.

McDonald's last election was a snooze as she easily fought off an independent candidate. But this time, she faces opposition from her own party, which is expected to pose the election's stiffest challenge.

Evans Poston Jr., a 33-year-old insurance broker, has been campaigning on McDonald's mistakes and the ongoing conflict between her and other city officials, most notably Treasurer Thomas Moss and Chief Deputy Treasurer Anthony L. Burfoot.

Poston, backed by nearly every major elected official in Norfolk, has hammered McDonald in campaign advertisements, using newspaper headlines to argue the case for her ouster. McDonald said this week she's worked to fix any flaws in her office and she's not concerned about her relationships with city officials.

"I'm not going to sit in my office working on charts and graphs," she said. "I'm going to be a commissioner for my constituents."

McDonald has updated the office during her tenure, adding services that allow residents to buy yard sale and residential parking permits online, but she has also found herself mired in controversy, especially in her fourth term.

The city auditor in 2010 investigated McDonald's use of a city credit card while lobbying in Richmond. That investigation revealed no criminal wrongdoing, but it found that McDonald kept poor records and failed to follow the city's rules. She repaid $3,100 for personal purchases on the card.

McDonald said that in response to the credit card investigation, her office beefed up record-keeping efforts and started posting detailed expenditures on the website.

"We have moved forward," she said. "We are not looking at what happened three years ago, four years ago, five years ago.... My opponent might be living in the past, but I'm not."

The commissioner has continued to travel, and those trips have included conferences in Phoenix, Anaheim and Kansas City.

It cost $2,466 to send her and three employees to the National Bureau of Business License Officials in Anaheim. It cost another $5,462 for McDonald to travel by herself to conferences in Boston, Phoenix and Kansas City, according to information obtained through a Freedom of Information Act request.

During that same period, from July 2011 to December 2012, her counterparts in South Hampton Roads never left the state for training, according to travel records.

"I will continue to do this because my staff needs to be on the cutting edge," McDonald said.

She also has been unabashed in defending an educational show she created, called Commissioner's Computer Network. In the last two years, her office has produced more than 50 shows. Last year, she spent about $850 to travel to Richmond with two employees to conduct interviews with three legislators for the program.

McDonald usually plays the role of hostess on the roughly 15-minute episodes. Her opponent said he considers CCN to be redundant -- the city already has a show -- and not the best use of the commissioner's time.

Terry Frye, president of the Commissioners of the Revenue Association of Virginia, said the show was a legitimate use of her time and could be considered innovative.

McDonald has also been criticized for allowing her daughters to work as temporary help in her office and for being the only commissioner in Virginia to hire a public information officer, a position that cost the city about $59,000 a year.

"People are tired of being embarrassed by headlines and mistakes that are coming out of that office," said Poston, the son of Circuit Judge Charles Poston. "They want a commissioner who is going to be here and actually be the commissioner of revenue."

Poston said he would immediately cut the public information position and then work to "tear down the wall between the commissioner's office and treasurer's office." Until that happens, "we will never be able to realize any efficiencies and operational savings that could happen," he said.

McDonald said this week that her attempts to mend the relationship in the past few years were unsuccessful.

"The question really needs to be asked, 'What are they going to do to work with the commissioner?' " she said. "I will continue to work with them but I'm not going to do it to the detriment of my office."

The commissioner and treasurer are as co-dependent as a pitcher and a catcher. The commissioner is responsible for identifying and assessing all taxes, except for the real estate tax, in the city. Once the commissioner finds the tax revenue, it's the treasurer's job to ensure it's collected.

Over the years, the conflict between McDonald and the treasurer's office has played out in the City Council chamber, where Burfoot also serves as vice mayor and council representative for Ward 3. As of Friday, Burfoot, who also is a Democrat, was the only official candidate for treasurer in the November election.

The council has implemented several changes that appeared to target the commissioner's office. Most recently, members started voting on every tax refund that exceeds $2,500, a move that was a jab at McDonald. The council also made major changes to the real estate tax relief program, taking it away from McDonald's office.

Poston, who is making his first bid for public office, said he would advocate bringing the tax relief program back under the commissioner's purview. City Manager Marcus Jones has moved the program to the city's human services department.

McDonald agrees that the program belongs in her office. She said Poston's advertisement implying it was "mismanaged" went too far and unfairly attacked her staff.

Poston said he has focused his campaign on what he considers issues that detract from the office's purpose.

"I'm running because I think we can do better than this," Poston said.

Jillian Nolin, 757-446-2326, [email protected]

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