It is rare that you see the SEC filing charges against government officials, but yesterday the Commission announced that it had filed securities fraud charges against five former San Diego city officials who played key roles in the city’s inadequate municipal securities disclosures in 2002 and 2003.
According to the press release (linked above) the SEC charged the former officials for failing to disclose to the investing public buying the city’s municipal bonds that there were funding problems with its pension and retiree health care obligations and those liabilities had placed the city in serious financial jeopardy.
The SEC’s complaint, filed in federal district court in San Diego, charges former City Manager Michael Uberuaga, former City Treasurer Mary Vattimo, former Auditor & Comptroller Edward Ryan, former Deputy City Manager of Finance Patricia Frazier, and former Assistant Auditor & Comptroller Teresa Webster.
This might be one way to get politicans to be candid with the masses.
