Larry Cohen, 56, a Democrat, is San Diego County’s current treasurer-tax collector and is running for a full term in the job.
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Cohen, a former top staffer to Rep. Juan Vargas, was named to the job by county supervisors late last year after his longtime predecessor Dan McAllister retired.
The San Diego Union-Tribune emailed a series of questions to Cohen and other candidates to help inform voters about their positions, priorities and plans if elected.
Cohen said he did not use AI in responding to the Union-Tribune’s questions except for using Grammarly for a copy edit.
1.) Why are you running, and what makes you the best candidate?
I am currently serving as the appointed treasurer-tax collector. I was selected to fulfill the unexpired term of Dan McCallister, in November 2025, through a competitive, rigorous, public merit-based process involving nine candidates. I am now running for a full term.
As a private sector experienced professional, I am focused on what residents expect: protecting their tax dollars with experience, integrity and fiscal responsibility. I bring a unique blend of experience: financial acumen, large team management and government experience at the local and federal levels, combined with over 23 years in business. This combination brings a unique and valuable perspective to the office. I am tested, trusted and focused on results.
2.) What are the top 3 issues facing the county treasury?
The top three issues facing the Treasurer’s Office are: maintaining our 99% property tax collection rate to fund strategic county services; enabling more efficient, technology-driven customer service for residents, reducing operational costs to taxpayers and speeding up collection of vital revenue for expected services; and building a program that allows seniors struggling to pay their property taxes to receive state assistance.
3.) What are the first 3 things you would do in office if elected?
Develop a senior citizen program to ensure qualified residents are never forced out of their homes due to missed property tax payments. For example, we need to ramp up efforts to get qualified residents into the California State Property Tax Postponement Program.
Implement a process to allow residents to opt out of paper bills and pay property taxes online (as simple as shopping online via a smartphone) — generating more revenue at lower costs to tax payers.
Maintain our investment strategies generating yields above the rate of inflation, which reduces bond payments for taxpayers. We need to build upon the office’s strong track record of investing tax dollars so communities can grow and families thrive.
4.) What do you think is the most important role of treasurer-tax collector, and how would you change and innovate in the job to fulfill it?
The most important daily responsibility of the treasurer-tax collector is to do exactly what county residents expect: protect their tax dollars with experience, integrity and fiscal responsibility. In terms of innovation, we must make interactions with the department as efficient and secure as buying something online using a smartphone. We also need to make our team more efficient and effective for the taxpayers by removing repetitive tasks from their workflow so they have focused time to handle more serious customer service issues that can never be automated.
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Technology needs to make operations more streamlined but also create space for the team members to unleash their full human potential.
5.) The county’s former longtime treasurer, Dan McAllister, championed customer service for county taxpayers. How would you continue that legacy? How can the office’s customer service be improved?
My office has maintained our 99% secured property tax collection rate, ensuring residents receive maximum value from the property taxes they pay and the services they receive. I am working with our internal team to develop a dashboard on our website that will allow residents to see exactly where their tax dollars are spent.
Residents of the county have a right to know where their dollars are being allocated, and we will provide that insight to make a stronger connection between the taxes they pay and the community investments they receive. Transparency in government operations increases residents’ trust and confidence in the spending decisions their leaders are making on their behalf — sunlight is the best disinfectant.
6.) What areas of savings and/or investment should the treasurer-tax collector’s office consider tapping into in the future to benefit the county and its residents?
We must ask residents to opt out of paper bills and pay taxes online. Each resident who converts to online payment saves the county hundreds of dollars in operational costs and increases investment returns. We have over 250,000 residents who do not pay online; the return on investment (ROI) here is significant and equates to millions of dollars generated.
Achieving near-100% online property tax payments, in partnership with our residents, is the single greatest operational efficiency gain yielding millions in more revenue annually. We have to invest in community seminars, marketing efforts and ROI training sessions that help residents understand the power they have to make their own government more efficient and effective through the simple act of online payments. We must have training teams that help the elderly accomplish this as quickly as possible, especially in underserved county areas.
7.) Should the San Diego County Employees Retirement Association divest any of its holdings or otherwise rethink its investments? If so, how?
The retirement system already has the ability to divest from any investment, provided it follows a strict fiduciary analysis process to ensure that the secure payment of pension benefits is never compromised. SDCERA is one of the best-run pension systems in the country, and we must ensure it remains that way for current and future generations. SDCERA should always listen to its members suggestions about investments, and if review is warranted to make divestment decisions, we need to follow our outlined process to consider those decisions.
8.) The treasurer-tax collector currently faces no term limits. Do you support term limits for this office? Why or why not?
For this office, I would support term limits if state law and the voters agree to make that change.
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