`LONE GUNSLINGER' WILL HANDLE FISCAL CRISIS DURING SEARCH FOR TOP EXECUTIVE.

Byline: Krystn Shrieve Staff Writer

The county's deputy CAO was appointed Tuesday as interim chief administrative officer while supervisors scramble to replace the executive who abruptly resigned after less than a week on the job.

Bert Bigler, who has worked for Ventura County for nearly two decades, will oversee the day-to-day operation of the local government. He also served two months as top administrator while supervisors searched for a permanent successor to Lin Koester, who retired as CAO in September.

``We do not intend this person to be the next CAO,'' Supervisor Kathy Long said after a closed-door meeting. ``We want to take more time to go through the recruitment process for the permanent position, but we also know we have some immediate fiscal challenges we're facing.''

The board's emergency session was sparked by the surprise resignation of David L. Baker, the former San Joaquin County CAO who was touted as a solution to Ventura County's myriad financial and managerial problems.

In a scathing six-page letter dated Saturday, Baker said the overwhelming problems facing the county - and supervisors' unwillingness to deal with them - made it impossible for him to continue in the job.

Bigler said he was honored to once again receive the temporary appointment and will work diligently to keep the county running smoothly until a permanent CAO is hired. A salary for the post has not been set.

Supervisors have not yet discussed whether they will conduct another statewide search for a CAO or rely on in-house candidates. They do plan to consult retired executives whose names are on file with the California Association of Counties.

David Janssen, chief administrative officer in Los Angeles County, said Ventura County should not have difficulty recruiting a new leader despite its complex problems.

``Anyone who's looking for a challenge will apply to Ventura County,'' said Janssen, who also is president of the County Administrative Officers Association, which includes all 58 counties in the state. ``I don't think they'll have any problem.''

Supervisor John Flynn said the board will hire an outside consultant to function as the county's top executive during an anticipated yearlong hunt for Baker's successor. The board will give the interim executive free reign to change whatever is needed to make the county financially sound.

And the permanent executive, when hired, may face a change in powers and responsibilities, Flynn said.

``There's been some blurring of responsibilities between the Board of Supervisors and the CAO,'' Flynn said. ``That's got to stop. The board is supposed to set policy, and the CAO is supposed to carry out those policies. But in some cases, individuals try to influence the CAO on an individual basis or just go completely around the CAO, and that has to stop.''

Herbert Gooch, political science chairman at California Lutheran University, said it is easy to overstate the county's present obstacles and put them into crisis terms, but the problems Baker brought up are not unique to Ventura County.

Gooch said it's not a good idea to hire a temporary person to come in from the outside to fix problems within a year.

``There are larger structural problems that must be dealt with, and bringing in a lone gunslinger from the outside sounds good,'' Gooch said, ``but I'm not convinced that bringing someone in to thrash around would do any good, because inherently the person in that position will always be a lame duck. There are too many inherent limitations with that approach.''