Oakland's Gibson McElhaney has tax liens OAKLAND

Lynette McElhaney gets a pat on the shoulder by Melin Edwards of the African American Chamber of Commerce as members of the Oakland Clergy gather at the corner of 7th and Market to endorse McElhaney for Oakland City Council, Tuesday Oct. 30, 2012, in Oakland, Calif. less Lynette McElhaney gets a pat on the shoulder by Melin Edwards of the African American Chamber of Commerce as members of the Oakland Clergy gather at the corner of 7th and Market to endorse McElhaney for ... more Photo: Lacy Atkins, The Chronicle Photo: Lacy Atkins, The Chronicle Image 1 of / 1 Caption Close Oakland's Gibson McElhaney has tax liens 1 / 1 Back to Gallery

Lynette Gibson McElhaney, a newly elected Oakland City Council member, and her husband face tax liens for failing to pay state and federal taxes, she said Wednesday, adding that she is on a repayment plan and hopes to resolve the debt before her swearing-in in January.

Gibson McElhaney called the liens "embarrassing" and attributed the unpaid taxes to a series of personal tragedies in succession - grief over several close family members' deaths and the loss of her husband's job.

"It's obviously not something I'm proud of," she said. "I really need to get my arms around this."

Gibson McElhaney will represent District Three, which encompasses West Oakland and downtown and is replacing Nancy Nadel, who represented the area for 16 years. The ranked-choice voting system propelled her to a victory over front-runner Sean Sullivan.

Gibson McElhaney, who is the executive director of an Oakland nonprofit, said she believes that despite her personal problems, she will be adept at the job of a councilwoman overseeing a roughly $1 billion budget.

She said the burden of "not having things in balance was that my personal life was not in order - not my professional life."

"The public funds I'm entrusted with now are good," she said.

The Alameda County Clerk-Recorder Office records show that the Internal Revenue Service placed a lien against the Gibson McElhaney home in 2006 for at least $17,184 because Gibson McElhaney and her husband, Clarence, owed back taxes.

In addition, her husband also faced $19,123 in state and federal tax liens. The majority of those liens have been removed.

Gibson McElhaney said her husband lost his job in 2006. The next year, her grandmother died. Over the past year, Gibson McElhaney said, her sister-in-law and mother also died, further hindering her ability to manage the tax situation.

Gibson McElhaney said she coped with grief by diving into her work. She is the executive director of Neighborhood Housing Services, an affordable-housing building, counseling and advocacy agency.

"We experienced a lot of economic stress in our marriage," said Gibson McElhaney, adding that the couple didn't file tax returns on time.

She said that she has her wages garnisheed - an amount she estimated at $800 a month. She said she did not know how much of her back taxes are still owed.

She said her accountant suggested the repayment could be completed before she takes office and that she is focusing on getting that completed.

Former Oakland Mayor Ron Dellums and his wife, Cynthia, were hit with $252,000 in federal tax liens in 2009. The liens were for unpaid taxes in 2005, 2006 and 2007 - the year he took office.

County records show that Dellums was released from one of his liens this August.