Fareed still wants to “talk more later”

Santa Barbara congressional candidate Justin Fareed claims he’s a “third-generation rancher” who oversees the family’s cattle business, but for nearly five years he has failed to report that position on federal financial disclosure forms — omissions one expert says obscures his family ties to Big Oil.

The well-funded Republican is again running for the 24th Congressional District seat now held by his one-time opponent, Democratic Congressman Salud Carbajal.

In addition to working for his parents’ athletic equipment company, Fareed, 29, calls himself a rancher and says on his latest online bio that he “maintains a devotion to overseeing” his family’s cattle ranching business in Kern County. He has not publicly shared details about what he does at the ranch, or even the business’ name.

But that’s a position he’s required to report if he actually does any work there, according to experts contacted by The Tribune.