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I believe public service is about solving problems, not advancing agendas. My qualifications come from experience serving at every level of government-local, state, and federal-as well as my time on local and state boards, where I've worked directly on issues that affect families, taxpayers, and communities. As an Olathe City Councilwoman, I have a strong understanding of how decisions are made closest to the people and how these decisions impact daily life. Combined with my experience at the state and federal levels, I understand how these systems connect and how to navigate them to get things done. I am an independent voice who is not driven by partisan agendas but by a commitment to listen, solve problems, and deliver results.

1) Affordability...Property tax relief, affordable housing, healthcare and prescription drug costs, and good paying jobs. Put guardrails around property tax rates; ease regulation and cost around affordable housing; increase transparency in the Pharmacy Benefit Manager (PBM) system, limit fees and require clearer pricing practices on prescriptions to prevent hidden markups, encourage generics. 2) Education...Teacher retention and student success. Reform KPERS 3 for teachers. Invest in early literacy and math proficiency. State support with targeted funding for special ed and mental health. 3) Public Safety and Strong Communities. Focus on crime prevention and accountability. Invest in first responders and improve local/state coordination.

We need to modernize the legislative process so bills can be easily tracked in real time. It gets complicated during conference committees between the House and Senate when things suddenly change in bills to earn support in both chambers, however, all legislative activity is recorded and publicly available. The best way to get updates is through kslegislature.gov or your legislator. The "gut and go" process is used to move bills that would otherwise die due to time restraints. It gets confusing when the contents change but the bill title stays the same. We should require a new title or label it as "new subject matter," We need to adopt a germaneness threshold and a 48 hour hold until the new language is posted before allowing for a vote.

Kansas election laws are generally strong but no system is perfect. It is appropriate to make targeted improvements when there is a clear need- due to court rulings, legal clarifications, or issues that arise over time. Every new bill goes through the House Elections Committee and is carefully reviewed, debated, and improved in a transparent way. My approach is to ensure that any updates continue to protect election integrity, improve clarity and access for voters, and comply with legal rulings. When implemented responsibly, these changes should have the goal of protecting the integrity of the process, maintaining public confidence, and ensuring every legal vote counts and is properly counted.

I worked 22 error-free years as an Air Traffic Controller. I've answered 911 calls. I managed the largest police fleet in Johnson County, I can't imagine I might encounter anything in the legislature I can't handle. And while these jobs certainly highlight my problem solving skills, they also demanded the ability to build relationships, a skill central to being a successful legislator.

Our public schools should always be a top priority. Fully funded, vibrant public schools are foundational to the function of our communities and ensuring each child is afforded the opportunity to succeed in life. I will support full Special Education funding and to ensure the KPERS system is on solid ground so that teachers can live a dignified retirement. Property tax relief, particularly for seniors, would help relieve the economic stress felt by many. I will work with anyone in the legislature to work out policies to alleviate this burden. Our rural healthcare system is in crisis. We must do what we can to stop the impending closures of rural hospitals across the state. Medicaid expansion is the most immediate and obvious solution.

On its face, "Gut and Go" is an affront to the legislative and democratic process which subverts the regular open and transparent business of the legislature. I have mixed emotions about the process in practice though because it has been used to pass needed change and bypass the stranglehold those in leadership positions can have on the legislature. It seems a practice open to abuse though, and I would work with experience legislators from both parties to attempt to limit the process. I would support funding for near real time online updates of legislation as it is amended and moves through each step towards passage.

Voting is the right of every citizen. We should be looking harder at ways to facilitate voting, rather than making it more difficult.