Idaho State House District 21 A Choose 1
Idaho House of Representatives members serve a 2-year term and are responsible for translating the public will into public policy for the state, levying taxes, appropriating public funds, and overseeing the administration of state agencies. These responsibilities are carried out through the legislative process — laws passed by elected representatives of the people, legislators.
Biographical Information
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Casey Hess for Idaho State Representative
1. What do you hope to accomplish if elected?
The biggest change I would hope to accomplish would be to make it safe and legal for all Idahoans to be able to receive any necessary health care again.
2. What experience has prepared you for this office?
I have lived in Idaho my whole life, and have worked customer service for decades, including owning my own business in Meridian for the last 10 years. Which means years of practice compromising with, listening to, debating and educating customers.
3. What do you see as the most significant challenges Idaho faces that you might be able to address in this position?
The extreme conservative agenda is a danger to all women, and anything I can do to ensure bodily autonomy for everyone in the state would be a huge win in my mind.
4. Would you support legislation to remove criminal liability for physicians and pregnant women experiencing life threatening pregnancy complications and allow for medical and family decisions regarding continuation of that pregnancy. Please explain your response.
Absolutely, I don't believe that any ban on medical care - abortion specifically, but other care as well, is in the best interests of the citizens of this state or country for that matter. Medical decisions should be made by the individual with the advice of their chosen medical professionals, and not the government.
5. What else would you like to tell the voters?
I am not a career politician. In reality I never expected to run for public office, but after seeing the list of extremist bills that have made it to the governor's desk, it became very obvious to me that the Democrats in Idaho need to step up before it is too late.
Biographical Information
1. What do you hope to accomplish if elected?
Candidate has not yet responded.
2. What experience has prepared you for this office?
Candidate has not yet responded.
3. What do you see as the most significant challenges Idaho faces that you might be able to address in this position?
Candidate has not yet responded.
4. Would you support legislation to remove criminal liability for physicians and pregnant women experiencing life threatening pregnancy complications and allow for medical and family decisions regarding continuation of that pregnancy. Please explain your response.
Candidate has not yet responded.
5. What else would you like to tell the voters?
Candidate has not yet responded.
Biographical Information
1. What do you hope to accomplish if elected?
Candidate has not yet responded.
2. What experience has prepared you for this office?
Candidate has not yet responded.
3. What do you see as the most significant challenges Idaho faces that you might be able to address in this position?
Candidate has not yet responded.
4. Would you support legislation to remove criminal liability for physicians and pregnant women experiencing life threatening pregnancy complications and allow for medical and family decisions regarding continuation of that pregnancy. Please explain your response.
Candidate has not yet responded.
5. What else would you like to tell the voters?
Candidate has not yet responded.
Biographical Information
Campaign Phone
2084505615
Website
http://petzkeforidaho.com
Facebook page
facebook.com/petzkeforidaho
X known as Twitter
@jamespetzke
1. What do you hope to accomplish if elected?
In my first term, I was able to work on some of the issues that mattered most to my district, particularly Career Technical Education, property tax relief, and school facilities funding. I hope that we continue to work on how we fund school facilities in our state as that will lead to long term property tax relief and solve one of our biggest education challenges. I also want to update and modernize our school funding formulas, particularly for our universities, to better incentivize them to achieve positive outcomes for our state.
2. What experience has prepared you for this office?
Before being elected to the Idaho House of Representatives in 2022, I started and ran numerous small businesses. This experience prepared me for the rigors and trials of holding public office. My academic background in finance also helped prepare me to serve on the appropriations committee.
3. What do you see as the most significant challenges Idaho faces that you might be able to address in this position?
Keeping up with growth is one of the biggest challenges we face, especially in an area like Meridian. Although growth has boosted our economy, our infrastructure needs currently outpace our ability to build. We invested billions of dollars in many different kinds of infrastructure in my first term, and I want us to continue working on that. Our goal should be to stay ahead of the growth curve, not fall behind it.
4. Would you support legislation to remove criminal liability for physicians and pregnant women experiencing life threatening pregnancy complications and allow for medical and family decisions regarding continuation of that pregnancy. Please explain your response.
I believe that we need to protect the lives of both the pre-born and mothers. I supported HB374 last year which provided clarity around exceptions to our abortion law for dangerous molar and ectopic pregnancies. I'm open to continue working with medical professionals to ensure that our laws do not prevent life saving treatments.
5. What else would you like to tell the voters?
I am grateful to the voters who elected me two years ago, and I have spent my first term working hard to serve my district. In those two years I was proud to sponsor common sense legislation like HB92, which made personal finance a required subject in all Idaho high schools. I also worked hard on the Appropriations committee to ensure our state continued to operate with a balanced and conservative budget. I'm hoping to continue that work for the next two years.