Restoring public trust in our county government is critical. I think we can all agree that it’s been a rough few years for the county board, the county administrator and some county departments and officials. I passionately believe government officials should be held to a higher standard. Citizens should have ready access to information about what their leaders are doing without having to wade through a morass of information only an accountant or an economist could understand. If elected I promise to keep the public informed of what’s happening on the board and in the departments whose committees I serve on.

My wife and I purchased our home in Putnam Heights in 1997. Since then, our property taxes have nearly doubled. That’s what inspired me to run for a seat on the county board. You and I pay a substantial portion of our incomes to the government. We elect leaders and hire government employees to spend that money wisely. Every year budgets are created telling government officials how much money they have to spend. Some stay within their budgets and some do not. The State of Wisconsin has a 7-billion-dollar surplus that nobody seems in any hurry to give back. I would like to see all county departments operating within their budgets. I would encourage county departments to work together. Having worked for Eau Claire County I know there are many unexplored opportunities for collaboration.

The cost of housing in the Chippewa Valley and surrounding area is out of hand. My daughter is moving back to Eau Claire, and I’ve been helping her look for an apartment. She recently signed a lease for a very small one-bedroom apartment for $875.00 a month. The apartment would have rented for a fraction of that just a few years ago. I believe that anyone working a steady full-time job should be able to afford to live a comfortable life. I would like to see programs in place that would allow local landlords or first-time homebuyers the opportunity to purchase existing properties and rehabilitate them rather than tax breaks to large companies who want to build massive new blocks of so-called affordable housing that really are not affordable to those earning a median income.

I would like to see the county wheel tax eliminated. Although it is a comparatively small amount of money for each individual, I see it as a symbolic example of government dipping into the taxpayers’ pockets because of poor planning or misguided budget priorities.

In line with what I feel is the most important issue facing Eau Claire County, I would like to see the creation of a weekly synopsis of county government activities during the preceding week. The synopsis would include topics discussed at county board meetings and committee meetings, as well as a clear explanation of proposed changes to county code. The synopsis would be posted once each week on the county website. Citizens have a right to know what their government is doing.

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