district
130
Education
MS in Chemical Engineering from Auburn University, BE in Chemical Engineering from Vanderbilt University
Occupation
Environmental Engineer
I believe the strongest traits that qualify me are my sense of fairness, empathy, and desire to help people. One of my major criticisms of many politicians is that they often represent the interests of a group of people that are to the detriment of others. In my job as an environmental engineering project manager, I am dedicated to protection of the environment and have been helping my industrial clients comply with their obligations in cost-effective ways for more than 25 years. My job is all about solving problems and I am constantly looking for win-win solutions. I help develop these solutions by engaging the various stakeholders and a team of knowledgeable professionals and want to bring this same approach to Austin.
Two issues are not covered in this survey. I know of at least 5 women in Texas who either lost their lives or nearly died since Roe v Wade was overturned due to laws prohibiting abortions in Texas. It is inexcusable that Austin lawmakers would override the ability of doctors to render life-saving care to Texas women. Mass shootings are on the rise over the last few decades, and it is outrageous that after these shootings, Republican politicians offer little more than “thoughts and prayers”. How many more people must die before we take action? There are many good ideas offered by both sides of the political spectrum. When kids going to school are getting shot, we need to take any and all reasonable measures to try to prevent future attacks.
I am ethical, honest, want to be fair to everybody, and love helping people. I am doing fine in life and am not running for office out of any desire to enrich myself or for political ambitions. I am running because of the rampant greed, corruption, and lack of concern I have seen from some of our elected officials, and I see us sliding down a dangerous spiral towards autocracy. I see Republican officials who refuse to stand up against colleagues who break laws and abuse their authority; those who speak out have been cast aside. I have always stood up for what I feel is right and want to fight back against bullies. I can not be bought or intimidated. If elected, I promise to fight for the people of Texas and to expose corruption.
We need to ensure that public schools are properly funded and have the resources they need to be among the best in the world. Teachers need to have a stronger voice in establishing policies. We need to maintain separation between Church and State in Texas schools. Everyone has a right to practice their own religion but they do NOT have the right to inflict their views on others. We need to stop interjecting politics into the school curriculum. Despite what some politicians who lack the proper technical credentials like to insist upon, climate change is a reality and should be taught. I oppose book bans and firings of librarians favored by many Republican officials, and believe school bus access that has been slashed needs to be restored.
This complex issue requires input from many in order to provide the best care in the world to all in Texas. I support the ACA model which preserves employer-sponsored medical insurance while making affordable insurance available to everyone through the marketplace. Texas needs to expand Medicaid. Medical care is a right for all. We need to ensure that medical professionals are well paid to retain the best. We want companies to continue to develop new and better drugs and to advance medical technologies. We need solutions that balance all of these objectives. We need to listen to the medical community for policies free from political interference, fight back against disinformation, and legalize marijuana for medical purposes.
I am very knowledgeable in this area based on over 25 years of experience in industrial wastewater treatment. Technology exists to treat brackish water and produced water (PW, associated with oil and gas extraction) and continues to evolve; the challenge is the cost of implementing these technologies on a large scale. I have participated in the design of systems that would allow PW to be beneficially reused (e.g., for watering non-consumptive crops) or discharged to streams. Treated water could be a valuable resource in West Texas where water is scarce. The TWDB is tasked with water resource planning and needs to be well-funded to meet our growing water demands in a time when climate conditions are increasingly extreme and unpredictable.
I am pro-business and recognize that profitable businesses and industries are critical to maintaining and growing prosperity in Texas and providing jobs for Texans. I support wages that are performance and value-based and that allow employees to maintain a reasonable standard of living while allowing business to continue to thrive in Texas. We need to ensure that we have adequate training facilities so that employees who lose jobs to automation can be re-trained and continue to be a valuable part of the workforce while providing for themselves and their families.
Recent voting legislation enacted by Republican legislators under the guise of preventing fraud appears to be specifically targeted to disenfranchise elderly and minority voters. This represents an abuse of power. We need to maximize the opportunity for registered voters to exercise their constitutional right. We need to reverse barriers to voting by mail and early voting. We also need to protect election workers from harassment and disclosure of personal information. Multiple studies do not support the claims of rampant voter fraud alleged by the current elected majority. I will fight efforts to gerrymander in response to meddling federal politicians who insist on “finding” additional Republican seats so that they can maintain their power.
district
District 130
Education
Master's in Public Administration and B.S. Political Science - University of Houston, Cypress Woods High School
Occupation
Community Leader
I have a master's in public administration from the University of Houston, which I earned through a rigorous program that sharpened my skills regarding policy and data analysis, public management, budgeting, and administrative law. In other words, I understand the tools the public sector has at their disposal and how to use them to solve societal problems and deliver results. I am also dedicated to serving my community. I ran for this seat last cycle and personally knocked on more doors than any other candidate in Harris County, where I got the opportunity to learn more about what voters want from their representative. Come to find out, most of it is what I want, too. We want someone who is present, compassionate, and thoughtful.
My answer would likely change day to day, but my top two priorities are to restore reproductive freedom and reduce income inequality. Starting with reproductive freedom, Texas has one of the highest maternal mortality rates in the nation. Women continue to die as they are denied critical care in life-threatening situations. Kate Cox's story shows us my opponent's abortion law is so extreme, it makes even intended pregnancies dangerous, and there are no exceptions for rape or incest. As for income inequality, Texas policies have been engineered to predominantly benefit the wealthy. Texans struggle, despite GDP growth every year. We must incentivize union membership and restructure our tax policy to support the low, middle, and working class.
I want people to know that all the issues I bring up are more than just talking points to me. I have lived in the Cypress area since I was nine years old, and I have had to adapt to policy failures just as everyone else has. For example, when I was in grade school, I had my own active shooter plan for every classroom I was in. When I sprained my ankle in 9th grade, I was charged $2,000 for a single Tylenol-Codeine pain relief pill. Today, I worry that the women in my life will be denied life-saving care when they need it most. I don't know if I will be able to afford my own house anytime soon. I struggle to find work even with a master's degree. I am open about my experience because I want others to know they are not alone.
The passage of the voucher scam last legislative session is a major blow to our public education system, as it is currently diverting public finds to private institutions while our public schools close. The state of Texas apparently has plenty of money to fund this new program every year, but not enough to ensure children in my district have buses to get to school. I rode the bus, and it angers me that the next generation is at risk of not having the same opportunities I was afforded. Needless to say, I will work tirelessly to repeal vouchers and fully fund public education by increasing the state's share of the funding. As it is now, Texas ranks 47th in per capita education funding. We must do more to support our students and teachers.
First and foremost, I believe all people deserve healthcare no matter their ability to afford it. Starting with access, I support expanding Medicaid under the Affordable Care Act. We are one of the only states that have yet to expand coverage, which means millions of Texans are currently uninsured that would otherwise be covered by the program. All Texans pay taxes, and federal money is our money. We should not be ashamed to accept what is ours. As for affordability, I am also in favor of price caps for certain drugs and procedures, especially those in which the industry has been found to be price gouging. I commend Representative Talarico and the Legislature for putting a price cap on insulin, but there is more work to be done.
All Texans deserve access to clean drinking water, and it is projected the state will see major shortages by 2030. Step one is to repair and revitalize our deteriorating infrastructure to stop the massive leaks. Step two is to invest in relatively new water treatment practices like desalination, which is currently working for local communities and has the potential to serve all Texans. I also want to get groundwater and surface water rights on the same page and under the same legal framework, so our Water Board and local water managers can coordinate more effectively. I support the Legislature's current efforts to establish a statewide "water grid," so underserved and ecologically vulnerable communities don't bear the brunt of this crisis.
I support legislation that would repeal our so-called "right to work" law, which cripples unions and effectively legalizes worker exploitation by large corporations. My proposed legislation would protect unions and give workers the right to collectively bargain for good wages and benefits. We also need to expand the education to workforce pipeline, which includes free community college and sponsoring apprenticeships for in-demand industries such as energy, tech, and healthcare. Lastly, with a growing e-commerce economy, I support investment in broadband access. According to the Texas Broadband Development Office, nearly 3 million Texas households do not have access to high-speed broadband due to the lack of investment in the infrastructure.
Texas is consistently ranked one of the hardest states to vote in, and it is no accident. Our current leaders have designed this system to disenfranchise millions and stay in power. We need a new Voting Rights Act with sweeping reforms that, at the very least, would bring us on par with other states. I support automatic voter registration when Texans turn 18, accepting student IDs as a form of identification, making Election Day a holiday, restoring the right to vote to convicted felons after they get out of jail, having more than one ballot drop box location per county, and same-day online voter registration. If we are to build trust in our electoral process, then we need to make sure everyone eligible to vote is able to.
