Training and Experience
Retired from the Army Reserve with 24 years, 11 on active duty. Worked as a land surveyor and construction project manager throughout District 95.
Volunteer/Community Service
16 years as a Boy Scout leader.
We need to enact ranked choice voting. This will allow voters to select the candidate which most closely aligns with the voter's values as their first choice and break the practice of merely voting defensively for less desired candidates based upon perceived electability.
Revenue sources should be tied to the program supported. For instance, police and fire services protect property, so it makes sense for property tax to support those government functions. I feel that we need to identify appropriate government programs, determine the cost to run those programs, and raise the revenue from appropriate sources. We need move away from collecting a large pot of revenue and then deciding on how to spend it. Cost analysis must come before revenue collection.
Regarding the proposal to eliminate property tax, I stand firmly against. This is designed to benefit out of state venture capital investors in residential property, who keep housing costs high and would shift their tax burden to their renters in the form of significantly higher sales tax.
We need programs and funding to revitalize the downtown areas of the numerous small communities throughout District 95. We must restore salvageable vacant buildings and remove and replace buildings beyond saving. I will work to help small, locally owned businesses become established in the restored downtown spaces, with special emphasis on providing availability of essential services such as grocery stores, medical clinics, restaurants, libraries, and community centers. These businesses will provide local jobs and provide a town core to attract additional businesses to the area, improving job opportunity and wages, while also reducing the distance and time required to reach essential services.
Revitalizing communities is key to establishing a necessary base of infrastructure upon which to build greater technological access for southeast Ohio students. Improved academic performance requires high speed internet access to all households as a necessary utility. Incentives must be provided to attract qualified, quality teachers to the region. Students need an education designed to prepare them for both the adult job market as well as being informed participants in general society. Greater access to trade based education must be provided, with the goal of also having local jobs available in those trades. Furthermore, Pre-K programs must be available for all families regardless of economic status.
Political leaders need to focus on real issues which affect everyday Ohioans and step away from incessant culture wars. There needs to be a greater focus on issues and less focus on ad hominem character attacks. The current electoral system focuses upon candidates with name recognition and perceived electability, but this often leads to both parties presenting their worst possible candidates and voters choosing the lesser of two evils. Establishing ranked choice voting will provide better options for voters to choose candidates more willing to do the job of governing collectively rather than feeling forced to vote defensively on a partisan basis.
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