VOTE411 Voter Guide

I have decades of experience developing, overseeing, and analyzing budgets, financial records and government performance. As Deputy State Auditor for the last 5 years, I've supervised the production of dozens of state performance audits and overseen the state’s annual comprehensive financial reporting. I also have hands on experience in my two highest priority areas - health care and housing. I’ve developed hundreds of units of affordable housing at Cathedral Square, and currently serve as board president of VT's largest non-hospital primary care organization with nine sites and an annual budget exceeding $50 million. I have served in the State Senate, as a municipal official, and on a Congressional staff so I know how to make an impact.

Montpelier is sending mixed signals to small towns. Will rural elementary schools be forced to close? Will housing programs reach rural areas? Will working families be able to afford to live in towns with ever-increasing second homes? All good questions. I will use the resources of the office to: • Evaluate the extent to which small towns are receiving their fair share of state resources for housing, infrastructure, and related programs. • Identify ways to support the capacity of local government to handle increasingly complex compliance with State and federal grant programs. • Create a rural health dashboard that identifies the assets needed for a vibrant community and repeatedly direct decision makers to it to inform their actions.

I have 30 years experience in business. Currently, I handle all financial matters and am the point person for independent financial audits for Dometic, an international manufacturer, located in Manchester. In addition to my business and accounting experience I served on the City Council and its Finance Committee in Pittsfield, MA. There I was a vigilant watchdog of city spending. I watched millions of dollars spent with no accountability. Grants were lost to special interests and fraudulent businesses. There was never a trail of how the money was spent. The people, particularly the most vulnerable, never received the benefit.

Expanding cooperative SUs is likely the best method to reduce costs on duplicated services while maintaining local control. As auditor it may be very helpful to redo the survey conducted by Auditor Salmon in 2009. This was a helpful report of the extent of shared services and cost savings of these efforts.