VOTE411 Voter Guide

I come from the private sector, where performance matters, budgets matter, and excuses don’t pay the bills. For more than 20 years I’ve worked in sales and business, including the medical device industry, where I’ve managed major accounts, negotiated multimillion-dollar agreements, and built long-term relationships based on trust and results. In business, if you overspend or fail to deliver, people notice quickly. I believe government should operate with that same level of accountability. For the past seven years I’ve also served on the Kaysville City Council. During that time, I’ve worked through real-world issues involving budgets, infrastructure, public safety, growth, and resident concerns. One thing I’ve learned is that people don’t expect government to solve every problem — but they do expect leaders to listen, communicate honestly, and protect taxpayer dollars. Most importantly, I’m a husband, a father, and someone deeply invested in the future of Davis County.

The Great Salt Lake affects all of northern Utah, including Davis County. While the county doesn’t control statewide water policy, I believe county leadership should still be actively engaged and willing to speak up on issues that impact our air quality, wetlands, wildlife, and overall quality of life. I think the county has participated in the conversation, but residents increasingly want to see local governments take a stronger and more practical role. People care about clean air, responsible water use, preserving open space, and making sure growth happens responsibly. I’m a believer in practical conservation, not political slogans. That means looking at water-wise landscaping on county properties, supporting infrastructure improvements that reduce waste, protecting important wetlands where appropriate, and making sure county planning decisions consider long-term environmental impacts.

Too often local governments feel like they’re reacting to decisions instead of helping shape them early on. I believe Davis County needs to be more proactive, more united, and more organized when working with the Legislature. The county already has important tools available: relationships with legislators, regional partnerships, public input, formal resolutions, and organizations like the Utah Association of Counties. But those tools only work if county leaders are consistently engaged and willing to advocate clearly for the people they represent. As Commissioner, I would work hard to build stronger communication between county leadership, city leaders, legislators, and residents. I don’t think Davis County should simply accept one-size-fits-all policies coming from Salt Lake without making sure our communities are heard. We’ve seen this tension on issues like housing mandates, growth pressures, transportation, and land use planning. Residents want local voices involved.

Housing affordability is one of the biggest challenges facing families right now. Young families, first responders, teachers, seniors, and even many working professionals are struggling to find housing they can afford in the communities they grew up in. I believe we need balanced solutions. I support attainable housing opportunities, but I also believe growth must be responsible and infrastructure must keep pace. Residents are understandably concerned when they feel rapid growth is changing the character of their neighborhoods without proper planning. One thing I’ve learned from serving on the City Council is that forcing high-density projects into communities without local support often creates more frustration than solutions. I believe cities and counties should have flexibility to find approaches that fit their individual communities.

My number one priority is keeping taxes low. Families are feeling pressure from every direction right now — groceries, insurance, utilities, housing, and interest rates. Local government needs to recognize that every tax increase affects real families trying to make ends meet. I believe county government should focus on core responsibilities, budget discipline, and long-term planning. Before asking taxpayers for more money, government should prove it is spending existing dollars wisely. I also want to focus on public safety, transportation planning, transparency, and protecting the quality of life that makes Davis County special. That includes supporting law enforcement and emergency services, preserving important community assets and open space, improving communication with residents, and making sure growth decisions are made thoughtfully instead of reactively.

As a physicist and private-sector executive, I bring more than 40 years of leadership experience managing complex programs, multimillion- and billion-dollar budgets, and large engineering and executive teams. My career has been built on accountability, transparency, disciplined decision-making, and delivering measurable results. I believe county government should operate with the same focus on strategic planning, fiscal responsibility, and results expected of successful organizations. Taxpayers deserve leaders who prioritize efficiency, sound budgeting, and responsible stewardship of public funds. My experience managing large operations, analyzing data, negotiating agreements, building coalitions, and delivering results provides a proven foundation for effective county leadership. I worked with congressional leaders, federal agencies on funding and policy initiatives supporting national defense. This experience gave me firsthand knowledge on budgets, negotiations, accountability.

Davis County Commissioners have played a relatively limited direct role due to the fact that water rights, lake management, and major restoration efforts for the Lake are primarily controlled by the State of Utah through agencies such as the Utah Division of Water Resources, Division of Water Rights, and the office of the Great Salt Lake Commissioner. However, the lake plays an important role in our environment and economy. The "lake effect", environmental impact, industry that rely on the lake, all have a significant impact on Davis County. Actions we must be involved with include; growth and development policies, water-wise use of culinary and secondary water, a clear audit of how water is used by use segment, open-space wetland preservation, coordination with cities and water districts, advocacy for state-level lake policies. Using data not special interest to evaluate the economic, social, and environmental impacts is critical to effective decision making.

Many issues affecting Davis County are controlled by the State Legislature, including unfunded mandates. County leaders must be active advocates, not passive observers. As County Commissioner, I will ensure Davis County has a strong voice by building coalitions with legislative delegations, city leaders, neighboring counties, and key stakeholders before legislation is drafted. We must use the power of our citizens to shape policy and direction. This would include: public testimony, formal resolutions, and coalition-building with citizens, Davis County Cities, and other counties. These tools are most effective when used proactively and strategically. My experience working with congressional leaders, attorneys to make sure we are compliant with law, federal agencies, and state governments has shown that influence comes from preparation, a clear focus, credible data, and intense collaboration. I will use those skills to effectively represent Davis County's interests.

Affordability is the basis by which the State mandated that 17% of each city be dedicated to “high density housing”. Unfortunately, that mandate missed the mark. The mandate resulted in homes at the $400K to $1M target, and apartments at around $2,500 a month - certainly not affordable. This, in my opinion, was due to a lack of understanding the needs in our community. We need to take a strategic pause and re-look at the data. The compounded population growth rate from 2015 through 2025 is approximately 1.3% per year. High density housing has been growing faster than population growth (around 2 to 4% annually). Housing growth has outpaced the population growth rate by almost double. We must also consider the impact to green space, water usage, social impacts, health and safety, and infrastructure implications as starters. Some options could include sweat equity to reduce upfront costs, and medium density housing using quality prebuilt homes. Citizen committees can help address this.

Over the past decade, the culture of our County Commission has shifted toward limited transparency, insufficient fiscal discipline, and a lack of long-term strategic planning. The result has been significant tax increases that place additional burdens on residents, particularly retirees, young families, and those on fixed incomes. We must do better for citizens of Davis County. As County Commissioner, I would focus on three priorities: First, conduct a comprehensive review of county spending to identify duplication, eliminate waste, and distinguish needs from wants. Second, return government to its proper role and avoid unnecessary competition with private industry. Third, restore transparency and public involvement through citizen advisory committees, regular newsletters, and meaningful town hall meetings where budget priorities and decisions are openly discussed. These initiatives will strengthen accountability, improve public trust, and ensure our citizen's taxes are used wisely.

My 12 years in local government - 4 years as Bountiful's Mayor & 8 years on the City Council have prepared me well. I have overseen the budget of the 2nd largest city in the county. Bountiful has one of the lowest tax rates in the county and is known as a lean, pay-as-you-go city. I also have business experience managing budgets and operations. In addition to government budget expertise, I have 12 years experience in understanding the complex issues the County faces - personnel, overtime at the jail, salary wars between law enforcement agencies, body cameras, bullet proof vests, managing covid relief funds, human resource policies, dispatch office consolidation, zoning laws in cities, water management and conservation, code blue and homeless shelter issues, infrastructure maintenance, etc.. I understand the issues. I know the Mayors and City councilmembers from all 15 Cities. I'll work with constituents, employees and fellow elected officials to meet Davis County's critical needs.

The State has taken the lead in addressing the decline in the Great Salt Lake water levels with a Task Force and initiatives dedicated to help save the Lake. It's important for Davis County to be involved with an active seat at the table. Working together is the only way we will be able to make a real impact on the Lake levels. I'm grateful that State and Federal dollars are being invested and that environmental experts and guiding this discussion. Davis County supports these efforts and should continue doing our part to conserve water and educating residents on ways to save the Lake. Davis County has a unique geography that in vulnerable to air inversions. The Health Department tracks air quality conditions and offers programs to reduce emissions. They also test water quality and work to ensure our drinking water, swimming pools and storm drain water is safe. Davis County should lead out in being an example to adjust sprinklers and water their properties wisely.

The greatest tools to promote the County's interests are good relationships where we know our legislators, interact often and seek partnerships to solving problems. I am on a first name basis with all Davis County legislators. We have positive working relationships where we can call each other and ask questions about how legislation will impact operations. Cities and Counties are subsidiaries of the State and have legal authority because the State grants it. At the same time, government is best when it works locally to best understand the ramifications on our own local citizens. When the State passes legislation that has a negative impact on Cities or Counties, it's best to get upstream of the issue. Before legislation is even written, I have had conversations with lawmakers helping them understand the impact their proposals would have on local government so they can adapt regulations, lengthen deadlines or consider alternatives to imposing fees on local governments.

Affordable housing is one of the toughest challenges in our community. I witnessed this when I was serving as Mayor in Bountiful. We required our Water, Power and Police Department employees to live within a certain response time of the city but some had a difficult time being able to afford to live nearby. Local cities control the zoning and in Bountiful, we made it legal for homeowners to rent out a portion of their home (like a basement) as an Accessory Dwelling Unit to increase housing stock options. The Davis Community Housing Authority works with partners to offer programs to help with housing. There are home ownership assistance programs that the County administers. Davislinks.org is a website where many resources are identified to help people that may be in crisis and need housing or food. Davis County oversees the Health Dept. (including mental health) and can play a vital role in educating the public on what resources are available.

One of the most important ways the Davis County Commissioners can help the residents of the County is by keeping our fees and taxes low. I understand that many aging residents live on fixed incomes. I am committed to a thorough review of each County Department to ensure that we are providing the services that are statutorily required. Residents rely on the County to administer free and fair elections, operate libraries where people can gather, check out books and use computers, operate a jail, prosecute criminals, promote public health and safe restaurants, drinking water and air, and run an Animal care facility. These services cost money. We can't cut employees at the Jail below safe numbers. We must be responsible to provide the necessary services residents need, but we also should not grow government in spending money on projects or services that aren't necessary. My top priority is to look at each Department and protect tax dollars so we don't have wasteful or needless spending.