Better Government For All

I. Improve the lives of Colorado’s veterans and especially for the Colorado families of our fallen heroes.

The War in Iraq is having devastating consequences on virtually every aspect of our American life: 1-2 trillion in misspent tax dollars, near complete bankruptcy of our international diplomatic capital, domestic political and social divisions, tens of thousands of wounded patriots, and thousands more fallen. Despite this brutal reality, to me, there is still a sense that many view this war more as a reality TV show instead of a hard reality which will have generational consequences.

On a local level, there are some things we can help with more than others. Our first priority needs to be ensuring the care of our state’s veterans. The message I wish to convey is that taking care of our veterans is not just a federal responsibility. We all have a solemn obligation to these young men and women paying the ultimate price: sacrificing their lives, limbs, youth, relationships, and future for the war of today’s generation. To this end, Colorado needs to stand up and be counted as a leader in taking care of their veterans.

I support:

1. Providing a permanent exemption from the state income tax for the widowed spouse, mother and father of Colorado military personnel killed while serving in a foreign war.
2. All disabled veterans of these wars should be able to enroll in the state employees’ health care system to supplement any gaps in their VA benefits.
3. We need to make sure that our disabled veterans truly have all their educational needs provided for.
4. The children of all Colorado military personnel killed in Iraq/Afghanistan should receive free college tuition at any state, public institution.
5. The state needs to set up a military family support fund to assist families dealing with the psychological crises of overseas deployment and the psychological needs of returning vets. This fund should help cover any gaps in VA benefits.
6. The state should set up a grant program to help disabled veterans get a lower interest rate on their VA home loan.

II. Improving state government and protecting Colorado’s financial resources

1. The State of Colorado should have the highest possible bond rating.
2. I support modernizing the way Colorado delivers its services.
3. I support integrating the way our State conducts its business and services with the cost efficiency of the internet.
4. I support taking greater strides in government transparency by providing more data to the public online in an easily accessible fashion, including:
   1. All voting records;
   2. Every minutiae of the state budget;
   3. State departmental budgets;
   4. All private state contractors, vendors, what they do, and how much the state pays for their services;
   5. More on-line transparency in the bidding process for state contracts;
   6. The results of departmental audits;
5. I support exploring ways to gain state revenue efficiencies by phasing out all or part of the current state income tax and replacing it with a better taxing methodology.
6. As a community member and businessman who has earned every paycheck by competing in the open market, I support legislation which will ease the tax burden of locally owned, small businesses.
7. As a taxpayer, I acknowledge that the current state tax code is too confusing and needs to be streamlined and eventually replaced. This is not something that will happen immediately, but dialogue, substantive research, and action on improvements and alternatives should be on the public menu.
8. I signed Colorado’s Voluntary Campaign Spending Limit pledge to prove that what is worth doing can be done on a conservative budget.
9. We need to align the compensation of our elected officials to attract the best and the brightest candidates.

III. Supporting education reform

1. I acknowledge the best education is provided by communities who let educators, not politicians, make decisions.
2. Our children cannot get the education they need to compete in today’s world unless our educational system is fully funded as mandated by the Colorado State Constitution.
3. Local communities, not the federal government, should be deciding curriculum and budgeted school activities.
4. The No Child Left Behind program is failing our schools, educators, and our students.
5. As a resident and parent, I acknowledge that our educational system is under-funded.
6. At this time, I don’t believe taxes need to be raised to fix education funding. I believe what needs to happen is that our elected officials must make further tough funding choices.
7. Communities fully fund what is most important to them. To this end, our public leadership needs to be united and coordinated in getting the message out.

IV. Protect the beauty, purity, and openness of Colorado’s natural resources

1. I fully endorse the 2006 Jefferson County Democratic Platform’s positions on protecting and sustaining Colorado’s natural resources.
2. I believe that protecting and expanding Colorado’s natural resources including land, air, and water quality is one of the State legislature’s most solemn duties.
3. I support a state-wide, long-term strategy to identify, inventory, possibly acquire, and manage Colorado’s most important natural resources, especially its water and land assets.
4. Colorado lawmakers need to make Colorado’s water resources their highest environmental priority including a long term strategy for the preservation of water quality and advancing the cause of keeping water rights localized.
5. A Democratic controlled General Assembly is best for Colorado’s environment.
6. Protecting Colorado’s natural treasures should take precedence over commercial development.
7. I oppose the construction of the Northwest Corridor aka The Beltway through House District 25 or any other district. A superhighway of this scope through this region is a bad idea financially, ecologically, culturally, and I will fight against it.

V. Promote long-term economic growth and fairness

1. I support a long term strategy to attract legitimate businesses to Colorado.
2. I support a fair state minimum wage.
3. I support creating economic zones to promote industries that create Colorado jobs.
4. One of the best things the State Legislature can do to promote economic growth is to ease the regulatory environment on small businesses that create barriers to entry into the marketplace and diseconomies of scale for family businesses.
5. As a residential mortgage professional by trade, I support creating standards for mortgage brokers but I do not support state legislatures dictating what is an acceptable mortgage product or mortgage underwriting guidelines.

VI. Better foster care, better adoption, and parental rights

1. Colorado’s most vulnerable children need a better advocate from House District 25.
2. Adopting a child in Colorado needs to be easier and cheaper.
3. Colorado’s foster children and foster parents should have free access to all state subsidized parks and recreational facilities.
4. The tax benefits for adopting a child in Colorado should be increased.
5. Good Colorado parents under the law should have the opportunity to share equal time with their children.
6. The state legislature should take a closer look at how so-called “dead beat dad” laws are enforced.

VII. Affordable healthcare is a right

1. I believe every human being deserves access to affordable healthcare.
2. Long term affordable healthcare for all legal residents of Colorado should be the legislature’s primary healthcare issue.
3. I support significantly expanding the schools of health and medicine within the Colorado public education system to increase the number and quality of healthcare professionals in this state.
4. Some of the best answers to healthcare reform come from within the healthcare and medical profession. The legislature should take action, if possible, on the recommendations and findings of a healthcare reform commission.
5. Healthcare reform doesn’t come from placing blame, but by taking action to develop and execute a long-term public plan.

VIII. Renewable Energy – The inevitable alternative

The cost of petroleum-based fuels is skyrocketing. Furthermore, burning oil and gas is adding carbon dioxide to the atmosphere, causing significant climate change. Equally disturbing is our dependence on Mid-East oil, a serious threat to our national security.

Over the last decade, Colorado has turned a blind eye toward these oil-related problems and ignored solutions that could be provided by renewable energy. Only recently has Colorado begun to encourage the use of solar and wind power. But we can and must do more. Renewable energy is quickly becoming more cost effective and is now a viable alternative to petroleum. It should be fast-tracked.

In our state with unsurpassed potential for wind and solar energy production, I will work aggressively to promote solar and wind energy through homeowner incentives. In addition, the potential of renewables for bringing well-paying jobs to Colorado is significant, and that is why I will also work hard as your state representative to bring new renewal energy industries to our state to stimulate our faltering economy. Finally, promoting conservation will also play an important part of my efforts to reduce our dependence on gas and oil.

IV. Openness and Inclusion

As our HD 25 Representative, I will work to bring the various and diverse communities within Colorado together in the true spirit of our nations “melting pot” heritage. I will promote a state culture of openness and inclusion.

V. Professionalism

As our HD 25 Representative, I will be a voice for moderation, professionalism, fairness, openness, teamwork, honesty, and bi-partisanship.