Candidate for
State Representative; Pennsylvania State House of Representatives; District 47; Democratic Party

Representatives to the Pennsylvania State House should be exactly that, representatives. Individuals holding and seeking public office should not be doing so if they are there to push their own agendas and to side consistently with one group or another. They need to be the voice of the voter and they need to listen to what their constituents are saying. If their intention is to push a personal agenda or to continue to push the agenda of one particular group, they have lost site of the importance and the role of public officials.

When elected, there are three main areas I will focus on immediately:

- Restoring State Funding for Education - Education is the foundation for everything in a person's life. Teaching public school children for the last 4 years, I see first-hand how education can make or break a child's future. Early childhood education is the essential building block to which the rest of a child's education and life is built upon. Schools provide the structure and stability in a child's life that may or may not be found at home. It is in the school, where students have access to a quality education, meals, recess, friends, athletics and a host of other resources that help them build a sense of community and well-being.

- Reducing Property Taxes - Pennsylvania needs to contribute 50% of the cost of education as it did in the 1990's, when property taxes were lower. The increased burden on the local tax payer is forcing many to lose their homes and livelihood. Income from a 10% fee on Marcellus Shale would help bring in the needed revenue to help achieve this. Without doubt, corporations need to pay their fair-share in order to help lower the burden on property owners in the state.

- Fiscal Responsibility - Allocations and cuts need to be done in a fiscally responsible way in order to ensure one or two sectors are not being cut to death while others are not paying their fair-share. Money that is allocated must be tracked and the mentality of "spend it or lose it" needs to be policed. When money is allocated, the state needs to oversee exactly how that is spent. In addition, people who receive the money need to be held accountable if they are just merely wasting it to keep their current level of funding up.