24 The News-Press
State Senate District 4
October 20, 2016
Why should voters choose you for this office?
Describe an accomplishment that best illustrates your effectiveness as a leader.
How can the two major parties better work together to ensure progress at the Capitol?
What can be done to ensure the metro area’s transportation system will be able to keep up with the growing population?
What issue most deserves more attention during the 2017 session than it saw in 2016?
I am not influenced by big donor contributions. I am fair to all parties involved. I will talk to all parties and we will come up with solutions that are for the good of our constituents not party lines.
I was tasked to lead the movement of Baghdad, Iraqi equipment and streamline the transfer of cargo to use in other parts of the country, region or return to the states the most cost effective way. I worked with six Air Expeditionary Groups, 24 key personnel from the host nation of Iraq, U.S. Department of Defense and U.S. Department of State to move 244 vehicles, 378 sea land containers, 4.6K tons of property worth $452M within 10 months.
By taking their personal biases and big donor contributions out of the equation, listening to each other and collaborating on viable solutions.
Evaluating the studies performed, reviewing the plans that have been put in place (2020 and 2040), seeing where we stand on those plans, what needs to be updated in those plans and what needs to be changed in those plans if they are not working for the situation. Funding is a huge issue so we also need to look at where we are on the budget, where we need to add to the budget or move items on the budget by prioritization. If TABOR is hindering the progress, then we need to look at the solutions to get past the hurdles.
Education and infrastructure are the two major areas Senate District 4 must look at in 2017. We do not seem to be making progress in the infrastructure but being reactive to the situations as they present themselves. Plum Creek is always congested on I-25 in both directions, there are no speed trains that have been proposed by CDOT for the corridor from Fort Collins — Colorado Springs and even suggested beyond,
I want to help bring positive changes to our state and I’ll do this by bringing real-world business knowledge, entrepreneurial experience and health plan expertise to the Legislature. Let’s continue attracting existing businesses to move here and encourage “startup” enterprises to create good jobs in Colorado. Let’s work to mitigate these rising health care costs and make sure people are covered at affordable rates. Let’s help our businesses and families thrive through creative solutions to our everyday problems.
Often, people believe effective leadership is measured in scores or numbers — but, it’s really about encouraging others to believe in their own abilities and then promoting their achievements. I see this collaborative effort when I look at the personal and professional accomplishments of every one of my employees.
It’s amazing what gets done when officials feel their seats are at stake. So to end the gridlock, we need the people to remind public officials who they work for.
We had over 100,000 new residents arrive in Colorado and we have all felt the effects of this influx during our daily commute. As we continue to make Colorado attractive to business, we need to look forward and truly plan for these policies to be effective (always seems to catch us off guard when a policy actually works). We must have open communication among our city planners, county officials, contractors and forecasters to anticipate where resources will be needed and prioritize accordingly.
Promotion of the trades and alternative education paths. Rising tuition costs are crushing students at four-year universities and we’re seeing a deficit in the labor force for good paying jobs in electrical, mechanical and other trades. My father learned a trade in the Army and it served him long into retirement.
Why should voters choose you for this office?
Describe an accomplishment that best illustrates your effectiveness as a leader.
How can the two major parties better work together to ensure progress at the Capitol?
What can be done to ensure the metro area’s transportation system will be able to keep up with the growing population?
What issue most deserves more attention during the 2017 session than it saw in 2016?
I have spent a lot of time listening to constituent issues and believe that the most important part of serving as a state representative is making sure that I am accessible to the people I represent. I try to bring in as many perspectives as possible when crafting legislation, and sometimes find that a solution to an issue really only requires an open conversation, not a new law.
The issue of comprehensive safety reporting in our schools was brought to my attention two years ago. We were missing key information to fully inform the public of the disciplinary actions taken by school districts. I convened several large stakeholder meetings to craft a more comprehensive data gathering policy and was successful in passing a bipartisan bill.
Unlike what the public hears from the media, Republicans and Democrats actually do talk to each other and work pretty well together in the Colorado Legislature. Building working relationships, having candid conversations and being willing to actually listen to one another has helped us pass a majority of bipartisan bills. There will always be subjects the parties fundamentally disagree on, but the majority of our work is done with bipartisan support.
This is a topic that we must be willing to address and look for new ideas to fix this growing problem. The gas tax is a declining revenue stream because of higher CAFÉ standards mandating better fuel economy and more hybrid and electric vehicles. We offered legislation to allow bonding of projects throughout the state. Unfortunately the bills died in committee. Close examination of department budgets and focusing our limited dollars would be a good start.
The growth of Medicaid spending should be a priority. We hear about other states finding ways to slow the growth in this area, and it should be a top priority for Colorado to examine every opportunity to follow suit. The ACA has placed more people in Colorado on Medicaid and the state is carrying a larger burden for those costs. The growth in this one area affects our entire budget.
The Democratic Party offers a choice in almost every race this year, even in the mostly rural 39th district. I spent years as a Republican, until their economic policies proved wrong and their social engineering became offensive. I am a social progressive and a fiscal conservative, like most of my neighbors. My opponent is trapped in predictable right-wing politics and corporate sponsorship. Don’t like that? Then vote for me.
In the 1990s, I was a director of a small Seattle company that was failing rapidly. The board sent me in to take over. It was very political, but I managed to keep employees fully paid, suppliers mollified, product continued to be shipped, and most importantly, we avoided bankruptcy.
The two parties can work together better when they drop the grandstanding on issues playing to “their base” that they know won’t pass. Enough already! Few people know how little power the General Assembly has due to TABOR, but still state law has much more effect on our daily lives than the U.S. Congress ever will. There are sometimes bills that come up free from special interest lobbying where I see both parties carefully listening. These efforts need to be studied and replicated.
The metro area’s transportation problem is bad, and about to get a lot worse. It’s called TABOR. Money is needed, but can only be raised by a vote of the people, who consistently (other than in Denver) vote down any tax increase. So CDOT, and various counties, have had to resort to toll roads/ lanes. There is some logic to this, but I suspect people won’t be happy when you have to pay $5 to exit your own driveway.
On a very personal note, the issue I hope gets renewed attention in the 2017 Assembly is “assisted suicide” or “death with dignity.” I’ve been dealing with this multiple times. I’m in favor of an act, and I am no weenie about what you call it. I’m also aware our state legislators brought up some very pertinent reservations about the bill as written last session. Let’s keep working on this.
Christina Riegel Party: Democrat About Riegel: The Perry Park resident grew up in Greeley. She served in the U.S. Air Force from 1994-2014. She has a master’s degree in business administration. More information: facebook. com/christinariegelforsenate; christinariegelforsenate@gmail.com; www. christinariegel.com/
Jim Smallwood Party: Republican About Smallwood: The Parker resident has been an employee benefits consultant and insurance broker in Douglas County for more than 20 years. He was appointed to the Colorado Advisory Council for Persons with Disabilities and has served on the advisory councils of several health- and insurance-oriented associations. More information: www.jimsmallwoodforcolorado.com
State House District 39
Polly Lawrence Party: Republican About Lawrence: The incumbent, a Roxborough Park resident, has served in the state House since 2012. She is a contract manager/estimator for Lawrence Construction. More information: pollylawrencecolorado@ gmail.com; www.PollyLawrence.com
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Richard Opler Party: Democrat About Opler: The unincorporated Douglas County resident, who lives east of Parker, spent time in the food, real estate and venture capital businesses. Currently, he is on the board of directors at a chemical recycling company. More information: rqopler@msn.com