Problem:  Frederick County is one of the fastest growing counties in Virginia.  Warren, Shenandoah, and Clarke counties also are growing. 

A growing population requires more expenses for new schools, fire stations, roads, public safety costs and increased social services.  How do you pay for that growth?  Does everyone pay with increased real estate taxes?  Should existing residents have to  pay the additional cost of new residents moving into the area?

Each new house is costing your county approximately $27,000 in capital costs.  Counties receive on average less than $1,500 per house.

We need an alternative to increased real estate taxes.

Existing residents should not  have to subsidize the cost of new home developments.

Everyone can win if those moving in simply paid the capital costs the counties  incur.  New residents paying those costs would still be less than the higher real estate taxes from their previous location.

Solution:  Impact fees would pay the capital costs of new growth.  Existing proffers on houses would reduce the required impact fees.  San Diego and Florida both have effective laws which address growth. Most new residents come from higher taxed areas, so they will benefit from the lower real estate tax rates while protecting existing residents from subsidizing the cost of new housing developments.

Advocated for accountability on budgeted spending versus actual spending.

Problem:  How are your tax dollars spent?  Do parents have a say in their child’s education?  Safety in our schools?

We all want our children to get the best education possible.  Students graduating from high school need to be able to think critically and know basic subject matter as they transition into finding a job, joining the military, or attending college.

Solution:  School choice would create competition which would benefit  students.  I would support school choice so funding would follow the student in the same way that federal dollars used for higher education follow the student. 

I have supported School Resource Officers to keep students safe in schools.

As a Frederick County supervisor, I have advocated for budget transparency, supported money for school maintenance and improvements, advocated for joint Board of Supervisor and School Board meetings to resolve differences, and opposed Deep Equity (CRT) funding.

Problem:  Voters can vote 45 days before Election Day, mail in a ballot, register to vote on Election Day, and prove residency with simply a utility bill.  This causes delays in counting ballots and voter integrity. 

We need an election day – not an election season.

Solution:  All citizens should have the same information about all candidates on the same day in order to vote for the candidate of their choice. This system has worked well since the Republic was founded. 

Absentee balloting can be used for those who have a legitimate reason they cannot vote on election day as successfully done in the past.

Ensure voter integrity and fair elections by requiring voter ID and ending mail in voting, same day voter registration, motor voter registration without proof of citizenship, and ballots mailed on election day.

Problem:  As the area grows, we need to address the roads and infrastructure required to meet that growth.

Viginia through the Smart Scale program allocates money to meet the current growth situation in a county – not the expected future growth.  That money typically arrives 4-5 years after first being requested.  That needs to change. 

Solution:  Money should be allocated based on what  the expected growth will be when the money arrives in the future, not the money needed to address the current situation which is outdated by the time the money arrives. 

I have advocated for such a change to VDOT officials at the Transportation Forum and the Rt 37 Forum which I organized with federal and state officials.