PLATFORM

"The people of the 39th District deserve a Representative that shares their values and works to protect their interests. The Commonwealth and the 39th District need to protect and grow the pensions of the State's current and retired employees, police and educators. The people of the 39th deserve more living wage jobs, improvements for our schools, and to make public safety a top priority. With nearly a decade of legal experience, I have the passion and know-how to find the solutions to the complex problems facing the Commonwealth and the 39th District."

LIST OF ISSUES

Pension Crisis

Kentucky’s public pension systems are now billions of dollars underfunded. We have an obligation to live up to the pension promises made to current and retired state employees. If left untouched the system will eventually bankrupt our state and/or force unsustainable tax increases. It is time that we avoid the easy fix of borrowing from future generations and fight for true pension reform.

Kentucky needs to address the problem now if we have any hope of solving this crisis in the next 20 years. Previous administrations have failed to address this problem opting instead to meet the short fall by borrowing money we cannot afford to pay back, kicking the can down the road to be addressed by those who come next. All of this has taken place, while the hardworking families of Kentucky grow ever closer to debilitating tax increases and a bankrupt state. This problem has been avoided by previous Kentucky General Assemblies for far too long. The time has come to address the problem with hard work and long hours and not empty rhetoric.

The problems with the state pensions go beyond the billions of dollars in underfunding. For years, our pension systems have kept millions of dollars in investment fees hidden from the public’s view. Given these hidden fees, it should not be surprising to learn that their investments are underperforming compared to national averages. As your State Representative, I will work aggressively to drag the pension system into the light of day and hold the leaders of these pension systems accountable for their decisions.

I think about this issue often as numerous members of my immediate and extended family are state employees nearing retirement. I will be your new voice in Frankfort on this issue and will work without rest to achieve a solution to a problem that has been ignored by Frankfort.

Drug Addiction

The Commonwealth is in the grips of an addiction crisis, one that has not been resolved despite previous efforts. Heroin and a number of other highly addictive substances are a common site on our streets and in our courtrooms. The problem knows no age or socio-economic circumstance. It is one of both supply and demand. Despite the admirable efforts of law enforcement, the peddlers persist to sell their poison on the streets of our communities. Law enforcement should be provided additional resources to combat the problem and reduce the supply. Likewise, the Commonwealth needs to work more efficiently to reduce the number of citizens who fall into the trap of addiction.

Keeping our children off drugs and involved in wholesome community activities is an endeavor worth pursuing. I have dedicated countless hours to this cause by developing and managing events in connection with community groups and local non-profit organizations. As your voice in Frankfort, I promise to pursue a solution to both the problem of supply and demand.

Rising Healthcare Costs

The General Assembly and your next State Representative are going to be tasked with finding hundreds of millions of dollars for expanded Kentucky Medicaid. The federal government has only promised to pay for the Medicaid expansion for three years, after which the crippling financial obligation becomes Kentucky’s responsibility. The Kentucky Hospital Association recently said that "Kentucky hospitals will lose more money under the Affordable Care Act than they gain in revenue from expanded coverage." They anticipate a net loss of $1 billion by 2020.

Unfortunately Kentucky has already seen the effects of these rising costs and reduced revenues. Healthcare facilities in rural communities have already begun to shut down because of the disastrous economic consequences of the law. It should go without saying that the Commonwealth cannot afford to lose any more hospitals and jobs in rural areas. The Liberal Democrats are content with accepting the status quo and the mediocrity that it brings. We all need to fight for a new, conservative majority in Frankfort to avoid the disaster that awaits us.

Support our Teachers

In my immediate and extended family, we have numerous educators. Over family meals and gatherings, I have heard their concerns and understand the issues that they face. Our Kentucky educators deserve better representation in Frankfort. They deserve better options and expanded control over their own curriculum. I support policies that put our children first and partisan politics second. Above all, I will support policies that prepare students for high-demand jobs and foster the critical thinking skills which are so vital in today's economy. As your State Representative I would seek to empower our educators with expanded control over their curriculum, improved funding options and better resources for educators and the struggling children and families they encouter. All of my efforts will be aimed at providing quality opportunities for all students, in rural and urban communities.

Economic Growth and Prosperity

Fixing many of the problems which face Kentucky begins with more jobs and less government. Persistent, generational government dependency undermines our economic wellbeing and steals the dignity that comes from an honest day's work. It is not the government’s responsibility to create jobs for the people, but rather it is the private sectors obligation to create jobs, and the government’s obligation to create an environment where they can flourish. The citizens of the Commonwealth have fought hard to regain the loses which resulted from the Great Recession. Despite our successes, Washington continues to stand in the way, leading to tepid growth.

I am dedicated to righting the ship and bringing well paying jobs to our district. It is incumbent upon us to continue to fight for new, well-paying jobs for our communities and re-create in modern form the economic environment which led the United States to become the world’s economic engine.

Kentucky’s economy can be made stronger by:

Providing small businesses with the tools they need to grow.
Supporting the development and maintenance of manufacturing growth.
Working with our schools and institutions of higher learning to prepare our next generation by expanding technical skills training.
Joining the fight against Obamacare.
Improving our critical infrastructure.
Promoting and expanding Kentucky’s agriculture opportunities.
Fixing the broken pension systems to keep our promise to state employees and teachers.
Creating a taxing method that works to promote business and actually expands our economy.
Helping me to stop the government from becoming a barrier to economic opportunities.

100% Pro-Life

As a Father of three beautiful daughters, I know that there are few blessings in life like children. I cannot look into the eyes of my children and support abortion. I cannot and will not support any policy that funds abortion. I promise to defend the Kentucky values that our community holds dear, including supporting the policies that uphold the sanctity of life for unborn children. It is important and essential to the very children I seek to protect that their mother’s are able to secure the medical care they need. As such, I will encourage and support the funding of other women’s health services providers. However I will actively seek to prevent taxpayer dollars from backing Planned Parenthood, the largest abortion provider in our country.

Decrease Taxes on Small Businesses and Families

Kentucky cannot continue its failed attempts to tax, borrow, and spend its way to prosperity. The right way to spur the economy is by keeping more of the Commonwealth’s resources in the hands of its people and less in Frankfort’s tax ledger. The taxes imposed on the people and businesses of the Commonwealth should be low and the system should be just. Unfortunately, as it exists now, our current tax system punishes the honest, hard-working people of the Commonwealth for simply living and working in Kentucky. We need to stop undermining our own interests, and make Kentucky the best state in the nation to create jobs.

Like hundreds of businesses across Jessamine and Fayette Counties, I started my business by myself with no guidance from the government to help me secure a loan, or even write a basic business plan. I like many small business owners have lived through the lean times when the financial burdens of a small business are the worst. I know all too well the struggles of our small business community.

As a small business owner and entrepreneur, I bring to Frankfort the common sense ideas that will help all businesses grow. In order to facilitate the growth I expect for the Commonwealth it is imperative that we provide small businesses with the same access to the Economic Development Cabinet and incentive packages to which large businesses have access. Furthermore, I believe that by eliminating the Limited Liability Entity Tax (LLET) we will encourage small business growth across the Commonwealth. Finally, I would work to address Worker’s Compensation premiums and fee assessments by bringing transparency to the Worker’s Compensation Funding Commission.

Defend the 2nd Amendment

“A well regulated Militia, being necessary to the security of a free State, the right of the people to keep and bear Arms shall not be infringed.” USCS Const. Amend. 2. I fully believe in and am prepared to defend the people’s right to keep and bear arms. This right is cemented in our Constitution, a document which serves as the foundation upon which all our laws have been built. The Second Amendment provides us with invasion protection and facilitates our natural right to self-defense. I like many of us in the Commonwealth, am a gun owner, avid sportsman and member of the NRA. Here in Kentucky, gun ownership and stewardship is just a way of life. We see that Second Amendment rights are more important than sweeping and ineffective gun control. I am prepared to defend the law abiding gun owners of the Commonwealth from President Obama and Washington DC’s attempts to infringe on our way of life.