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Issues We Care About
From the first day of my campaign, I promised to run on the issues we care about. I promised to run a positive campaign, focused on moving our community forward. And I am very proud that we were able to do that. You were generous enough to reward that commitment with victory. Thank You.
I don't believe we can expect real progress on the issues we care about from politicians who are more focused on bringing people down, than picking up our community. So, that's how I plan to run this campaign, too.
The challenges we face are real, and the opportunities that lie ahead are tremendous. I believe it's vital that we speak open and honestly about the issues.
On Our Economy, Our Budget.
Louisiana has to stop merely talking about diversification and economic development. We must get serious about attracting, building and retaining job-producing opportunities for the people of Louisiana. In the legislature I will work to build coalitions to make these a reality.
But our economy can never thrive as long as our government fails to properly manage our tax dollars. As long as our budget continues to balloon beyond our revenue, we will always be playing catch-up. Our schools, healthcare, roads and traffic, to name a few - will all suffer until our leaders in Baton Rouge can learn to do the same thing you and I must do every year - spend wisely and balance our budgets. As a CPA, it's what I do for a living. And it's what I'll do in Baton Rouge.
On Education
The reality here is that Louisiana's education system is in a crisis. We are near or at the bottom of nearly every category when it comes to learning in the classroom. And it's certainly not because our teachers or our children are somehow less capable than the rest of the country. To me, it's a matter of prioritizing what's important to our state. I can think of no other issue that has a greater impact on the economic success and quality of life of a community than its education. Our children deserve the opportunity to get the best education in the country.
But, let's be honest, that can't happen over night. It will take time, and a full re-evaluation of the manner in which we support our schools. We need more funding, yes. But more than that, we need to re-distribute the funds we already have to put as much as possible into the classroom. That's why, in the 2005 legislative session, I voted for the Amendment that would have made bringing Louisiana teacher pay to the southern average as the top priority in the education budget. An effort that fell only two votes short in the House. Millions of dollars are spent on our education system that never see the inside of a classroom. As your state Representative, my top priority continues to be to evaluate how our education funds are distributed and work tirelessly to re-direct much of that to the classroom. If we're going to build a top-notch system of education, it must begin there.
On Healthcare
We must cut the duplication and the fat from the healthcare budget. Our families deserve to be allowed to put their healthcare needs back in the hands of their trusted family physicians. So far we've had to work with temporary measures, but now we have a chance at fundamental reform.
Across this state, and the country, we are seeing a growing crisis in healthcare. With an aging population, more and more working people without health benefits, and thousands of children without even basic healthcare, it's clear that this issue is and will be at the forefront for some time to come. Here in Louisiana, we rank near the bottom of more healthcare categories that I have time to list. As with our education system, our healthcare system is both under-funded and mismanaged. The money that is there is not going where we need it most - charity hospitals, uninsured citizens, and the elderly who can't afford the care they need. But a huge part of the problem is that the healthcare industry across the country is reeling from one lawsuit after another. Thankfully, Louisiana is one of a handful of states that have effective tort reform laws to prevent these frivolous lawsuits from growing out of control - and I'll fight to protect it.
On Taxes
I believe it will take much more than just new laws and higher taxes to turn Louisiana around. It will take leaders who understand how to make a budget work effectively - without raising our taxes every time we turn around.
The most disturbing of those unreasonable taxes on our families, is the Stelly Plan. The Stelly Plan was presented to the voters of Louisiana as a "revenue neutral" approach. The reality is that the plan is expected to increase revenue by many millions of dollars. In and of itself, more state revenue is not a bad thing. But much of that revenue has come at the expense of working families.
The truth is that the Stelly Plan is a carefully disguised tax increase that is hurting the very group of people that Louisiana's economy needs most - the middle class. Many of us have seen our state taxes increased by as much as $600.
I continue working to repeal those portions of the Stelly Tax Plan that increase our income taxes. With new, fiscally-conservative colleagues in the House, we have a real chance at reform. Our economy and our families simply cannot afford to endure unreasonably high taxes.
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