2012 Primary - Ohio State Representative - 31st District - Democrat

I'm running for office because Ohio needs to be doing more to help people lead a life of dignity. That means having self-worth and being free to bestow that worth upon the world. This is the basic responsibility of government.

We can provide the means to dignity by establishing public schools, public transportation, fair housing, family planning, and labor protections. Each of these core functions is being attacked by Ohio's current leadership.

I'm running for office so that I can unite the community to protect these basic civic necessities.

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I would stop cutting taxes on the wealthy, to start. Gov. Kasich is slashing local government funding in order to cut high-end income taxes and estate taxes; local governments are replacing the funding with sales taxes and property taxes, which disproportionately impact low-income individuals.

In addition to being cruel, this is also economically unsound. Higher sales taxes reduce consumer spending, and higher property taxes reduce home sales; these are the two areas where our economy has taken the greatest hit. Unsurprisingly, Ohio is underperforming the nation as a whole in these two areas.

In short, I would raise taxes on areas that don't affect consumer spending, such as those on wealthy estates.

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Yes.

Since we are a democracy, residents will vote to fund services one way or another. At the state level, the services can be funded through estate taxes, corporate taxes, and income taxes.

At the county level, they are mainly funded through property taxes, which hurts renters. At the municipal level, they are funded through sales taxes, which hits low-income people the hardest.

I would prefer that we fund these services at the state level, where our budget fluctuates less and where our revenue structure is more fair.

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We need regional rail transit in Cincinnati. The biggest electoral mistake of my lifetime was the failure to pass Metro Moves, which would have cost a tiny fraction of the amount spent in construction on I-71 and I-75.

This district developed around rail transit. It's no coincidence that the decline in population and economic activity in Walnut Hills, Madisonville, Evanston, and Silverton corresponds exactly with removal of passenger rail. These neighborhoods are laid out to facilitate rail transit, and will never reach their potential until we reintroduce a light rail system.

It should be paid for through the state transportation budget, since it involves multiple counties and municipalities. In actuality, it will pay for itself through higher property values, more jobs, and savings on buses, gas, and highway construction costs.

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Political parties let voters know what my basic belief and priority structure is. If there were no party affiliations, nobody would vote in downticket races.

Beyond that, I'm not entirely sure that it has any bearing on the quality of public service provided.

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