Candidate for
State Senator; District 24

The first thing voters should know about me is that I am not, by any means, a career politician. After serving six years in the Army Corps of Engineers three decades of working in the private sector, I got involved in local township politics because I wanted to help improve my community and work to help preserve open space. After serving as a township commissioner, I realized I had an opportunity to benefit my region even further as a member of the legislature and successfully ran for the Pennsylvania State house in 2006. I am currently serving my second term as State Representative in the 147th Legislative District. It is my hope that I can earn the support of voters so I can continue to bring forth the ideas of local residents to Harrisburg.

I am running on a platform of a commitment to fiscal responsibility in Harrisburg, including opposition to tax increases on local residents, especially in the current economic climate. At the same time, we must focus on creating an economic environment on the state level that allows small businesses to thrive and create new jobs. I believe protecting open space must be a priority for our region to preserve the quality of local communities.

A record of preserving open space

As Chairman of the Upper Perkiomen Valley Regional Planning Commission, I understand the issues of smart growth and why the preservation of open space is so integral to preserving the character of our local communities. Before I was elected to the legislature, I co-founded the Unami Creek Watershed Conservancy to help rehabilitee the creek, ensure a continued high quality stream designation, and protect riparian buffers to the stream, among other responsibilities. And during my three years as a member of the Marlborough Township Board of Supervisors, I helped spearhead the preservation of 197 acres of open space, including 46 acres of open space in Camp Unami along the Unami Creek by working in concert with the Natural Lands Trust. And just last month, I helped prevent the closure of the Green Lane Nature Center in Montgomery County and the total relocation of environmental staff to Norristown. As a member of the Pennsylvania Senate, I will continue to be a strong advocate for open space preservation and other environmental issues.

A commitment to fiscal responsibility

I am running for Senate because I want to help restore fiscal responsibility to Harrisburg. I have never voted for a tax increase and am opposed to raising taxes to fund increased state spending. In the current economy, families and residents throughout the region are taking a look at their household budgets and are being forced to make tough choices. The legislature and Governor need to be doing the same thing with the state budget + finding cost savings rather than looking to increase revenues by raising personal taxes.

I have also been frustrated by the failure of Democratic leaders in the Pennsylvania House + which control when and if we have votes, as well as what we vote on -- to allow Republican and Democrat members to have up and down votes on various budget proposals. I believe that if House Democrats had kept in session throughout the month of August and allowed open votes on various budget proposals that the budget impasse could have been resolved weeks ago, restoring critical funding to many non-profit organizations that have been caught in the middle of the budget debate.

I also practice personal fiscal responsibility in how I manage my legislative office. Rather than receive a 55-cent per mile reimbursement, I utilize a pool car, which saves taxpayers an estimated $2,000 per year. I refuse to seek reimbursement for my own cell phone, paying the costs out of pocket. Each of my first two years in the legislature, my office has come in under budget and returned money to the state treasury. While the controversial pay raise vote occurred before I was elected to the legislature, I would have opposed the measure. In fact, I refuse to accept the annual cost of living adjustment, instead donating that money to local charities that provide assistance to the disabled and victims of domestic abuse.

Working to improve the state's business climate and create jobs

The economy and the need to create jobs are clearly the most important issues to me. As a state we need to be doing more to foster a better economic environment that will help spur job creation and allow businesses to grow and flourish. Here in Pennsylvania, we are quick to put together lavish incentive packages to encourage new businesses to locate here in Pennsylvania. But we need to spend more time looking at changes we can make that will allow the businesses that are already in existence here to thrive and flourish.

We need to work harder to address overly burdensome regulations and red tape. We need to encourage small business owners to reinvest in their business and create new jobs. Equally important, we need to provide our young people with the best possible education so that business will come to Pennsylvania and invest in our workforce.

A Commitment to Bi-partisanship and Consensus Building

I have had great success in bringing divergent groups and individuals together to work to accomplish common goals. I established a plan to have all four Regional Planning Commissions in the western half of Montgomery County effectively meet and communicate on multi-regional issues such as smart-growth, land use, preservation, and infrastructure investment.

Bob also helped co-found Perk-Up!, an organization wholly directed toward strengthening the economic vitality of the area by bringing together local businesses, elected officials, non-profit organizations and citizens. The goal of this effort is to set a visions and path to improve the quality of life for residents, create jobs and preserve the character of our communities while making our area a better place to live, work, run a business, and raise a family.

I am going to bring this same commitment to consensus and team-building to the Senate, where I will work to pass legislation that improve Pennsylvania, help revitalize our economy, and improve the lives of residents.

More about me

I want voters to know that I am a retired businessman looking to make a difference in my community. For more than 30 years, I worked in business before becoming involved in my local township government. I volunteer in the local community and served as a youth advisor at my church. I am an avid musician and play the clarinet and saxophone. I began playing music in 10th grade and attended Valley Forge Music Academy and College on a music scholarship. I also remain active in a number of area musical groups, including the Red Hill Concert Band, the Red Hill Jazz Ensemble, Valley Woodbine Ensemble, and the Geryville Fire Company Hobo Band, a perennial favorite at Halloween parades. In short I am a regular guy who is more than happy to talk with people on the street and in my office about their concerns and issues and I'm an inherently honest person.