Candidate for
Board of Supervisors; County of Sacramento; Supervisorial District 4

As individuals we have the right to act as we choose as long as our actions do not encroach upon the freedoms and rights of others as listed in the first ten amendments of The Constitution of the United States.

I believe in the freedoms and rights afforded by the Constitution of The State of California, as amended through 2008, though hold some reservations regarding the wisdom of the 1998 Consolidation of Courts, proposition; however, I accept the Constitution as one of our governing documents and the duty of an elected official to abide by it.

I understand the County of Sacramento Charter describes the county as a corporate and politic body with the rights and powers now or hereafter provided by it and by the Constitution and laws of the State of California and exercised by a Board of Supervisors or others acting under their authority, or by the authority of law, or by the County's Charter.

I am a life long registered Republican and see the leadership role of the Sacramento County Supervisors to include, among the Constitutional and Charter designated duties, a strategic and critical thinking role to establish and maintain a working environment encouraging honesty, integrity, productivity improvement, responsibility and accountability within units of the County functioning under their authority.

It is imperative that County Supervisors listen to and respect testimony provided by neighborhood level constituents concerning matters impacting private property investments and quality of life already in place, and lessen the weight so freely granted to favored campaign contributors proposing non-compatible developments and environmentally non-prudent ventures.

We are poorly served by careerist politicians, because it is they who accumulate gifts and campaign accounts often measured in the hundreds of thousands of dollars or more, gifts and donations often given by individuals or groups with an expectation of receiving a special interest favor. I view this as a sad and inconvenient truth and particularly objectionable when the favors are so contrary to fair and reasonable public policy and/or ignore neighborhood sensitivities.

Our national and state leaders are endorsing an unsustainable level of public sector spending that is adversely impacting the financial security of current and future generations as well as the services expected and preferred by citizens now living in our cities and counties. Nevertheless, I do believe that the County of Sacramento can and must provide for an acceptable level of public safety and justice enforcement without imposing new and/or higher taxes and fees on our citizens.

And I believe we can and must accelerate private sector employment growth. By, for example, further reducing the fee and regulatory burden imposed on private sector investors and promoting targeted common sense inducements to attract investments to Sacramento County. On the national scene it is disappointing to note the dropping level of fixed private sector investment, though mildly encouraging to observe business equipment and personal consumer spending rising slightly.

It is imperative to accept the premise that it is the private sector investor and worker who are the primal source of most funds flowing to our governments and while on the national scene the private sector economy grew, at last report, at 3.5% on an annualized basis, that has not been the case in our local economy.