What are the roles, rights, and duties of an El Paso County Commissioner?

It is the Duty of a County Commissioner to serve as a Constitutional member who is the primary administrator, overseer, and budgeter for County Programs as well as apportionment for tax levying.

County Commissioners oversee 14 departments and 2800 employees. They serve as the main body responsible for the management of County Affairs. Each of the Commissioners sits on many specific operating and advisory boards as a representative of the county. A true servant looks out for what is best for the constituents, not what is best for their husband’s business or their pocket book. I will be that leader!

Considering our limited water and energy resources, to what extent and in what manner should the County be encouraging building and development?

I support American energy independence and private property rights. I evaluate new developments based upon the El Paso Master Plan, the Water Master Plan, and the land development code. I support the 300-year water rule that requires new development to have 3x’s more water availability than the State of Colorado requires. I support our special district policy limiting mill levy rates and our road impact fee.

I support state legislation that reduces regulations and support affordable and attainable housing. I oppose legislation that benefits trial lawyers at the expense of Coloradans seeking to buy homes

What is your experience in regard to understanding and managing large and complex departmental budgets?

As a Commissioner, I’ve continued to ensure that El Paso County has a balanced budget and the state’s lowest cost per citizen. In 2021, County government cost each citizen $306, the mill levy was 7.692 and the property tax per citizen was only $73.04. The closest county to that is more than 50% higher at 12 mills.

We pride ourselves on excellent customer service with a limited budget. When Governor Polis shut down the State economy due to COVID in April 2020, many employees did not miss a day of work and all employees were working remotely within a week. Our productivity during this time frame increased.

What is your position on The Taxpayer Bill of Rights (TABOR)?

I support the Taxpayer’s Bill of Rights. I believe that limiting the growth of government as well as requiring voter approval for tax increases has placed El Paso County in a very good financial position as the economy starts to grow. I support limiting the growth of government and believe that tax increases require voter approval.

What is your experience in regard to understanding and managing large and complex departmental budgets?

I managed the entire project to install a new mainframe and software in the Marketing Dept in Hallmark Cards. I saved two Fortune 500 companies multiple Millions of Dollars in three different situations. 1st) Discovered, exposed and documented major fraud in software purchased and settling out of court. 2nd) Investigating, troubleshooting and correcting a decade+ old intersystem communication error. 3rd) Evaluating and documenting for a Director why a $27 Million project was failing. On my input, he re-funded the project and set it on a solid foundation for success, based on my input. As a Project and Program Manager, I managed various company-wide and worldwide projects and their staffing and budgets for multi-faceted teams and on-time, on-budget successful delivery.

What is your position on The Taxpayer Bill of Rights (TABOR)?

My view is when elected officials are not committed to self-constraint of government budgets, TABOR provides help in that direction. I don’t currently believe all of the contracts our EPC BOCC signs are in line with TABOR. I’ve heard them testify as such when I attend their meetings. Sly ways to support Conflicts of Interest and skirt around TABOR requirements seems to be an acceptable but very crafty practice. I will commit to investigating all current contracts to ensure upright compliance.

What is your vision for being one of our County Commissioners?

Since 2018, I’ve delivered on a bold vision of government entities working together to better and efficiently serve El Paso County residents. With a passion for ensuring the county remains a safe and desirable place to raise families like mine, I’ve pursued planned growth and development, public safety and emergency preparedness, and fiscally-responsible management of tax dollars to benefit citizens for decades to come. My common-sense conservatism has brought cooperation and results to the County Commission. I am committed to listening to your concerns and making responsible decisions based on my beliefs and all evidence available. I would be honored to continue effective Commissionership by prioritizing families and businesses, limiting government overreach, and building a strong and sustainable community.

Considering our limited water and energy resources, to what extent and in what manner should the County be encouraging building and development?

Our region continues to be an attractive place to live, work and play. With that comes complexity of ensuring quality of life including housing availability, recreation opportunities and preservation of traditional land uses. Growth is inevitable, so it must be approached in a strategic, planned and managed way. I have and will continue to make decisions that maintain conservative principles of limited regulation and utmost protection of private property rights, while also balancing free-market principles and complying with statutory code. Our new comprehensive master plan includes preservation of agricultural lands and zoning, expands traditional approaches to water conservation, and brings focus to future land use development decisions that residents can depend on as they make their own private property decisions.