The Budget - A Multi-Year Plan
My number one priority as your county legislator will be to keep property taxes stable without sacrificing needed social programs and public safety. We cannot balance the budget on the backs of the poor or disenfranchised. I will work across party lines as necessary to find cost saving measures and identify wasteful spending.
We need to be both smart and honest with our priorities. How we deal
with unfunded state mandates, rising cost of medical care and prescriptions,
stagnant job growth, increasing costs and decreasing revenues demands
solid business experience, the vision to see down the road and the ability
to work in a bipartisan fashion for our common good.
Here are some of my specific plans:
1. I will work to encourage multi-year financial planning taking a
look 3-5 years into the future in an attempt to avoid surprises. All
involved parties should be brought to the table including
representatives of the non-profits and members of the public who are
consumers of the various government services. We must all work
together to try to balance the budget.
2. With my technology background, I will argue for improvements in
the use of technology, streamlining government and resulting in true
cost savings. They are there. It just takes an understanding of what our fast-evolving world offers.
3. I will support a comprehensive and safe prescription drug plan for
retired county employees and Medicaid recipients that can save us
millions of dollars.
4. I will support selection of a nonpartisan Comptroller to audit the
finances of the county to identify wasteful spending.
5. I will strongly encourage a countywide space utilization study and
review of leases with special interest groups and individuals.
6. I will encourage economic development that attracts or retains a specific number of jobs with an appropriate level of tax incentives.
Rejuvenate Rochester
The RUMP group reported the hard facts: 47% of 18-21 year olds and 36% of 22-30 year olds plan to leave our area. Some call it "the Brain Drain" where Rochester and Monroe County are failing to attract and retain the best and brightest young people. It's easy to say, "We have a brain drain." What we need to do is bring seasoned community leaders together with up-and-coming young professionals. Watch the sparks of imagination fly as each engages the others' strengths and expertise in order to make our community more competitive on the national stage.
I support the Retain the Brains Marketing Competition, retainthebrains.com. I will seek input from community organizations such as The Rochester Young Professionals and Digital Rochester "to attract and retain talented, educated, ambitious young professionals in our community."
I support programs such as the RochesterWorks! Digital Afternoons Program. This is a program that trains high school students in technology and business and provides them with paid summer internships at local companies. The program is administered through RochesterWorks, Inc. in conjunction with Monroe County, the City of Rochester, NY Wired for Education, the Rochester City and Greece Central School Districts, and the High Tech Business Council.
Prescription Drugs
Canadian consumers can buy prescription drugs at reasonable prices while we must pay outrageous prices. Governors and mayors across the country have come out in favor of buying cheap Canada prescription drugs. Burlington, VT has taken steps to lower the high cost to their taxpayers of providing prescription drugs for employees - and to reduce the costs to employees themselves. BurlingtonMeds provides employees and their families with access to safe, affordable prescription medications from Canada. I will help lead the way to encourage Monroe County to implement a similar cost saving plan.
Renaissance Square (rensquare.org)
According to the project website, Renaissance Square is a "...community project that combines a transit center, an urban college campus and a performing arts center. Consisting of a community college campus, a below-grade transit center and a performing arts center with multiple performance spaces, Renaissance Square is the largest development project in the history of Rochester."
I will insist that there is transparent public input into its development. The public must be provided time for comments, questions and suggestions related to this monumental project that will forever change downtown Rochester. How it changes must be up to all of us...not just a select few.
Review of this project will require careful scrutiny and my background in real estate development will serve as an asset to the legislature.
Municipal WiFi
Short for "wireless fidelity", WiFi is the popular term for a high-frequency wireless local area network (WLAN). I support the efforts of the current Democratic members of the legislature who requested the establishment of a task force to investigate the feasibility of developing a publicly owned and paid for municipal wireless broadband network. My technology background will be a great asset to legislature as we investigate the possibilities of such a network.
City officials in Philadelphia are planning to turn the entire city into a WiFi hotspot. If they go ahead with the plan, Philadelphia would join the growing number of cities not only in the US, but around the world that have created WiFi networks. Cerritos, California and Spokane, Washington were among the first to create municipal networks, and Chaska, Minnesota, Corpus Christi, Texas, and Cleveland also have networks covering parts of or all of their municipalities.
I believe that there are many benefits to developing such a system. It will help bridge the digital divide that is caused by many individuals not having access to the Internet and will help our community remain a competitive location for business.
Reducing Medicaid Costs
In October 2004, Governor Pataki signed legislation creating a Nursing Facilities Transition and Diversion Medicaid Waiver Program. This program would allow certain individuals in nursing homes to be cared for in their own residence through the Medicaid program. It is estimated that this program could cut care costs in half, reducing daily costs from $160 to $80 and saving NYS taxpayers $150 million a year.
The NYS Department of Health has been slow to submit the waiver application to the Federal Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services. I would act to urge implementation of the program.
Hybrid Bus Program And Fuel Alternatives
In 2003 and 2004, it was reported that that the Rochester- Genesee Regional Transportation Authority would acquire at least five buses with so-called "hybrid" engines, combining electric motors and traditional diesel combustion. This combination leads to significant reductions in vehicle fuel consumption, certainly a concern for an agency that spends nearly $3 million on fuel each year. (Each five-cent increase in fuel prices adds $90,000 to that figure.)
Additionally, environmental reports indicate that Monroe County has diesel fume pollution greater than 84% of US counties. I would urge a timely report regarding RGRTA progress in this area.
Hydrogen Fuel Cell Energy Generation
Hydrogen fuel cell energy generation is the combining of hydrogen and oxygen in a chemical process that produces electricity but no polluting byproducts. From the Advanced Fuel Cell Research Laboratory at Rochester Institute of Technology to the General Motors Fuel Cell Activities Center in Honeoye Falls, many ' important advances in fuel cell technology are occurring here. In fact, greater Rochester ranks third in the nation for general engineering and fuel cell-related research occupations (Deloitte & Touche report, 2003). I am in favor of comprehensive economic development intitiative that supports research and development and production of fuel cell technology in Monroe County.
Lead Poisoning
I support The Coalition to Prevent Lead Poisoning and a commitment to ending childhood lead poisoning in Monroe County by 2010. Over 1200 children in Monroe County are poisoned each year. Lead poisoning causes irreversible damage to the developing brains of very young children, which impacts cognitive function, behavior control, and lifetime health. I am in support of providing county funding and assistance to help eliminate this serious health hazard.
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