See Elizabeth at the League of Women Voter's Candidate Forum
Fiscal ResponsibilityEnergy
Job Creation
The Environment, Land Use, and Transportation
Property Tax System
Healthcare
Infrastructure
Campaign Finance Reform
Strong Schools
Efficient Government
Fiscal Responsibility
In these uncertain economic times, wise spending of tax dollars is essential. I have a proven record of being tough-minded about spending, looking for ways to stretch our hard-earned tax dollars, and looking at which programs work and which do not. By working hard and reaching across party lines, I have been able to help achieve great success in my 3 years on the Council in Cheshire -- upgrading our bond rating to Aaa; fully funding our pensions; setting aside a healthy reserve fund; greatly expanding our local senior property tax credit program; implementing the first-ever competitive bidding for engineering services for our sewer system; extending both library hours and senior transportation; and supporting both schools and public safety, all while keeping the rise in taxes to less than half the rate of inflation.
This record of actual balancing of budgets, while controlling spending and increasing services, reflects what is possible when a fresh perspective, hard work, and a commitment to find solutions are brought to bear on tough problems. I do not buy the argument that we cannot do better, that things are so broken at the state level that there is no hope for improvement. We can and must do better. We are facing serious problems as a state, problems that will require the government in some cases to take an active role. But that does not mean that we can or should expand the role of government, or increase spending overall when people are facing such tough economic times. We do, however, need to spend smarter and better. We do need to be willing and able to reconsider how effective our approaches and programs have been, and redirect dollars to the most promising approaches.
Fiscal responsibility has been my watchword on the Town Council, and I am proud of my record in ensuring the town's financial strength as we face the current economic troubles. I believe that I have the proven skills, the energy, the new ideas, and the fresh perspective we need to bring that same fiscal discipline to Hartford.
Energy
Connecticut is number one in the nation in highest energy costs. That hurts every senior, every family, and every business in this state. We need to have short-term and long-terms solutions.
Short term, we need to encourage greater efficiency and conservation. This should include low-interest loans to allow those in the middle class to invest in energy improvements - weatherization, new windows, solar panels, even geo-thermal systems. High energy costs are also in part a function of how we deregulated energy in the state. We need to change the law so that the power companies have an incentive to help us use less energy. Currently, the energy companies are paid based on how much power we use, so they have no reason at all to help us conserve. We can, and should, change that. Let them be partners with us to share in the savings of energy efficiency and conservation.
We also need to fix the bad deregulation enacted by the legislature. We need to ensure that the wholesale markets are really competitive and we need to look at the contract lengths.
Long term, we should be making Connecticut a leader in alternative energies. The goal should be cheap, clean, renewable energy, with Connecticut in the lead. This would be a triple win for us -- for the economy of this state, for the environment, and for national security.
A Strong New Economy for our State
We have an opportunity to build a vibrant economy for the future of this state. The current energy crisis creates an opportunity for us - there is a worldwide market for clean, affordable, sustainable energy and energy efficiency, and Connecticut is well-positioned to meet that need. We have a highly-educated workforce, major research institutions, excellent vocational schools, a tradition of innovation, and major corporations who are already active in the environmental and alternative energy fields. Connecticut is currently number one in the nation in loss of young people when they finish school. We can and should be providing incentives to create new, green technology jobs that will employ our young people and provide a future economic foundation for this state.
We cannot continue to look in the rearview mirror at the old economy of Connecticut and hope that will be the road to our future. The insurance industry is clearly consolidating, and there is increasing competition, both within the U.S. and abroad for the defense jobs. We need to build on the strong workforce that we have in this great state, and encourage the kinds of jobs that the world needs now and in the future - jobs that rely on America's incredible ingenuity, excellent quality of workmanship, and our sheer hard work. I am optimistic about the opportunities for our state, and our great, hard-working people.
The Environment, Land Use, and Transportation
Connecticut has a long and proud tradition as environmentally active state. My own involvement in the environment dates back to the first Earth Day, which I spent with my family pulling abandoned tires out of a tidal basin. I continued that work as a law student when I interned for the Environmental Defense Fund. The commitment to the environment is a family affair in my house - my daughter spoke in favor of the extension of the Farmington Canal Linear Trail when she was only 6, and my husband has made the environment his life's work as a professor at Yale and policymaker during his 4 years at the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).
As a member of the Town Council, I have advocated for continued purchase of Open Space to preserve the dwindling farm land in our state and worked with the Friends of Boulder Knoll in their efforts to improve the management of open space. I have been fortunate to be further educated on these issues through my husband's long involvement with the American Farmland Trust and the Connecticut Fund for the Environment. It is clear that clean water, including ground water, will be an important issue for Connecticut to address in the upcoming years, and my grounding in environmental issues will help me contribute to sound policy for us in this critical area.
A thoughtful approach to land development in the state is long overdue. By working with groups that promote Smart Growth, and environmental groups such as the Sierra Club and the Connecticut League of Conservation Voters (both of which have endorsed me), we can make intelligent land use decisions for the next 20 years. This would also include more sensible transportation policy, including expanded mass transit. Our district, Hamden, Cheshire, and Wallingford, needs more buses and more trains as anyone who has had to rely on them - like my two older children - can tell you.
Property Tax Reform
The property tax system is inherently unfair. The value of your home does not equal your ability to contribute towards town services. I believe that we need to re-examine Connecticut's heavy reliance on local property tax to fund local government, including education. Our reliance on local property tax puts pressure on those with fixed incomes, while at the same time discouraging communities from welcoming families with children. It is no surprise then that we are losing exactly the young families that businesses want and need to have as employees. If elected, I would push for an increase in the state's senior property tax credit program which has not been touched in 10 years. (I led the charge in Cheshire to increase our program for seniors, which has resulted in the 3rd most generous program in the state.) We should also look carefully at the state's mandated funding formulas, most notably education cost sharing, to ensure they are both fair and efficient.
Health Care
From the thousands of doors I have knocked on across this district since April, I know that the people of Cheshire, Wallingford, and Hamden are very concerned about health care. The economy is the issue voters have talked to me about most - but health care is next on their minds. People are worried about health care. Those who have it are worried that they might lose it, or concerned that it doesn't cover needed care. Those who don't have it are terrified. Everyone thinks it costs too much.
We need to increase access to affordable health care for everyone. That includes expanding HUSKY, and working to make health care options available and affordable, particularly to those in small businesses who find traditional coverage too expensive to provide. We also should ensure that we cover home health care, allowing families to care for loved ones at home. It is simply wrong that we will pay for emergency room treatment for an elderly parent in crisis, but health care plans won't cover a simply doctor's visit in the home to check that parent's blood levels.
We need to focus on plans that actually work to provide affordable coverage. The recent experience with the Charter Oak plan, where many people signed up to get coverage, but very few providers agreed to participate, shows how important it is to ensure that whatever proposals we have to expand coverage provide enough reimbursement for providers to choose to participate.
My experience as a lawyer who represented the American Medical Association and other medical groups, coupled with my years of working as a health care policy analyst focusing on Medicare and Social Security disability policy, gives me an understanding of our very complex health care system. It also allows me to cut through the complexity to help create better, fairer, simpler approaches that meet both patients' and providers' needs. We spend more on health care, in total dollars and as a percentage of our economy, than any other country in the world. And still we have millions not covered, and our people are not as healthy as they should be. We can and must do better.
Infrastructure
Connecticut has some of the oldest infrastructure in the entire country. It is bad for business, bad for our state's economy, and bad for every one of us who has to waste time daily sitting in traffic on some overcrowded highway or crumbling bridge. With the Wall Street meltdown and Washington's staggeringly expensive response, it is hard to imagine that we in Connecticut will see many federal dollars to repair our aging roads, rails, and bridges any time soon. So, if we want to get our economy going again, we will have to look seriously at investing in repairing and replacing our infrastructure. Expensive as that is, without such an investment, we risk losing our chance to re-ignite our economy. In addition, an investment in the state's aging roads, bridges, and rails could help provide much needed jobs in the state. Unlike a "rebate check," which gooses the economy a bit when someone buys a foreign-made flat screen tv from Wal-Mart, these infrastructure jobs cannot be out-sourced, and they provide good wages that cycle through our state's economy, and leave us at the end of the project with a system that improves productivity, reduces lost time, and is safer for everyone.
Campaign Finance Reform
One of the reasons I decided to run this year is because of the new campaign finance reform rules. After years of Connecticut being plagued by political corruption, the legislature belatedly adopted a system of public financing of elections. The heart of the new system, which took effect for the first time this year, is to reduce the influence of lobbyists and special interest groups. That is why under the new system, no candidate who participates in the public financing system is allowed to accept any money from lobbyists, state contractors, or special interest groups (PACs). The old system of buying "ad books" was also outlawed, to ensure that candidates only raise money in small amounts from actual people.
I am proud to report that I raised all of my money in 3 weeks, from individuals only, no money from companies, lobbyists, PACs, special interest groups, or state contractors. No contributions over $ 100. None. I have never taken money from a PAC or special interest group, and I am proud of that independence. It ensure that voters know that I am accountable to them, not to some rich group that raised a pile of money for my campaign.
I firmly believe that the long-standing tradition of raising money from special interest groups (such as my opponent has done in the 5 elections prior to this year) has been bad for this state - bad because it has meant that elected officials have relied on special interest money to fund their campaigns, which certainly at the very least gives the appearance of a better seat at the table for special interest groups than for the average voter. (For a listing of which special interest groups have contributed to which elected official, follow the links on the Connecticut Business and Industry Association web site - www.CBIA.com - and click through to find your legislator.)
Unfortunately, the new rules still have loopholes that allow special interest money to be spent on campaigns, as was detailed in the recent front page story in the Waterbury Republican American on October 29th (including $4,130.00 spent by the Real Estate PAC for my opponent in this race.) Not surprisingly, virtually all of the continued special interest spending has gone to incumbents. The special interest groups like their special seat at the table. If elected, I would work to eliminate that loophole and ensure that elected officials are accountable to the people, not the special interest groups who have bankrolled campaigns for too long.
Strong Schools
With three children who attend or have graduated from our excellent public schools, I am a firm believer in strong public education. In fact, my involvement in politics grew out of my passionate commitment to the schools. From the time my children started school in 1994, I have been an active advocate for the schools, ranging from serving as a room- and PTA-parent, to speaking at town meetings in favor of education initiatives and funding. Excellent public education is a backbone not just of our community, but of our democracy.
I ran for office in 2005 in large part to bridge the divide between those urging more support for schools and the seniors who were being squeezed by rising property taxes. By creatively approaching that problem, and implementing dramatically expanded senior property tax credits, I was able to ensure continued support for the schools and calm the tension that is marking so many communities over the education budget. In my three years on the Cheshire Town Council, I have also worked to fully fund our local pensions, unlike the state's historic failure to honor its commitment to teachers' pensions.
Unless we continue to invest in education, we will undermine the future of this state. My discussions with business people across the district, whether in large or small companies, has underscored how important strong schools and an educated work force, are to business development. That suggests that we need to ensure that we have a strong foundation for all our students, especially in math and science, in order to provide the kind of work force that we will need for a vibrant economic future for Cheshire, Wallingford, and Hamden.
As a practical matter, one of the best ways we can help schools in our communities is to help decrease their skyrocketing energy costs that divert hard-earned tax dollars from providing education in the classroom to heating buildings. Connecticut has the dubious distinction of having the least energy-efficient schools in the entire country. I support a major initiative to help the schools in our state make energy-efficiency investments - through more efficient windows, heating systems, solar panels, geo-thermal heating, fuel cells, energy-efficient lighting, and other capital investments. Such an investment will not only allow towns to focus more of their dollars on delivering in the classroom, but it will also help reduce pollution and create jobs in the state. A win all-around.
Efficient Government
Fiscal responsibility has been my watchword on the Cheshire Town Council - and I will bring that same diligence to Hartford. Although distinguishing between "must have" and "want" projects is important, digging down to find out which government programs work and which do not is vital. We must look very hard at the current spending to combine, consolidate, and, where necessary, cut programs that are not delivering results. We cannot keep adding program on top of program. A freeze on spending is the wrong answer. It is wrong because a freeze assumes that all our current priorities are right. They are not. In a tough economy, there are different needs, such as help for home heating assistance and support for those who lose their jobs. The governor just cut over $10 million from the Department of Children and Families. Any police officer can tell you that when the economy is tough, we need more, not less, protection of children. We need to invest more, not less, in our state's failing infrastructure if we are going to grow jobs in this state and create an attractive business climate. We need a change in vision, a change I will bring to Hartford.