“The State has the primary responsibility for financing the system of public education,” reads Article 10, Section 1 of the Illinois State Constitution.

In the 84th, school districts overwhelming are funded through local property taxes. Some districts receive as high as 88% of their revenue from local property taxes. Statewide, schools receive an average of nearly 60% of their revenue from local property taxes. The state needs to fulfill its Constitutional promise to fund the future of our society.

I believe the school portion of local property taxes needs to be replaced with income tax.

Districts like the 84th, one of the fastest growing areas in the country, have schools constantly playing catch-up in order to find room and resources for new students.

According to the 2007 Illinois State Board of Education report cards, seven public high schools, which have students living in the 84th, have class sizes larger than the state average. Two of those high schools (Minooka Community and Plainfield Central) were forced to educate on a split shift schedule in order to accommodate their abundance of students.

My plan is to grow our communities in a way that doesn't negatively impact the child's education or the property tax rate.

Currently the towns and the developers are the only ones at the table when it comes to growth. I want to add the property tax payer and the child in the classroom to the table. We need to restructure the way we fund new schools.

Most school districts in the 84th have issued bonds to build new schools. To prevent the tax rate from increasing, school districts will wait for the current bonds to be paid off. They then reissue them to build new schools when there is a need for more classroom space.

My plan only allows developers to build houses in the school districts as long as it will not overcrowd the schools. If the developer wants to build faster than what the school district can handle, then they either will need to obtain money from the State to build a school or use money from their fees.

This solution places the burden for unplanned growth on someone other than the child and the property tax payer. Currently the child pays the price with their education and large class sizes, while the property tax payer pays by voting yes on referenda to increase their tax rate.

I want to bring the students, schools and property tax payers to the table so that we can grow together instead of apart.

We need to build infrastructure as we grow. I am in favor of building a new hospital in the 84th district so that our residents have access to good health care.

The state roads in the 84th were designed for a more rural community that this area resembled 20 years ago. I will see that the state will turn its attention to the 84th, a district that needs it the most, when it comes to distributing money for road improvement and expansion.

Currently we have a health care system that is more of a “profit-care” system where insurance companies can make more money by denying help to people with insurance. Also, a part of the premiums we pay go to shareholders of the company.

Single payer health insurance lets the doctors handle health care decisions and gives the paying system to a non-for-profit group, instead of giving insurance companies most of the control. This system will reduce costs and will cover all citizens who live in Illinois. Currently 25% of all premiums sent to insurance companies go towards administrative costs. Single payer will reduce those costs to 2% of the premiums. There are no pre-existing conditions exclusions and no co-pays. You have 100% choice in your doctors, and the hospitals and medical offices will be privately owned and operated.

House Bill 311 brings single payer insurance to the State of Illinois, and when I am elected, I will become a cosigner of this Bill.

We need to encourage individuals and small groups to start playing a part in transforming our energy from carbon-based to renewable – such as wind and solar – by offering tax incentives. Currently, you only receive a tax credit by having a unit that generates 10 Kw of power or more. We need to extend the tax credit to individuals and small groups who are generating power under 10 Kw.

We also need to develop a system for individuals and small groups who generate more power than they use (their meters begin to run backwards) and have that extra power bought by the energy companies. Currently individuals and small groups that own a power-generating unit are not allowed to have their extra carbon-free energy bought by the state.

Too often we look for quick solutions to increase our state revenue. Building more casinos is not a smart way for us to fund our programs. It focuses on people who can least afford to give their money away and preys on their hopes of a better tomorrow. We need solutions that are permanent and sustainable.

I am proposing that we overhaul campaign finance by limiting contributions to $100 a person and only allowing individuals to contribute money.

I believe members of the Illinois House and Senate should have a maximum of 10 consecutive years of service. The Governor and Lt. Governor should be limited to 8 years of consecutive service.

We need public servants, not politicians.