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ABOUT THE ISSUES:

What is the public's vision for the future of Montgomery County?

As residents, citizens, and taxpayers, what are the most important things to us?

I have found that thinking about what I want the County to look like in the next ten years is a useful way to put all of the issues (schools, growth, open space, transportation, housing) in the context of one overarching goal, or direction. As the old saying goes, if you don't know where you are going, how will you know when you get there?

The truth is: Take any "issue" in the County and you'll find that it is interconnected to many other "issues." The action we take or policy we establish for one issue will almost alway have an impact on another issue. That is why I believe we can't try to solve problems in isolation. We need the big picture--the vision--of what we want our County to be, to guide our policy decisions.

Developing that vision is not the responsibility or prerogrative of myself or anyone else alone. The vision and the policies to implement the vision should be discussed and articulated through a process of information exchange and consensus-building. To be genuinely effective, that process has to be available, open, and transparent to the public citizenry. Moreover, the citizens have to know that their input counts for something, and that the decisions of government are made on the basis of their input.

Whether it is the reliability of the voting system, the accountability of the County's oversight for building projects, or the meaningfulness of public hearings and committees, Montgomery County citizens need to know that the system is working for them.

Adlai Stevenson once said: Public confidence in the integrity of the Government is indispensable to faith in democracy; and when we lose faith in the system, we have lost faith in everything we fight and spend for.

For some time, I believe that Montgomery County has paid little more than lip service to its citizens when it comes to addressing their interests, and in holding hearings and establishing task forces and committees. Hearings need to be announced with enough lead time for the public to attend and participate,and held when it is convenient for the public, not for land use lawyers, who are paid to attend. Representatives of businesses, professional associations, and the development community should be advisors to, but not members of, task forces and planning groups. Council members should be spending their time trying to understand the public's view about how to address the needs in the county, not be captive to a mindset that concessions and incentives must always be given in order to get what is in the public's will and interest.

As my campaign gets under way, I hope to be meeting with many of you, and comparing our visions for the future of Montgomery County, as a framework for helping us think about the interconnectedness of issues such as:

• The Public Process
  
• Growth and Development
  
• Transportation and Congestion
  
• School Quality, Overcrowding
  
• Affordable Housing
  

This web page will grow over time as my campaign develops specific proposals to address the challenges facing our great County, where I have lived most of my life. Please check back again, or better still, sign up for notifications of updates to the web site and to get information on where I'll be appearing. Just click on the arrow to indicate how often you'd like to get updates.

RECENT PUBLIC STATEMENTS, TESTIMONY, LETTERS (Click on a topic below):

>>  Capital Budget

>>  Planning and Development

>>  Voting Machines

>>  Condo Conversions

Archives, Earlier Statements and Testimony:
        >    About Growth, Development, and Planning
        >    Transportation
        >    Citizen Questionnaires