As part of our commitment to informing voters ahead of the November election, The 228 Times is providing both candidates the opportunity to share their positions. The following seven questions are being presented equally to all declared candidates for Pennsylvania’s 12th District. Responses will be published verbatim to ensure fairness and transparency.
- District Priorities
What are your top three priorities for residents of the 12th District in your first year if elected?
My top three priorities for the residents of the 12th District are:
Fighting for working families by supporting legislation that raises wages, protects workers’ rights, and brings quality jobs to the district and not just low-wage jobs, but careers that let you buy a home, raise a family, and retire with dignity.
Funding our public schools by fighting to close the funding gap between wealthy and working-class districts and stop the budget games in Harrisburg that leave our schools scrambling. And no to voucher programs as well.
Infrastructure. The Route 228 corridor is choking and traffic congestion causes a lot of headaches for residents due to rapid growth. Our roads, bridges, and water systems (causing flooding at times) are aging. I’ll push hard for targeted state investment in southern Butler County so our region can grow.
- Accountability
How will residents know you are effectively representing them? What does accountability mean to you as a state legislator?
Showing up is half the job. If elected, I will hold town halls across the district, maintain an open-door constituent services office, and post my voting record with plain-language explanations online so every resident can see exactly where I stand and why.
I’ll publish a clear legislative agenda at the start of each session, report progress publicly, and actively solicit feedback from residents; not just at election time, but year-round.
Accountability also means being honest when I disagree with my own party. I represent the 12th District first. If a bill doesn’t serve working families here, I’ll say so. I’ll never hide behind party talking points. My neighbors deserve a straight answer, and that’s what they’ll get from me.
- Government Structure
Pennsylvania has one of the largest state legislatures in the country. Do you support reducing the size of the Pennsylvania General Assembly? Why or why not?
I support reducing the size of the Pennsylvania General Assembly. With 253 members, we have one of the largest and most expensive state legislatures in the entire country, all at the taxpayers expense.
That said, any reduction must be done carefully. We cannot allow redistricting of a smaller chamber to dilute the voice of rural communities, working-class neighborhoods, or communities of color. I would support a reform that includes independent redistricting to ensure fair representation remains intact.
- Education Policy
Do you support school choice legislation? How would you balance parental choice with protecting funding for public schools in suburban and rural districts like ours?
I support parental involvement in their children’s education; every parent should have a meaningful say. But so-called school choice voucher schemes that siphon taxpayer dollars away from public schools are not the answer, especially for suburban and rural districts.
Because when state money follows a student to a private school, the public schools left behind still has the same building, the same teachers, and the same fixed costs, but fewer resources to pay for them. That hurts every child who stays.
- Election Administration
Under the U.S. Constitution, elections are primarily administered by states. Do you believe election administration in Pennsylvania should remain under state and local control, or should the federal government have a greater role? Please explain your position.
Election administration should remain under state and local control. The U.S. Constitution is clear on this, and I believe our county boards of elections, with proper state oversight, are best positioned to manage elections that reflect local conditions and needs. Federal overreach into local election administration is a path I do not support.
Follow-up:
What specific policies would you support to ensure elections are secure, transparent, and trusted by voters?
I support mail in ballots and have them counted as they come in, not on the morning of Election day, early in person voting, open primaries, and same day voter registration. Because the more eligible citizens who participate in our elections, the more legitimate the result. Distrust grows when people feel locked out; I want every eligible Pennsylvanian in the 12th District to feel confident that their vote counts and is counted correctly.
- Route 228
What is one issue specific to the Route 228 corridor or southern Butler County that you believe is being overlooked at the state level?
The issue I believe is most overlooked at the state level is the impact of rapid residential/commercial development along the Route 228 corridor without updating the current infrastructure and public services to support it.
Southern Butler County has grown rapidly over the past few years. New housing developments keep going up, but our roads, especially Route 228, Route 19, and the connecting roads into Cranberry, are gridlocked. Which can cause our fire stations, emergency services, and school buildings to be strained.
It’s not just a local problem. The state approved the zoning frameworks that enabled this growth, and the state benefits from the tax base. I will push for a dedicated state infrastructure fund tied to high-growth corridors like ours, and demand that PennDOT fast-track the upgrades that southern Butler County has been waiting years for. Growth is a good thing, but only if the state keeps its end of the bargain.
- Cost of Living / Taxes
Many residents in our area are concerned about rising property taxes, reassessment, and overall cost of living.
What specific actions would you support at the state level to help reduce the financial burden on homeowners and families… taxes, reassessment, and overall cost of living i.e. gas, food etc. ?
Rising property taxes and the soaring cost of everyday life are squeezing working families across our district, and I am not going to pretend that Harrisburg is off the hook. Pennsylvania’s broken school funding formula is a primary driver of high property taxes — we keep forcing local homeowners to fund state obligations, and that has to change.
I support shifting more of the burden of school funding from local property taxes to the state — funded through a fairer income-based system that asks the wealthy to pay their fair share. I also support homestead exemption expansions, targeted relief for seniors and fixed-income households, and genuine transparency in the reassessment process so families aren’t blindsided.
On cost of living more broadly: I’ll fight to lower prescription drug costs, push back against utility rate hikes, and support small businesses on Main Street that are getting crushed by the same pressures our families are. The economy should work for the people of the 12th District — not just for those at the top. That’s the fight I’m taking to Harrisburg.
