Push to consolidate and eliminate unnecessary committees. Will work to allow more night meetings to allow for increased participation from the general public. We must change the expectation of what it is to serve on the County Board. We need to change the mindset from how many per diems and mileage a board member gets per month, to what that board member actually does for you.

I have a working history of supporting public safety and it is very dear to me. My life was shaped by working to help others. Recent examples of my commitment include CPR machines and School Resource Officers in schools.

Would push to establish an economic development committee/working group that ties local non-for-profit economic groups such as area chambers of commerce, labor, workforce development agencies, and governmental agencies with the County. We need to laser focus our committees and County policies on what we can do to help families.

LaSalle County has one of the highest unemployment and poverty rates in the state. We currently have the fourth highest unemployment in the State of Illinois. 21.5% of children in LaSalle County live in poverty. Cook County is 19.1%. Local food pantries report increased need. The emphasis of the County Board Chairman should be to focus on economic development to lift families out of poverty and lower property taxes. What does that look like? Here is what I envision.

• BroadBand – Much like 1930s electrification
  • Create a Commission of IT professionals to guide the County Board with broadband development using I-Fiber monies
  • Allow rural residents to have a better quality of life with health, education, and job opportunities with broadband.
  • Leverage monies for additional state and federal dollars

• Solar Initiatives
  • Electrify Lasalle County
  • Lower the average price of electricity for residents\
  • Attract business by promoting innovation
  • Regulate solar installation companies. Require standard permitting and licensed electrical contractors. Most residents I meet are not comfortable with solar because they are not familiar or comfortable with the contractors.
  • Office/Contracted agency to oversee contractors
• LaSalle County Economic Committee
  • Coordinate different programs, hold committee work
  • Coordination with area chambers of commerce, labor organizations
  • Abate new commercial and industrial taxes if they produce a set number of prevailing wage positions. McLean County abates taxes based on a negotiated contract with businesses that meet certain conditions.
• Economic Goals
  • To be one of the top energy producing counties in the USA. We are currently 18th out of over 3,100 counties. The future is geared toward electrical energy production and storage. Large industry and businesses such as data centers will be drawn toward energy.
  • Nuclear
  • Hydrogen
  • Ethanol
  • Solar, Hydro, Wind
• Maintain ranking as top # 5 corn producing County in IL. Maintain and improve ranking as # 5 in wheat milling in North America
• Work to lower poverty and unemployment rates by coordinating with state and local agencies to create business incentives and lower taxes.

We will work to introduce new tourism programs and ideas that embrace our rural area. We must have our tourism more interconnected with economic development. They can no longer be two separate issues.