On the Issues

The issues I am focusing on are Education, Health Care and the Economy.

Education

I have a track record in supporting and improving education from early
childhood, K-12, higher education and postsecondary training. I want to
continue to support reforms that raise quality and make our education
offerings in Colorado the best for our children.

Health Care

Families in Colorado need accessible, affordable health care options and
the state needs to move forward with a comprehensive plan to address
our health care system. I have extensive experience working on difficult
issues in Colorado. I want to utilize my skills to move Colorado toward
a thoughtful health care solution.

Economy

A well-prepared and well-trained workforce will boost our local economy
especially in health-related professions at the Fitzsimons Campus. We
must push for expanding opportunities to create jobs in renewable
energy, aerospace, bioscience, transportation, logistics and other key
industries critical to our state.

Here are issues we are working on during the 2009 legislative session:

We are committed to expanding the circle of opportunity by:

1. Bringing good jobs to Colorado
2. Providing support for struggling families
3. Building a world-class education system

A. Bringing Good Jobs to Colorado is job one.  To do this,

• We created a bi-partisan Joint Select Committee on Job Creation & Economic Growth.  The committee is soliciting the best ideas from business & civic leaders and will soon make recommendations to the legislature to help turn the economic tide.
•  We unveiled an aggressive package that includes $12M for job creation, job training, & business assistance. 

The package:
o Provides a Jobs Tax Credit to companies creating jobs
o Revives the Credit Reserve Program to give small businesses access to capital and credit
o Creates new jobs to rebuild our rutted roads and dangerous bridges with FASTER
• In the long-term, we will continue building a strong 21st Century economy by:
o Investing in the clean energy technologies that have already led to the creation of over 22,000 green-collar jobs, with more on the way
o Providing the tools employees need to compete and succeed by expanding job training and workforce development programs at community colleges

B. Providing Support for Struggling Families, by working to,
• Reduce the ranks of the uninsured with the Health Care Affordability Act.
• Keep families in their homes and out of foreclosure by offering a “time out.”
• Protect our most vulnerable citizens – including our kids, elder Coloradans, and veterans – during budget cuts

C. Building a World Class Education System, by striving to,
• Reduce the dropout rate
• Provide students with the career and technical training they need to get good jobs
• Helping parents help their kids succeed in school by granting unpaid leave for working parents to attend parent-teacher meetings
• Improve education by tracking teacher and student performance over time