"The Libertarian Party is the only political party that respects our rights as a unique and competent individuals. We want a system that allows all people to choose what they want from life and that lets us live, work, play and dream our own way."
LIST OF ISSUES Continued
Values
Governments must maintain the highest of ethical standards in order to maintain the public trust. That is why I find the recent facebook post by Sherriff Jon Sandage where he chastised supporters of Shayna Watchinski, now the Democrat nominee for County Board in District 8, disturbing. Sandage's comments referred to a flyer that was crudely designed and under any level of scrutiny does not appear to be anything a campaign would endorse or release. At best Sandage showed poor judgement in publishing the flyer after being duped into believing it was actually something produced by a Watchinski supporter. At the worst he was part of a failed attempt by Watchinski's Democratic Primary opponent, current District 8 Board Member Paul Segobiano, to make Watchinski look bad.
It is also important for McClean County to make an announcement regarding the results of any internal investigation it may have made into the Health Board's violation of open meeting laws in 2016 which was in the news again this year after it was announced by the Illinois Attorney General that no criminal charges would be filed. If this was done previously, it needs to be done again. If no internal investigation has been made then this is the time to conduct one. I understand this is among other things a personnel matter and that therefore full transparency may not be possible. However the public deserves a response.
Jobs
As stated in The Pantagraph, "After nearly a decade of dormancy, wind development has returned to the county in force in 2018, through two projects that could more than double production from current wind farms---." According to local labor leader Mike Matejka, "wind farms have created hundreds of jobs in the 10 years since the turbines first appeared in McLean County." Local farmer Joe Bertsche believes wind energy is a game changer and recently stated, "The farmers in this area in Central Illinois and all over the Midwest, we’re going to be producing corn, beans, and electricity." The proposed McLean County Wind Energy Center Project "could create 35 long-term jobs and at least $2.3 million in new annual taxes in the county, according to a study by David Loomis, an Illinois State University economics professor who directs its renewable energy center." WGLT recently wrote that the three existing wind farms in our area "already comprise three of the Top 10 biggest property taxpayers in McLean County."
Liberty
While I support the Environment (see Jobs and Environment) I do not agree with forced recycling as included in the 20-Year Solid Waste Plan recently adopted by the McLean County Board. That plan includes the possibility of requiring businesses to recycle or demolition companies to recycle and possibly a requirement for rental companies to provide recycling for their tenants. Naturally, the cost of this recycling would only be passed along by businesses to residents. In the case of rental companies, the cost would be passed on directly to residents in the form of higher rent. I agree with opponents, who as stated in The Pantagraph, said "the free market should decide how aggressive landlords and businesses are in offering recycling services, rather than unfunded mandates.
Education
I value the importance of traditional college degrees and support those that want to take that path and the educators that provide it. However, with the rising cost of these degrees I believe it is past time we stop treating vocational, technical, and trade schools as secondary forms of education and elevate them to equal status. I agree with Libertarian Gubernatorial Candidate Kash Jackson "trades are something that are more appealing and actually very viable for young men and women coming out of high school." Recently I enjoyed attending a tour of the Laborers Apprenticeship School in Stanford, with local elected officials and other local candidates. As a County Board member I will continue to explore ways the county can help more of our citizens help themselves by getting vocational and technical training.