Platform and Issues
GOOD PAYING JOBS
We need to stay focused on increasing the number of good-paying jobs here in Ventura County. In May 2022, the unemployment rate bottomed out at 3% tied for the county’s lowest month on record. Through most of 2022 it stayed below 4%, a rarity over the past 30 years. The employment recovery since 2020 which was at 8.7% has been very impressive. Manufacturing jobs in Ventura County paid an average of $77,493 in 2022. This was well above the overall average for either goods producing or service-providing jobs however the manufacturing sector lost 10.9% of its jobs between 2016 and 2022. Ventura County is up by more than 10,000 jobs since just prior to the pandemic with an average per capita income of $41,863. We continue to work with companies to keep them here like Amgen – especially our middle class manufacturing, informational technology (IT), finance, and business services. Ventura County has a high cost of living and most families need high paying jobs to cover the cost of housing, food, child care, transportation, health care, and other expenses. My objective as County Supervisor is to work with companies to stay here and make it so jobs friendly that more companies want to move here rather than leave.
HOUSING
Where you live is just as important as what job you have. They go hand and hand. Historically part of the American Dream is to own a house. Today fewer than 1 in 5 can afford to buy a home. The median price to buy a home here has risen to above $900,000. In Ventura County only 17% of households had adequate income to afford a median-priced house and this means that they commute to a cheaper location or squeeze into a space too small for their needs. Currently we have a very low vacancy rate of 2.9% of our multifamily rentals and have an extremely high average monthly rent of above $2,700. Ventura County needs more housing. As Supervisor, I’ll have been working to replace old housing stock that falls out of use or is converted to their purposes and find innovative ways to create more affordable housing options for our families. We have just recently approved the plan to apply for a grant from Southern California Association of Government (SCAG) to look at county owned properties and land that could be used for housing.
PUBLIC SAFETY
Keeping our families safe is my single biggest priority as County Supervisor. Proud to say that Ventura County was ranked the safest large county in California in 2022, and by a comfortable margin. Measured by both property crimes and violent crimes. This is an honor our county frequently captures. Police and Fire protection is one of our the highest funding priority for our cities and county. Violent crimes and property crimes threaten the quality of life. Under the Assembly Bill 109, the state realigned the state prisons and shifted the responsibility to the county level. Then with Prop 47 some felonies were reclassified to misdemeanors. This means more dangerous criminals in our communities and less safe neighborhoods, and that is unacceptable. In addition our fire department works hard to provide fire protection, medical aid, rescue, hazardous materials response, and a variety of other services to the public. We recently added Ventura County Fire Department Supported purchase and deployment of 4 Transport Ambulances to provide surge relief during critical system levels to ensure communities receive the care they need. Our Ventura County Sheriffs, Ventura County Fire Department, and mutual aid do a phenomenal job to keep our residents safe and ensure that the communities receive the care they need.
BALANCED BUDGET
I’ll be blunt: I am a fiscal conservative. As Supervisor, I will work to balance the county budget with no new taxes. Ventura County’s general budget for 2023-24 exceeds $2.8 billion dollars. That is enough to get the job done – and if it’s not – it’s my responsibility to go through the county budget line by line to eliminate waste. We should make sure that we keep our taxes low to stimulate growth within the county.
SCHOOLS
Educating our children should be one of our most important priorities. We need to continue to support our school districts to ensure that we have a strong public school system. As Supervisor, I’ll encourage our schools to focus on Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts, and Math (STEAM) to prepare students for the 21st college and job market. Even though many of the core jobs in Ventura County will stay the same, how we do them continues to change. We need to be the leaders of that change.
TRANSPORTATION
The time spent commuting to and from work impacts our quality-of-life. When more time is spent in the car it means less time spent with our families, our friends, or other important priorities. Currently 63% of our motorists spend 20 minutes or more commuting. In addition, a worker wastes an average of about 23 hours a year stuck in rush-hour traffic. Reducing the commute time is imperative! I’ll focus on creating jobs here in the county, improving highway conditions, and making carpooling and public transportation more accessible and reduce commute times and traffic.
ENVIRONMENT
In Ventura County we need to protect our open space, preserve our natural habitats, but also ensure for a strong economic development. We have beautiful 43 miles of coastline and fertile lands. We also have urban areas, a $2 billion dollar Agricultural Industry, Green Energy, and Oil & Gas production. As Supervisor, I’ll work to keep our air and water quality clean and protect our wildlife. I’ll also make meeting the water demands of county the highest priority and look at ways to complete water saving and reservoir projects in a way that ensures the protection of the groundwater basin.
1. FAMILIES
Jobs – We need to maintain and increase good-paying jobs in Ventura County to support our families.
Housing – We need to ensure we have affordable housing for our families in the different price ranges.
Transportation – End the gridlock so we can spend more time with our families and less in the car.
2. COMMUNITY
Public Safety – Keeping our families safe is a priority and we must support our first responders.
Schools – Educate our students to prepare them for the future.
Environment – A balance needs to be made that protects the natural environment of Ventura County and our urban cities.
3. FISCAL CONSERVATIVE
Balanced Budget – Use the money we have responsibly rather than raising taxes even higher.
Cut Waste - Make sure our government spends wisely and prioritizes efficiency.