Elaine Price - 2024 State Representative District 4, Seat B Primary Candidate
Elaine Price, State Representative, District 4, Seat B, 2024 Primary Candidate answers questions from moderator Tyrel Stevenson.
May 10, 2024
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Cheri Zao - 2024 State Senate District 5 Primary Candidate
Cheri Zao, a retired medical professional and Republican candidate for State Senate District 5, presents her views in a recent interview. With an educational background in Chemistry and Biology from Stephen F. Austin State University, and a Medical degree from the University of Texas Medical Branch, Zao has been a resident of Kootenai County for 35 years. She criticizes Idaho’s current public education funding as confusing and insufficient, advocating for legislative improvements to make the system more understandable and equitable.
On constituent communication, Zao plans to utilize her website (cherizao.com), which she describes as informative and interactive, in addition to regular email correspondence, town halls, and speaking engagements. She emphasizes the importance of being responsive to constituent needs and concerns.
Addressing affordable housing, Zao identifies the issue as a key motivation for her candidacy. She points to the large-scale purchase of residential homes by private equity and hedge funds as detrimental to housing affordability and advocates for legislation to protect local interests and control.
Zao supports the Idaho open primaries ballot initiative, arguing that closed primaries unfairly restrict independent voters. She believes that open primaries offer a fairer choice to all voters, regardless of their party affiliation.
In her concluding remarks, Zao positions herself as a proponent of conservative values, civility, and community strength, urging voters to support her candidacy based on these principles.
May 11, 2024
Carl Bjerke - 2024 State Senate District 5 Primary Candidate
Carl Bjerke, a Republican State Senate District 5 primary candidate, has an extensive background in public safety and legislative roles, which he believes qualifies him for re-election. With an associate degree in Respiratory Therapy and a bachelor’s degree in Organizational Leadership, along with specialized training in incident command and management from prestigious institutions, Bjerke has built his career on a robust educational foundation. He moved to Kootenai County in 2017, drawn by family ties and retirement plans.
In terms of public education funding, Bjerke recognizes Idaho's constitutional commitment and suggests simplifying the funding formula while exploring creative funding methods to alleviate property tax burdens and enhance school choice options. Communication with constituents, particularly during legislative sessions, is challenging due to the volume of communications; however, Bjerke prioritizes accessibility via text and phone, encouraging engagement outside of session times for policy discussions.
On affordable housing, Bjerke sees a need for local solutions and possible legislative changes to support faster development processes, favoring a task force approach to address the mismatch between job availability and housing. He opposes the Idaho open primary ballot initiative, fearing it could lead to ranked-choice voting, which he views as detrimental.
Bjerke positions himself as a candidate dedicated to public service, touting his legislative achievements and ongoing commitment to improve Idaho through experienced and collaborative governance, making a strong case for his re-election based on a track record of service and a platform focused on practical, localized solutions to state issues.
May 10, 2024
Dave Raglin - 2024 State Representative District 4, Seat B Primary Candidate
In an interview, Dave Raglin, a Republican candidate for State Representative in District 4, discussed his extensive background and his plans for addressing key issues in Kootenai County. Raglin, recently retired, has a diverse professional history spanning 38 years across various sectors, including transportation, logistics, and rail industries. He also operates a local agency aiding developmentally disabled adults with his wife.
Raglin expressed concerns about the current state funding for public education in Idaho, advocating for permanent solutions to improve the educational system rather than temporary fixes. He emphasized the need for community and legislative collaboration to address educational inequities and enhance the quality of education.
On housing, Raglin highlighted the local crisis where wages haven't kept pace with rising home prices, making housing unaffordable for many, including essential workers. He proposed a comprehensive strategy involving community leaders, local builders, and non-profit organizations to address this issue effectively.
Regarding constituent communication, Raglin plans to ensure transparency and responsiveness through regular updates, town hall meetings, and a robust social media presence.
Raglin supports the Idaho Open Primary ballot initiative, arguing that it promotes inclusiveness and reduces polarization by allowing independent and third-party voters to participate in primaries.
He concluded by emphasizing the need for unity and shared community values in addressing local issues, advocating for a collaborative approach to preserve the cultural and foundational roots of Coeur d'Alene and North Idaho.
May 10, 2024
TRANSCRIPT
00:00:00:00 - 00:00:27:10
Tyrel Stevenson
Well, next we have the pleasure of speaking with the incumbent and challenger candidates for district four representative, seat B and our first candidates, incumbent Representative Elaine Price. Thanks for coming by. And welcome. I want you to take a minute and, explain why you're running for this office again. Hi. My name is Elaine Price. I'm your current state representative for district four, CB.
00:00:27:12 - 00:00:54:15
Elaine Price
I have worked hard these last two years being North Idaho's voice in Boise, I have a proven track record of being a principled leader and a fierce advocate for values and principles that matter most to Idahoans. I look forward to hearing, from the people of the community, finding out what they are concerned about and how I can continue to be the voice of North Idaho.
00:00:54:17 - 00:01:34:21
Tyrel Stevenson
All right. Thanks. From your view. What was one good thing that came out of the most recently concluded session? And what was one negative thing?
Elaine Price
I think I I'm very proud of Senator Toews', and I, championed House Bill 498, which was the online Child Protection Act, which requires adult content websites to age verify so that, we hopefully can keep that information away from minors.
00:01:34:23 - 00:02:01:13
Elaine Price
So that's one thing that I'm very happy that we got passed, and it passed both the House and the Senate and then got signed by the governor. One thing that, that I think I wished we would have gotten maybe some more things for, like we tried to do diversity, equity, inclusion, trying to get it out of our, higher ed.
00:02:01:15 - 00:02:28:11
Elaine Price
And I wish that's something that we would have been able to get through. but it got stalled over on the Senate side, so.
Tyrel Stevenson
Okay. speaking of the governor, how would you assess the relationship between the legislature and the governor while you served? And, and how do you see yourself, maybe changing that relationship or or maybe doing some of the same things?
00:02:28:13 - 00:03:02:19
Elaine Price
I think I, I feel like he didn't veto that many that much legislation while we were in session. There were few. And he gave us reasons to why. And like, for instance, he vetoed a driver's ed bill last session and it was brought back this session with the changes that he recommended and it got signed into law. So I feel that the legislature works with him as much as possible.
00:03:02:21 - 00:03:38:08
Elaine Price
I know that, there's a lot of communication with his office as well. Legislation is going through to make sure that if they if he has concerns that they're addressed before it gets to him, so that it won't be vetoed. So I feel that we just need to continue with that relationship and continue to listen to what he has to say and see if we can't, pass legislation that we all agree on, that we can get it all the way through.
00:03:38:10 - 00:04:09:00
Tyrel Stevenson
All right. Thank you for that. So, the last question is, would you give the legislature a letter grade for its public education funding? And please explain your answer.
Elaine Price
I had a feeling you're going to ask about education. We have funded education. The two sessions that I've been. And we've increased the funding for education, both years. So I would give it an A.
00:04:09:02 - 00:04:37:05
Elaine Price
I do know that we struggled with they put the funding in a bucket, and it had to do with average daily attendance versus enrollment. And so there was money left in that bucket. And we worked the entire session to resolve that issue so that the schools would get that money. And we passed legislation at the end of the session to make sure that that happened.
00:04:37:07 - 00:05:12:19
Elaine Price
Education was talked about both sessions the entire time. So it is a big focus of our our legislative body. We know that it's and I'm on the education committee. So we know that it's a constitutional requirement for the state to, provide public education. So, I do think that we still need to be fiscally conservative when it comes to education, that that we need to make sure that we're funding the needs, not the want.
00:05:12:21 - 00:05:35:05
Elaine Price
And I think that there's things that we could do to streamline it better so that the funding is going to where it needs to go versus getting spent on other things. So, so I am in full agreement that that, our public education needs to be taken care of and financially taken care of.
Tyrel Stevenson
All right. Well, we appreciate you coming down.
00:05:35:09 - 00:05:58:18
Tyrel Stevenson
If you'd like to take a minute and just, offer any final thoughts you might have for, the voters in district four.
Elaine Price
Now, I just really appreciate you guys putting this on, giving me a chance to hear what our community is thinking about, concerns that they have. I am running because I want to continue to be North Idaho's voice in Boise.
00:05:58:21 - 00:06:26:14
Elaine Price
I am just an average citizen who wants to make sure that that our concerns are being met up here in North Idaho. And my website is Elaine for CDA A.com and at Facebook at, Elaine for North Idaho. And I would appreciate a vote for Elaine Price on May 21st.
Tyrel Stevenson
All right. Well, we really appreciate it's great to take the time to to get to know you a little more and so the voters can get to know you.
00:06:26:19 - 00:06:29:07
Elaine Price
Absolutely. Thank you very much.
Tyrel Stevenson
Thank you.