Up and Coming Weekly is a weekly publication in Fayetteville, NC and Fort Bragg, NC area offering local news, views, arts, entertainment and community event and business information.
Issue link: http://www.epageflip.net/i/303912
APRIL 30 - MAY 6, 2014 UCW 21 WWW.UPANDCOMINGWEEKLY.COM With dwindling state and federal funding, how do you see the board meeting the needs of the citizens without drastic cuts to programs or tax increases? I have participated as an elected official in the budget balancing process for two Board of Education budgets, four Cumberland County budgets and six Fayetteville city budgets and every year we have the same issues — unfunded mandates and deceasing money for programs. Budgeting requires scrutinizing and prioritizing. Just like your own household budgets, there is give and take and tightening of your belt as you decide where you spend your money. I know what it is like to toil and labor at your job all week long just to see the money disappear to pay for necessities with what little is left to go towards paying your taxes. I believe we need to look at shifting the tax burden from the owners and the dwellers to the earners and the consumers. I will work with our local and state governments and our citizens to develop a fairer way to collect and distribute our monies. What is your vision for funding of the school system? Funding our school system has been contentious in the past but has eased up over the years. I concur with the formula agreement in place at the present time that uses a set percentage of our property tax growth, whether it is up or down. I believe we need strong, consensus building elected officials who will work closely and diligently with our state and federal legislators to bring more money to our county and to our schools. We need to investigate the possibility of a statewide sales tax funding program that would reduce county expenses to our schools while reducing our high property taxes. We balance budgets on the backs of property owners and the time has come that we must all share in that expense. All our core educational needs should be paid for out of the broadest possible tax base. What is the biggest problem facing Cumberland County and how do we fix it? - The biggest problem facing Cumberland County is crime. We need to get to the root of the problem, which most likely is drugs and unemployment. We need elected officials who will stand firm on pushing to reduce this epidemic and who will work to remove the word crime as an adjective to describe our city. I believe all governing bodies — board of commissioners, board of education, city council and our other seven municipalities must come together with our law enforcement, Fort Bragg, the chamber of commerce, our churches and our citizens to collaborate to use every resource we have to chip away and decrease this crime problem. We are top 10 in the nation for crime and it is hurting our image and hurting any economic growth for our county. Crime has touched all our lives in some way and this is a quality of life issue. We should all feel safe in our homes and out in our communities. I am a no-nonsense woman who will not let turf battles get in the way of solving this critical issue. The county has long depended on Fort Bragg's growth to ease some economic concerns. With the decreasing force structure, cutting of government contracts and the hiring freeze on Bragg, where will the county turn to create jobs and build the economy? Cumberland County has had these concerns about Fort Bragg in years past and we were able to bounce back and I believe with the correct strategies in place we will overcome any struggles we may experience from this situation. Cumberland County has much to offer citizens and visitors, we just need to market all our great assets better. I was on city council when we stood strong and worked together to improve a dying downtown and now it is a thriving little area with even more potential. We need to really expound on our great universities — FSU, Methodist, FTCC and the programs they offer. We need to tap into the attraction and the recreational offerings of the Botanical Gardens, the River Trail and the Airborne & Special OPS Museum and really market them so people want to come here to visit, to shop and to spend money. We need to play up on Babe Ruth and baseball and apple pie — we are "All American", 82nd Airborne and a melting pot of so many nationalities that at times we forget how unique we really are. We need to use all resources we can muster to build up our economy and create jobs. What are your top three priorities if elected? I have a proven record of standing up for the silent majority and I believe we must offer a good quality of life for all our citizens, no matter where they live or their socio-economic station in life. Our citizens want safe streets and neighborhoods, good jobs, good schools, transportation, recreational opportunities and a clean environment while keeping taxes at a reasonable level. My top priorities are reducing crime, economic growth with a better marketing strategy of the great resources we offer and working on a better taxation plan that is fair to both property owners and the consumers to create the broadest possible tax base. Jaunita Gonzalez With dwindling state and federal funding, how do you see the boardmeeting the needs of the citizens without drastic cuts to programs or tax increases? I believe the county has to examine and reallocate funds that are currently in the budget. Those programs that have been receiving funds and not producing need to be reduced or phased out. What is your vision for funding of the school system? The funding agreement has been put in place by consensus between the Board of Education and the county funding the basic needs of the school system. I believe the county must go further and create supplements earmark for teacher raises and retention across the board. What is the biggest problem facing Cumberland County and how do we fix it? The economy. The county has long depended on Fort Bragg's growth to ease some economic concerns. With the decreasing force structure, cutting of government contracts and the hiring freeze on Bragg, where will the county turn to create jobs and build the economy? I believe we must create a business incubator to assist small businesses and businesses that are being started in citizens's homes to grow our economy. We must the engage both Fayetteville State University and Methodist College to allow their business students to assist these small business to help them succeed What are your top three priorities if elected? Economy, education and mental and physcial health of our citizens Ted Alexander With dwindling state and federal funding, how do you see the board meeting the needs of the citizens without drastic cuts to programs or tax increases? We need to do a line item cost analysis of the county budget every year and find where programs can be combined and run more efficiently. Commissioners should be able to sign a budget knowing nothing was overlooked and no favoritism was shown to any county department or agency. What is your vision of funding of the school system? The school system receives approximately 28% of its general fund from the county, if we take an attitude of how we can save money through efficient operations rather than how much money we can spend, money shortages will be minimized. The major issue statewide at present is teacher pay and retention. Until the state can bring Medicaid cost overruns under control and implement educator pay increases, we can look at what county government can locally offer educator incentives, and discounts through businesses to stay in the profession here in Cumberland County. Let's create a 'win, win' environment in Cumberland County. What is the biggest problem facing Cumberland County and how do we fix it? Property crime is a major problem. Citizens need to think of crime as a supply and demand business that you want to put out of business. Criminals are not ignorant and need to be taken seriously because the attitude "it will not happen to me" will not reduce crime. Citizens need to take an active part by asking themselves when they leave their homes, cars, and business, "What have I left unsecured that would invite crime?" Encourage property owners and businesses to have security analysis done of their properties by law enforcement crime preventions units to reduce the chance of their properties being targeted by criminals. The county has long depended on Ft Bragg's growth to ease some economic concerns. With the decreasing force structure, cutting of government contracts and the hiring freeze on Ft. Bragg, where will the county turn to create jobs and build the economy? We need to establish a communication link with the state government to find those businesses interested in coming to or expanding in North Carolina and actively recruit them to come to Cumberland County. We cannot expect businesses to come to us. What are your top three priorities if elected? Establish a communication link between county and state government to bring jobs, business, monies, and facilities to Cumberland County. Keep the citizens safe. Educator pay, benefits, and retention. Improve our gateways. John 'JC' Czajkowski