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Tony's Top Issues

The main thread in my campaign is about moving together to make things better. In an environment where the pressure is on but resources are challenged, this is our best approach for meaningful forward movement.

strengthening our economy

There are no fancy words to use, let’s just call it what it is: life is so expensive right now. All of us are feeling it. The number of vacant and boarded up buildings steadily increases. It’s hard to get a job. Oregon has one of the highest unemployment rates in the nation. A bag of groceries can equate to two tanks of gas. High taxes eat into our paychecks more than feels comfortable. Many of us and our neighbors are one emergency away from staring homelessness in the face. With hard work and intention, the county can be a key player in helping to ease up the pressure. As your commissioner, I commit to:

  • Leveraging dollars to expand workforce training and development access to residents

  • Exploring creative partnerships with businesses to strengthen our workforce

  • Working with my colleagues, multiple jurisdictions and community to evaluate existing local tax infrastructure to explore options for relief

  • Building bridges with jurisdictions to find investment opportunities in small business expansion

building bridges across jurisdictions

Our neighbors experience their lives and needs for services in a way that often knows no boundaries. They want to know that they can get rent assistance when they need it. They want to know they can call someone to support their elderly family member. Who does that is less important than getting the service in a timely manner. As your commissioner, I commit to:

  • Rebuilding government relationships that have been fractured in public spaces

  • Minimize red-tape to make sure people get services in a way that’s more about outcomes than managing paperwork

  • Evaluating shared formal agreements to be able to clarify roles and responsibilities

  • Making way for meaningful data sharing that smooths over the way we respond when neighbors ask for help

move forward on housing & homelessness

The homelessness and housing emergency has been going on for too long. Recent data published shows that just as fast as we’re housing people, many are falling into homelessness or instability every day. At the same time, vacancy rates in the market are higher than people realize, including affordable housing. As your commissioner, I commit to:

  • Working with property owners to see where we can partner to avoid letting housing sit empty while our neighbors are on the street

  • Expand technical assistance to contracted service providers to help them do what they do best with public dollars in a transparent way

  • Evaluate county rules and regulations that may be getting in the way of neighbors receiving help

  • Protecting dollars for rent assistance, street outreach, and housing placement programs

maximize access to behavioral health services

Many of our neighbors living inside and outside are experiencing behavioral health crises every day. While they suffer in silence, our systems of care are backlogged for admission. This means that when people may be ready to take the next step toward healing, our system isn’t ready to receive them. We can and should do better. As your commissioner, I commit to:

  • Exploring creative partnerships with mental health providers, insurance companies and health systems that are focused on speeding up access to care

  • Expand support for our mental health providers at all levels including safe working conditions and stronger rates

  • Build stronger partnerships with private-care providers to increase access for patient options

  • Work with other jurisdictions (state, city) to make our referral systems and well patient exit plans more effective to address bottlenecking

increase fiscal transparency

County government has an obligation to deliver on the promises attached to each dollar spent. I hear from neighbors regularly that current county budget processes feel like a black box with limited ways to provide input. Sometimes, when budgets are made, somehow government officials find extra money they didn’t know they had before, or misspending. This indicates a need to keep better tabs on what money is coming in and going out. As your commissioner, I commit to:

  • Working with my county colleagues to look deeper into departmental functions and share key budget and spending information more frequently

  • Support the professional development and training of county workers to better understand fiscal responsibilities and processes

  • Work with county colleagues to provide more frequent publicly facing spending dashboards that see money in action

  • Regularly share budget input opportunities with community members earlier in the budget process