What are the 3 most pressing issues in your city and what is your preferred solution to each?

Four years ago I would have resoundingly told you that infrastructure was our greatest problem.  Today that is still a need, but I feel like there is an even greater issue at the forefront today than that.  Our biggest issue is a people issue.  We have major communication deficits on all fronts.  We must begin to pivot into a WE mentality and not a ME mentality.  This can be accomplished by a collaborative set of team players.

Water and Sewer needs will continue to be a MAJOR issue for the city unitl there is a gravity fed water tower and until we can find a way to more easily pump sewer uphill or open the old sewer treatment plant back up and feed the original load to that locaiton.  

And then finally we have a throughfare problem.  105 is a major hotspot of people coming through town.  We need ways to get from the west side of town to the grocery store without having them cross or ride on 105.  We need an actual golf cart crossing spot for 105 that is feasible from all sides of town.  We need more sidewalk all through town and we need them to be wheelchair accessible.  

Do you feel that citizen comments and concerns are being addressed by the current administration?

No, citizens get to speak for 3 mniutes before each Council session.  However more often than not, nothing gets done about what is being addressed.  This tends to fester and boil causing some of the communication issues presviously mentioned.  

How do you view the responsibility of the city council to protect all children from drag queen shows in public places within the city limits including the library, school, parks, and private businesses? What is your personal belief in this matter?

Most people forget that the City of Montgomery is actually such a small footprint.  The City Council has no authority to implement anything for the schools(state run and local jurisdictional organized), or for the library (county run).  The city could implement a rule or an ordinance to forbid such behaviors, but in my experience the more you rule something out, the more you rule other things in.  There is a fine line of a slippery slope here that you need to be carful about.  

I do believe that every parent should have the right to choose how and why their child interacts with others in and from their community.  However, I would NOT be ok with a doctrine for all children to be exposed to a drag queen show nor for them to occur in any city, state, or federal facilites including but not liited to schools.  

Why are you running for this position?  What are the three main attributes that make you the most qualified for this position?

The city has a long standing reputation for being behind the trends for growth and development despite the areas right around the city experiencing record breaking growth.  I am running to help ensure that our community is awake and paying attention to the needs of all citizens and visitors alike.  I believe that what we need is to create infrastructure that will last for future generations.   Additionally, I want my children and the children in this community to know how to serve their city and how they can all be granted access to elected officials even at an early age without fear or hesitation.

How can the operation of your city government be made more efficient and cost effective?

As a city we can implement better incentives with home builders to help with connectivity and acess thus reducing the constant need to budget for sidewalks.  Additionally we can utilize more grant funding to help offset the growth demands.  And even still we can trim back budgets across the board to actually invest in tomorrow. 

Do you support term limits for the council?  If so, how many terms? Which current Magnolia board member do you identify with the most and why?

I honestly have mixed felings about term limits for this specific city as it is small and we often have races unconested.  In general it is a typicaly a good rule of thought to limit terms to two 4 year terms similarly to the office of the president.  The current City of Montgomery Council I identify with the most would probably have to be TJ WIlkerson.  Although he is quiet, he has a deep sense of history to this town and values and respects all people despite their differences.  He is and always has been a leader in this community.  Although he is not running for reelection, his legacy will carry on through this city for decades to come.  

With the recent and projected growth in the area, how is the city coping with higher demands for sanitation, fire and police services?

The city prepared several years ago for an increased sanitation by opening a new sewer treatment plant.  There are still huge issues with this as we also have double digits of sewer lift stations to move the sewer uphill to the facility.  We definitely have some room for improvement here.  The police department has been given a basically unlimited budget for the last couple of year under the guise of "making up for covid spending restraints".  This has come to the tune of six new cars in 2022,  specialized license plate readers all across town, and loads of new gear, equipment, and traffic safety supplies.  However all the money spent still is not keeping officers invested in Montgomery.  We are still seeing a large turnover and we need to figure out why these fine men and women continue to come and go through out department.  That turnover comes at a HUGE cost to the city via training, equipment, and time.  

The city does not have their own fire department as it is run by the county.  I know that the fire department is struggling to retain people also as there is a large group of firefighters that are at or near retirement age across our county and the applicant pool is the lowest it has ever been in history.   

We need to invest in our young people and help connect dots to socical services, local governments, and civil service.  They are our future.  

Will you vote to increase or reduce the annual city budget?  Why?  What changes will you propose in your city’s budget?  Why?

I will vote to reduce the city budget. The city has tremendous growth forcasted over the next several years.  The city budget must be kept in check in order to hold funds aside to pay for the additional infrastructure and services that will be needed.  My goal on council is to have the city pay for these additions to prevent, as much as possible, the use of bonds, loans, etc.  The city need not be burdened with additional debt that future resiudents will have to pay.  I will propose a cut in all departments in order create a savings account to offset the cost of growing infrastructure needs. This will show the citizen's that we are being good stewards of the money they are entrusting to us.

How much does this position pay each year? Do you think this amount should be increased, decreased or even, like The Woodlands Township, receive no compensation at all?

The City of Montgomery does not pay their mayor or council members at all for their assistance in this role.  It would be nice to have a small incentive amount, however with or without that at all, I am here becasue I want to serve.  

What is the Sales Tax Rate for the City in which you're running?  Property Tax rate?  How much of the revenue is derived from each? Do you think it would be a good idea to broaden either or both of them to increase revenues?

Understanding taxes starts with understanding budgets.  Our city regularly under budgets by LARGE amounts of money in order to create an end of year "slush" fund of sorts.  This regulalry causes the city departments to ask for expensive items that they do not put inside their budget.  It becomes like Christmas if you will near the end of the annual budget cycle.  This type of behavior must stop.  We need to either reduce the tax rate, or create a capital improvement savings account that we actually use to save for large infrastructure needs that are on the horizon.  The sales tax rate is 8.25% which 2% comes back to the city.  The city utilizes just at 50% of that in their annual budgeting.  No where close to the actual amounts that do come in.  As I understand that this is not guaranteed money, it is projected.  It would stand to reason that it is a goal line that even the city thinks is unachieveable.  However when it is achieved it is not spent in a fiscally responsible way.  Additoionally the city does something similar with ad valorum taxes and under budgets what most would consisder a fairly guaranteed amount of money.  This type of budgeting may seem responsible but it come with the idea that the city celebrates Christmas once a year at the expense of the tax payers.  

When would it be appropriate for a business receive any tax abatements?

When the projected sales tax revenue exceeds the property tax revenue, it would make some sense then and only then to agree to an abatement depending upon terms/conditions at the time.  Or when the projected improved value grows the property tax value  as a whole by a large percentage.

What measures will you propose to ensure that your city’s government does not improperly usurp citizen’s rights?

I will insure that citizen's rights will not be usurped by insuring that all city ordinances will adhere to the rights provided in the Constitution, I.e. making sure no ordinance prohibits free speech.  I will also make sure that citizen's rights are always at the forefront of every city council debate over proposed ordinances or other decisions.  I believe that I maintained this standard while on city council previously.

List Civic, Political or union organization or individuals to whom you have contributed time or money (five years).

Transformation Church 2022-Current

Montgomery Lions Club 2021-Current

Hope's Bridge Resource Center 2017-Current

Department of Family and Protective Services Collaboration Team 2019-Current

Montgomery County CASA 2015-2017

First Montgomery Church 2015-2022

Girl Scouts 2014-2018

Boy Scouts 2014-2018

Please describe what measures you propose to improve transparency and accountability to the public.

By allowing more open dialogue with citizens and business owners during council meetings and budget sessions. But also by a steadfast commitment to being an active member and leader in the community in which I live, work, play ,and pray.  

List all clients you have represented or lobbied for on behalf of any governmental entity during the past five years.

Our family photo was used in a campaign video by Judge Amy Tucker and we openly supported her campaign by sharing social media posts and by encouraging others that she was the right pick for our family court judge.  We paid her zero dollars, and she paid us zero dollars.  

Additionally I have campaigned with Juanita Simmons, Sarah Countryman, and Carol Langley in the past election cycles to help recruit more voters.  No money was paid to any of them on my behalf.  

Is there anything in your background of an embarrassing nature that should be explained before your election? Arrests/Convictions? Bankruptcys?

I learned a hard lesson at the age of 19 that you need to take care of all of your trafic tickets when you are younger.  I had a speeding ticket from when I was 16 years old that I had forgotten about until I was pulled over one night in Willis.  I spent one night in Montgomery County jail until I was bailed out by paying the fine assessed.  It was a lesson learned over 25 years ago and one that I remind my children of to this day.  Take care of your trafic tickets.

How do you define conservative values and how does that align with this community's values? How do those values apply in your decision making process?

I define conservative values as being fiscally responsible, pro family, and supporting the constitutionality of city ordinances and codes.  The Montgomery community by large supports these values and this is shown through citizen's voting history and the day to day interactions I have with the citizens and business owners.  All decisions I make align and are compared to these values.  I also have to live, work, and raise a family in this community, and I want this community to reflect my values as well.

How long have you been consistently voting in elections? For which parties candidates? List all the elections you have voted in for the past 3 years (2014-2016).

I have been voting in elections since I was legally allowed to vote.  I have always voted republican.  In the last 3 years I have voted in every election cycle available including county, state, and federal.  

Should City employees living out of the city and/or county take home city vehicles?  Why or why not?

It is my opinion that city resources should stay within the city unless handling city business directly outside the city.  So no, I do not agree with any city owned vehicle going home with city emplyees to their residence that do not live within the city jurisdiction.  It is my opinion that this portrays to the tax payer that we do not have resources when we do in fact have more than most understand.  It also encourages emplyees to reside outside of the jurisdiction.  Montgomery is a small town and we like the feeling that we are pretty well connected.  In order to maintain that feeling, it is imperative that we have staff that understand this dynamic and reside within it.  We can not expect employees to understand how we function and why things are so important if they can take the time to invest inbeing here.