If [When] elected, what would be your top priority?
Biggest thing plaguing Ulster County is good-paying jobs. A lot of problems could be solved if people had good jobs. We have to do more marketing of our county. We have to offer more small business to come. Washington and Albany are struggling. If it is hard for them to get it right, how does a county manage to do it? Trickle-down is not working, and it looks like we will have to create jobs at grassroots level.
How does your experience make you a good candidate?
I’ve learned a lot since I’ve been a legislator. You bring your ideas forward. One problem is the 2-percent tax cap the state instituted. They still don’t provide mandate relief. They pass mandates down to towns and counties but they don’t give us any funding. I see towns and counties trying to vote to override the tax cap because they need to provide the services. I know you have to try to cut taxes, but you can’t lose sight of what government should do – provide services for your citizens, the children and the elderly. Mike Hein’s proposed budget comes in at less than the 2 percent tax increase. We just got the proposed budget, and we will have to take a good hard look at it, and probably change it.
Describe the role of a county legislator. What effect does county government have on residents?
The role is to control the purse strings and set policy. I supported the charter and the county executive. When you get up to a budget of 360 million-plus dollars, you need the full time supervision of an executive. But there’s an imbalance of power. We have a charter revision committee in place to see whether there may be changes needed in the charter. There’s an imbalance between the Legislature and the executive. As the chairman of a committee, I have been told there are things I can’t do. The county executive’s office has brought positive change. He has made department heads and employees more accountable. But we need to do more with policy changes. I find sometimes they are not as forthcoming with the information as they should be and they are not always truthful with information.
What specific policies will you advocate? How will these policies serve the interests of Saugerties residents?
It’s not that I would support only policies that would serve Saugerties residents. Good policies would serve the county as a whole. Even though we are elected by districts, the issues are still county wide. Golden Hill is a geographical issue; in northern areas our legislators are more supportive of Golden Hill. The southern legislators are less enthusiastic. If you look at the votes and where the legislators are from, it’s clear.
How would you rate the job performance of County Executive Mike Hein?
I would rather discuss the executive as a form of government than rate Mike Hein personally.
Do you think the balance of power between the executive and Legislature is as it should be?
Since the county executive form of government has come into play, there’s more accountability from department heads. People are more on their toes. I’m disappointed with the balance of governing between the executive’s office and Legislature. There is a commission evaluating the relationship, and I’m hoping they can make it a more level playing field. Ulster was the only county with more than 175,000 people without an executive when we established the office. We needed a full time person in the office.
