Vision and Goals
We all know that Colorado needs to make some real changes in the right direction. I’m running to put families over corporate interests, improve our educational system so our kids get great opportunities in safe schools, and solve the housing crisis so everyone can afford a safe place to live. Here are some of my ideas and goals.
MAKE HOUSING AFFORDABLE
Housing affordability in Colorado has become a crisis, leading our neighbors to choose between paying rent or paying their bills. The increase in unhoused Coloradans is a tragedy and Colorado must do everything we can to stop skyrocketing rent and barriers to home-ownership. Every Coloradan deserves a safe, affordable place to live, and I’ll always fight for tenant protections, fair land-use laws, and more programs to encourage first-time home ownership.
My Plan:
Work to refine and implement Gov. Polis’ zoning changes to encourage more options for property owners to expand their housing options.
Ensure that tenants are protected from predatory practices and ensure that livability standards are enforced.
Make the Senior Property Tax Exemption permanent to prevent seniors from being priced out of their homes.
Expand programs such as the CHFA FirstStep and HomeAccess services that give state-level help to first-time homebuyers.
protect our environment
Colorado is a gorgeous place and we all deserve an ability to enjoy the beauty and fun all around us. Climate change puts all of us at an existential risk, and will destroy what makes Colorado such a great place to live. The effects of climate change are unequal, with our minority communities and working-class neighborhoods bearing the brunt. Environmental protection can’t just be about reducing carbon emissions, it has to include plans to protect our neighborhoods from oil refineries and chemical plants. We need the same kind of fire and flood mitigation strategies that affluent communities get. This crisis is affecting us all and we need to make sure the response from our state government covers all Coloradans equally.
My Plan:
Push for more renewable energy sources and manufacturing here in Colorado to make us a leader in renewable production.
Investigate new types of renewable energy that are showing promise.
Create equitable statewide planning for the effects of climate change on our communities.
Implement subsidies for individuals and businesses that switch to electric vehicles and low-emission appliances, especially for low-income families.
protect workers and unions
Every Coloradan deserves an opportunity to thrive in our economic climate. Too many of us are struggling after a decade of unequal gains and economic uncertainty caused by the financial crash, the roller-coaster of the housing market, and the lingering effects of Covid-19. I want to fight for our Aurora small-businesses and make sure they have the resources they need to succeed. We have such a rich-diversity of businesses in Aurora, many of which are run by immigrant families and people of color. They need our support and help to stay competitive and expand. Fighting for workers is a key component of building a successful economy. Increased worker protections, making it easier to join a union, and providing low-income areas with intensive worker training programs will help build an economy that works for everyone.
My Plan:
Strengthen unions and make it easier for workers to form, and join, unions.
Create incentives for small business to hire more qualified workers.
Ensure equal pay for equal work and strengthen paid family leave programs.
Create and strengthen incentives for small business to operate in more diverse communities.
Increase the minimum wage to make sure every worker can afford to live in our community.
Invest in training and apprenticeship programs that give real-world skills to people so they can get good, middle-class jobs.
Invest in infrastructure projects that provide jobs and make Colorado more competitive in markets.
Protect our diverse small businesses by providing grants and loans to help them expand.
Make it easier for people to start a small business with programs to help navigate regulations and set entrepreneurs on a path to success.
Support our students
Our education system affects everyone in Colorado. My work on the Aurora School Board has always focused on how to improve the outcomes for our students, how to properly pay and train our teachers, and how to make sure parents know that their kids are getting a great education. Colorado chronically underfunds our education system. The constraints of TABOR on our state budget have short-changed our students and teachers for years. My wife is a 20-year APS teacher and all 3 of my children are in APS, so I see every day how our state policy impacts our district. We have to make education a priority, it is critical for the success of our students, it is critical for our economy, and it will always be a passion of mine at the legislature.
My Plan:
Increase equity between school districts to make sure a student’s zip code doesn’t change the quality of their education.
Prioritize school funding in the state budget.
Providing teachers with the resources they need for their classroom.
Increasing teacher pay to hire and retain amazing, passionate teachers in Colorado schools.
Expanding our workforce training and apprenticeship programs to give people every opportunity to gain the skills needed for a great job.
Protect our LGBTQ students from GOP attacks and make sure teachers can do their jobs to help make a safe and inclusive environment at school.
lower healthcare costs
Healthcare is a huge cost for many Colorado families. The price of drugs and routine procedures have soared and led Coloradans to delay necessary medical care due to price. While we have made huge steps since the adoption of Obamacare, we can still work to expand affordable and accessible health services to Coloradans. Abortion care in Colorado has withstood the nationwide attacks on reproductive rights. We must work to solidify these rights in Colorado so that everyone who needs one can get safe and affordable care. Colorado is a safe-haven for those coming from states that have restricted care, and we need to protect the privacy and safety of those who are forced to seek help here.
My Plan:
Prioritize hospital and insurance pricing transparency.
Create statewide requirements to cap the price of prescription medications.
Keep reproductive freedoms intact and funded for all persons in Colorado
Protect and expand our Colorado-Option plans on the ACA marketplace to drive down costs for individuals.
Increase access to mental health services, especially for low-income Coloradans and our black and Latino communities.
criminal justice reform
My entire legal career has been focused on fighting for the poor and those accused of crimes. Far too often the justice system is unbalanced for those who need the most help, and as a society we deserve and must demand equality in the justice system for all Coloradans. As a board member of the Colorado Criminal Defense Bar and the Arapahoe County Judicial Performance Commission I understand how systemic racism and mass incarceration destroy communities and how critical it is to get meaningful, evidence-based reforms. We can keep our community safe through an effective justice system that makes sure we are not locking up the future of our state, we just need the right voices in the State House to make it happen.
My Plan:
Expand our juvenile diversion programs to prevent kids from ever starting down a path where they interact with the justice system.
Evaluate our judicial retention standards to make sure they are aligned with the values and needs of Coloradans.
End the use of private prisons in Colorado.
Ensure community safety by expanding programs that help deal with addiction and mental health.
Increase the use of social workers and specialists who can respond to 911 calls that are non-violent.
Expand the use of drug courts to get people help with addiction rather than incarcerating them on a massive scale.
Work with law-enforcement to attack the supply of fentanyl and other drugs to stop the cycle of addiction.
End cooperation with ICE at all levels and work to remove the GEO facility here in Aurora.
stop gun violence
Aurora has seen the horrors of gun violence far too many times. Mass-shootings, domestic violence, drug-related shootings, all of them destroy our community and cause heartbreak and grief. We need strong action to make sure guns are kept out of the hands of criminals and that legal gun owners are handling firearms in a responsible way.
My Plan:
Create an assault weapon ban to keep weapons of war off Colorado streets.
Fund victim’s advocacy and support programs to provide help and options to victims of domestic violence before a situation turns deadly.
Expand Colorado’s Safe Storage laws to prevent tragic accidents involving our kids.
Keep guns out of the hands of criminals by enforcing higher security standards for gun stores.
Make schools safer through building security upgrades so we can keep children and teachers from enduring the trauma of active shooter drills in our places of learning.
defend voting rights
Colorado is a leader in voting rights across America. We have fair, safe and easy access to the ballot so our voices can be heard. This has been a long fight. Many of us remember ourselves or have heard stories from family members about the struggle for voting rights in the black and Latino community. We must honor the sacrifices of those who came before us and make sure our voice is heard in government. Every year Republicans in the legislature try to drag us back to the days of voter suppression and intimidation. In the legislature I will fight each and every effort to diminish our voices until everyone respects our right as a community to be heard.
My Plan:
Defeat every attempt at voter suppression and intimidation brought by the radicals in the GOP.
Increase protection and security at ballot boxes and dropoff locations, including preventing any armed intimidation.
Expand accessibility options for disabled Coloradans to make sure they can vote easily.
Increase the number of locations to drop off ballots to accommodate those without reliable transportation.
fight for veterans
I am extremely proud of my service as a 3rd-generation US Army soldier. I know firsthand the struggles that many veterans endure when they return from overseas or when they try to find a career in civilian life. We need to make sure that our veterans have the mental healthcare and support services they need to thrive and I will always work to make sure they have every opportunity to succeed in Colorado.
My Plan:
Provide veteran-owned small businesses grants and loans to give them opportunities to succeed.
Create job-training opportunities for veterans to get them ready for emerging fields in the civilian economy.
Fund mental health programs and provide training for providers so they are equipped to help veterans deal with the unique issues they face.