Opinion | House District 13 candidate Julie McCluskie: Cost of living, education and water top my priorities for office
House District 13 candidate
Occupation: State Representative for House District 13
Years in district: Twenty-three
Family: My husband, Jamie, and two children, Ian and Cait
Civic involvement: Summit Foundation board member; previous service includes board member for Advocates for Victims of Assault, advisory board member for Building Hope Summit County, key leader on Communities that Care, past president and volunteer of Summit Middle School PTSA, High Country Soccer Association board
Serving as the first woman from the Western Slope as Speaker of the House and representing the rural and mountain communities of House District 13 has been a tremendous privilege and honor.
In my six years under the gold dome, I have worked with Democrats and Republicans alike to tackle the challenges we face and bring forward lasting policy solutions. Our state is stronger when we collaborate and channel the Colorado spirit of working together to achieve lasting policy results.
Priority No. 1: Cost of living
My top priority as state representative continues to be helping the hardworking people of this state realize their own Colorado dream. This starts by addressing the challenges we see with the high cost of living when it comes to housing, health car, and child care. Over the past few years, the General Assembly has invested hundreds of millions of dollars in affordable housing and we are finally starting to see those investments at work in numerous housing projects across the state, including here in the High Country. I led the charge for reinsurance, supported incentives to attract more rural health care workers, and invested millions in rural hospitals and providers. I carried the bill that led to Proposition EE and has brought us universal preschool for all 4 year olds in the state.
While we are making progress on affordability, there is more work to be done. This next session, I’ll be focused on reforming housing construction defects laws and continuing to address the high cost of health care and prescription drugs by taking a closer look at what drives these costs.
Priority No. 2: Education
Public education is the policy area nearest and dearest to my heart. My proudest moments of this past session came when the legislature eliminated the budget stabilization factor, fulfilling the state’s commitment to funding public schools, and when I passed a modernized, student-centered school finance formula that finally provides rural schools with their fair share of the pie. For too long, educators have not been provided with a living wage in our high cost mountain and rural communities. While we have made significant progress on this front, I look forward to receiving the results of the public school adequacy study commissioned by the public school finance task force and engaging in a long-term funding strategy for public education in our state.
Higher education and workforce development also deserve mention as areas where we have made tremendous investments to keep student tuition low, and expand apprenticeship and internship opportunities with business and industry groups through regional talent collaboratives. In the next two years, we will take up a review of the higher education funding formula. Much like my work in public school finance, I will work to ensure we drive resources to college students most in need and be sure rural schools get their fair share.
Priority No. 3: Water
Finally, as speaker of the house, I have the tremendous opportunity to raise the critical challenges facing our magnificent mountain environments, and our most precious natural resource — water. From the Colorado River Drought Task Force to a “first-in-the-nation” policy response to water quality permitting for dredge and fill activities, water is a top priority in my agenda. I also carried Proposition JJ, appearing before voters this election, which allows us to keep the tax revenue from sports betting and invest more money in Colorado’s Water Plan. Our rivers and waterways embody the spirit and romance of the West, and are the source of water for millions of Americans. I will continue to champion environmental policies that protect and conserve our water resources, promote forest health and repair deteriorating and damaged watersheds.
In 2019, I was hired by voters to serve their interests, address their concerns, and help them achieve their goals. We’ve made progress, but there is more work to be done. It is my Colorado Dream to continue my role in public service by supporting my neighbors and the people across the communities of House District 13. Please vote for me, Julie McCluskie, this Nov. 5th. Thank you.
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