Education:
Education must be fully funded. The Arizona constitution states:
"The Legislature shall enact such laws as shall provide for the establishment and maintenance of a general and uniform public school system... the legislature shall make such appropriations, to be met by taxation, as shall insure the proper maintenance of all state educational institutions, and shall make such special appropriations as shall provide for their development and improvement.”

Tuition Tax Credits:
We must stop the flow of taxpayer dollars to private schools. If people want to give money to private schools, that is their choice. Current law takes that choice away and makes private school contributions compulsory for all Arizona taxpayers through corporate tax credits to private schools.

The spirit of the law is that poor children be able to go to private schools. In reality, the system is being gamed by wealthy families.

Charter Schools:
Charter schools must be held to the same level of accountability as traditional public schools. There is little accountability that their curricula are effective or that they are fulfilling their charters.

Charter schools were created in reaction to the narrow options available in our public schools. We must give our public schools the flexibility and innovation in their curricula to render the issue of charter schools moot.

Public schools are held to strict accountability. Let's work with the Superintendent of Public Instruction to create a public school system that is both flexible and accountable.

Health Care:
Health care is a fundamental human right that should never become a commercial commodity. Many current or former residents of societies which have universal health care state how simple it is to see a doctor and how foreign it feels to be filling out forms to get medical care.

Environment:
The Earth is the only home that we have. Air and water are our birthrights as creatures of the Earth. They must not be sold to the highest bidder.

Arizona is rich with environmental heritage. I am committed that not only are beautiful spaces preserved, but that we are also blessed with open space as part of our daily lives. We must encourage lifestyles and economies that tread lightly on our world.

Sustainability:
In Arizona's economy, sustainability seems to be defined as "lasting long enough so that my kids won't see us run out of water." Arizona's economy is built solidly on the consumption of a resource with a predictable supply limit. The sustainable carrying capacity of Arizona's water has been exceeded. State government is heavily influenced by industries intent on making money on the residual growth available in the consumption period remaining.

The evidence is mounting that Arizona will be most severely affected by climate change. Our state legislature is doing nothing to look after the impact on Arizona citizens of this impending disaster.

Arizona's Economy:
Arizona's economy is a train headed for a cliff. That cliff is a blend of climate change, water limits and peak oil. There is absolutely nothing sustainable about growth in Arizona. The longer we avoid acknowledging our limits to growth, the more disastrous the result. Impact fees cannot fully compensate our citizens for the loss of quality of life resulting from horrific traffic, overtaxed infrastructure, depleted air quality and water availability.

I will support a technology-based economy. This will require a top notch university system and a tax system favorable to investments in solar technology and applications.

State Budget:
Arizona's per capita tax burden has been declining since 1990. We must revamp our tax structure to diversify our revenue sources and eliminate our dependence on the volatile and regressive sales tax.