Policy for the People
I'm not chasing a title. I'm running because Whatcom County families deserve a representative who stays close to the ground, not one who disappears into Olympia. This platform covers what actually shapes daily life here: the cost of living, safer neighborhoods, and a government that answers to the people who elected it.
More Affordable Living
My platform on affordability rests on three priorities: streamlining regulatory processes, modernizing land-use policy, and rebalancing our state tax structure to lower the cost of living for working families.
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Slow, costly permitting is a primary driver of escalating housing prices, so I'll push to use technology that speeds up plan reviews. This cuts holding costs for builders and passes those savings directly to homebuyers. I'll also work to reassess energy efficiency mandates that place unrealistic financial burdens on homeowners. And I support updating the Growth Management Act so municipal boundaries can expand based on actual community growth, not rigid, multi-decade schedules.
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Excessive taxation, meanwhile, is holding back local business expansion and hiring. We must fund essential services responsibly while giving working families the financial flexibility they need to thrive.
Building Safer Communities
As a former detective with the Whatcom County Sheriff’s Office and a National Guard soldier, I’ve seen people facing some of the most difficult circumstances imaginable, both here at home and overseas.
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When I recently visited a homeless encampment near Bellingham, I saw firsthand how dangerous these situations can become—for the people living there and for the surrounding community.
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We need an approach that combines compassion with accountability. That means helping people access shelter, treatment, and other services while also setting clear expectations for those who enter those programs. For minor offenses, community service and other meaningful consequences can provide accountability without simply cycling people through the system.
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Public safety and compassion are not competing ideas. We can care for people in crisis while still expecting accountability and working to make our communities safer.
Holding Government Accountable
When I talk about government accountability, I start with the budget.
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Taxpayers deserve to know where their money is going, what it is funding, and whether those programs are actually delivering results. When spending is scattered across countless programs with little transparency, it becomes harder for the public to hold government accountable.
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But accountability is about more than dollars. It also means staying accessible to the people you represent.
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I won’t measure my time in Olympia by how many bills have my name on them. I’ll measure it by whether the people of this district can still reach me, get a straight answer, and know where I stand on my last day in office just as clearly as they could on my first.