Building opportunities means building economic opportunities for our people to prosper. In the General Assembly, I have been laser-focused on drafting legislation that creates pro-business environments and makes the 70th District a more attractive place to open a business. That is why I filed legislation such as HB 333 to create tax incentives for companies to relocate to our rural communities, creating jobs, and stimulating our economy. I have also co-sponsored legislation to implement tax reform in Kentucky. Kentucky’s tax code is grievously broken. We need a tax code that
allows Kentuckians to keep more of our hard-earned money, not penalizing us for our hard work!

Building opportunities also means building educational opportunities for our children to learn and grow. We need a comprehensive approach to our kids’ education, one that
provides adequate resources for our elementary and secondary students, but also expands post-secondary potential – including trade skills. I have filed HB 234, which would allow our kids to use their hard-earned KEES scholarships at trade schools. Traditional colleges and universities are not the only paths to success; we must break down the stigma of trade school education and make it easier for our kids to succeed in these highly lucrative fields. I have also filed HB 452, making traditional college education more affordable for our children by freezing tuition rates for students in our taxpayer-funded universities. For too long publicly-funded universities have been able to raise tuition rates with near-impunity (over 105% since 2005) while increasing their administrators’ salaries – HB 452 holds them
accountable.

Building opportunities also means building the infrastructure needed to accommodate growth. The 70th District needs sufficient resources to maintain and build up our roads, bridges, and other forms of traditional infrastructure.

I was proud to co-sponsor HB 1, the House
Budget Proposal, which provided record funding for infrastructure and rural development projects.

Infrastructural improvement also means the development of broadband internet access. Businesses won’t locate in our region if they don’t have access to the internet. Our students will be put at a learning disadvantage if they don’t have access to the internet. I have filed legislation to invest in broadband expansion and continue to work closely with the private sector to build public-private partnerships with internet service providers to build broadband infrastructure in rural communities.