Hello, I’m Elizabeth Scott and I’m running for State Representative, for the 21st Legislative District which includes all of Mukilteo, and parts of Edmonds, Lynnwood, Mountlake Terrace and south Everett, roughly from I-5 to the water, and from the Edmonds ferry to the northern edge of Mukilteo.
These are exciting times. Citizens are becoming informed and involved, because they see that government spending is unsustainable. Tax Freedom Day this year came on August 17, a full month later than last year; this is the day when you got to start earning money for your budget, not the government’s. I am running because I want to be part of the solution: smaller government will solve our state’s problems with the economy, education, and health care. My District is in Snohomish County, where 14% of the jobs and 22% of the salary are directly related to Boeing, and 2.5 jobs are lost for every Boeing job lost; you would think that the State Legislature would be scrambling to find ways to make Washington a good home for Boeing, but Chief Executive magazine ranked us the 40th-best state for business, due to our high taxes. I will fight for lower taxes, starting with restructuring the B&O tax and L&I. I’ll propose a Blue Ribbon Commission of business leaders to recommend how we can simplify regulation and red tape. Texas, due to their lower taxes, created more jobs in 2008 than the other 49 states combined. Washington can thrive again with smaller government, which history proves will create jobs and bring in higher tax revenue.
Speaking of the future, did you know that the high school graduation rate in Snohomish County is 70.9%, according to the Office of the Superintendent of Public Instruction? Worse, many of those who graduate and go on to community college find that they must take remedial math or English classes, or both. So the taxpayers are paying for it twice. Our state constitution says education is of ‘paramount’ importance, but after several decades of good intentions but broken promises, it’s clear that government’s incessant meddling isn’t working. This is because government works best when it’s closest to the people it represents. I will fight to give principals more freedom to make personnel decisions and to control their budgets and curriculum. Parents know what they want: they want their kids to learn reading, writing, and math, but this Legislature is failing to help kids learn these basics and instead brings up more extras for schools to be burdened with, without funding for the new requirements. I have a Master’s Degree in Teaching English as Second Language; I taught college ESL for ten years in China, the Middle East, and three states, including at Edmonds Community College and three others in this area. I know what works in diverse classrooms; I sometimes had over a dozen languages represented in one class. Our teachers and principals want to see our students succeed. Let’s give them the freedom to use their creativity to make that happen.
We also need patient-centered health care reform that lowers costs and increases privacy. We should attach health care to the person, not the job, because many people are falling through the cracks when between jobs or starting a new one; a combination of health savings accounts and catastrophic insurance coverage would facilitate this change. We can lower costs by allowing purchase of health care across state lines, greatly increasing competition; by a lawsuit abuse reform plan which would lower costs for doctors so they can charge less; and by allowing different levels of coverage, as we have with car insurance, and smorgasbord plans so people can choose what they want covered. For five years, I worked in countries that had government-run medicine and I do not want that experience again. I will fight to increase health care options, because I believe that YOU are the best judge of what you need, and government has no business standing between you and your doctor.
I have a record of teaching people how to fish, instead of handing them a fish. We’ve heard enough of these career politicians’ empty promises. Only 23% of our elected representatives in Olympia have even held a job that wasn’t funded by taxpayers, but I’ve worked long hours in jobs ranging from farming, to fast food, to childcare, to researcher, so I know that money doesn’t grow on trees or in taxpayers’ pockets. It’s time for a return to responsible spending, lower taxes, individual responsibility, and a prosperous America. Our state constitution says ‘all political power is inherent in the people.’ We the People demand that government be returned to us.
I’m Elizabeth Scott and I’m asking you to hire me to represent you in Olympia. I'll bring your kind of common sense.
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