Our businesses have been struggling.  Investors are holding back, waiting to see how future regulations and tax policies will affect business.  Sometimes, over-regulation and taxes are creating barriers to business.  A friend of mine‘s business has had a rough couple of years and has mill levy tax lien on some equipment.  He wants to pay the tax but is not allowed to sell the equipment to pay the lien.  This regulation is self-defeating for both the government and the business owner.  Let’s put some sense into our regulations.

Our government has made many decisions intended to improve our energy, economy and the environment, but has done so without full understanding of the long-term implications of their actions.  For example, a car fueled with corn based ethanol uses about 14 gallons of water to travel 1 mile (Schneider, 2010).  This is a poor use of our precious water.  Ethanol also produces formaldehyde when burned as fuel, poisoning our environment. Funding unproven technologies on a large scale will hurt future innovation and potentially make the problem that was to be solved, worse.  Energy policy needs to be made with a full understanding of its effect on our environment and economy.

Our teachers are spending many hours in the classroom, teaching students to take state mandated tests.  As a state senator, I will work my hardest to remove excess testing in our K-12 schools.  We are spending millions of dollars on testing that is not meaningful. My son, when he was in 3^rd grade, took 3 tests; the DRA, MAPS and the CSAP.  The results of these tests were: below average, proficient, and advanced.  What does this mean?  The answer is “not much!”  We are over-testing our children and getting mixed results.  The teachers are spending too much time teaching to the tests, instead of being able to tailor their lessons to their individual class needs.  Our teachers and our parents know our children’s needs, strengths and weaknesses. Empower them.