League of Women Voters of Blount County 2006 Candidate Survey
Name: Ted Boyatt Phone:
865-977-4523
Candidate for Blount
Please
write your answers in the space provided or use a separate sheet, and return
your survey in the enclosed stamped envelope. It is very important that you
write legibly. Please consider e-mailing your completed survey by
requesting an electronic survey at rderycke@bellsouth.net
The
League of Women Voters will acknowledge receipt of your completed survey.
I. Qualifications and experience:
- Please list your
diplomas and degrees, along with the areas of study.
I
have not earned any diplomas or degrees yet, but I have, to the best of my
abilities given the course selection at
- What relevant
experience do you have, including previous public offices held?
I
have never previously occupied a pubic office, yet do hold leadership positions
at my school as vice president of the class of 2007 and vice chairman at large
of the Young Republicans. In addition, I
consider myself to be academically adept enough to meet any challenges this
office would pose and even recently attended a leadership forum on law in
- Please list local
service and civic groups in which you have participated, including when
and for how long.
-
Meals on Wheels (summer of 2005)
-
Habitat for Humanity (July of 2003)
-
Empty Pantry Drive (December of 2004-2006)
- Please indicate any
business activities that could constitute a conflict of interest in the
event you are elected.
None
come to mind for my particular sought position
- Name three leadership skills that you
practice.
1. Responsibility
2.
Honesty
3. Integrity
F. What
unique qualities, besides the above leadership skills, do you have to
contribute to this office?
-
Promethean thought
-
Objectivity
-
Fresh perspective
II. Questions about your understanding of the office you
are seeking:
- What do you see as the
three most important functions of this office?
1. Act as the voice of and advocate the people
on a local level of government
2. Research and legislate local ordinances and
regulations with the blessing of the people
3. Regulate expenditures in a responsible manner
- What would you identify
as the three
most important issues facing
1. Stresses placed on the public infrastructure
due to rapid population growth
2. Overwhelming financial indebtedness
3. School overcrowding
- What can you do in this
office to impact these three most important issues?
-
Introduce an impact fee and zoning regulations
-
Abide by conservative spending principles that would result in both long and
short-term benefits
-
Construct a new high school and/or make adequate additions onto existing high
and middle schools.
III. Positions on specific issues of importance in
A.
Means for insuring the fair and
respectful treatment of all
I would maintain a constantly open mind and listen to all of my constituents, regardless of ethnicity,
religious orientation, or otherwise minority background.
B.
Promotion of greater diversity in our hired and appointed government
officials and employees
I would not support any legislation to force diversity in any appointed or hired office. This decision should be left up entirely to the discretion of the appointing government official(s) based on the genuine skill, ability, or dedication of all the possible appointees.
C.
Reconciling the potentially competing interests of growth/development
and adequate infrastructure in our county, including the application of the
Hunter Growth Strategy
Public infrastructure should not compete with the demands of growth, but rather grow proportionally with it. An impact fee, as proposed in the Hunter Interest Growth Strategy, should help fund this proportional increase in public infrastructure.
D.
The environmental impact of development and/or non-attainment status
with the EPA
I would advocate development concepts that would serve to minimize pollution, including “hamlet” or village-oriented designs that would, through shorter distances between residences and major local hubs like grocery stores, reduce air emissions.
E.
Identifying and resolving conflicts of interest of public officials
I propose to require candidates running for public office to reveal their tax returns to the public and list their close relatives.
F.
The consolidation of:
1. city and county schools
2. city and county government
3. or a feasibility study on consolidation
(1) The consolidation of city and county school systems is not even a feasible idea until the qualities of the school systems are able to reach an equilibrium of some degree.
(2) The consolidation of city and county governments would be rather imprudent and unfair to those who chose to reside in the city for their extra and somewhat superior public services at the cost of a city tax. This decision would also be fiscally injurious to county residents who may very well have to pay for increased services to be at par with those of the former municipalities. Ultimately, a referendum would most likely be the best course of action to settle this issue.
(3) I fully support any method to keep both government officials and the citizenry well-informed of the facts surrounding any issue, including a feasibility study on consolidation.
G.
Health care
Normally healthcare responsibilities fall under the jurisdiction of the state and federal governments as well as fiscally able individuals. However, I have a grandmother, Vera, whom I love very much, and I want to make sure the elderly and the financially incapable receive all the aid they can get. Money should not come between the sick and injured and proper medical assistance.
IV. Questions for
CANDIDATES FOR
- How can you communicate
effectively with your constituents?
Regular meetings and overt
publicizing of my commission email and telephone number would certainly help,
however the burden ultimately falls on the voters and their motivation to
respond to public questionnaires and regularly give their input on certain
issues
- Which recommendations
of the Hunter Growth Strategy do you support, and why?
Impact fee- Needed to help finance adequate public facilities for the rising population.
Open space requirements- requires developers to furnish residents with adequate natural, open, and “ green” spaces.
Zoning regulations- Zone certain lands for
future development and, as the Hunter Strategy suggests, establish densities (like 20-acre minimum
lot size) that would discourage construction
- How do you propose to
fund infrastructure growth and improvements?
- A wheel tax
- An adequate facilities
tax
- Other:
(1) A wheel tax for the sole sake of generating revenue would burden the population with more taxes, something that should only be considered in dire circumstances as a last resort.
(2) As I have previously stated, I would fully advocate such a fee.
(3) I
would like to explore the possibility of legalizing and taxing/licensing of the
sale of fireworks in
- How can the county
address the needs of the senior population?
Through appropriate and adequate housing provisions and healthcare.
- What is your position
on hiring a county law director vs. the current practice of retaining an
attorney for the Mayor?
I would like to see the continuation of the current practice with some slight modifications. This would include possibly employing the services of court clerks and county judges to, whenever possible, take the place of hiring an attorney, thus saving money.
- Concisely describe your
vision for
I desire to see
(These responses to Sections III
and IV were copied below each question above.)
III. Positions on specific
issues of importance in
A. I would maintain a constantly open mind and listen to all of my constituents, regardless of ethnicity, religious orientation, or otherwise minority background.
B. I would not support any legislation to force diversity in any appointed or hired office. This decision should be left up entirely to the discretion of the appointing government official(s) based on the genuine skill, ability, or dedication of all the possible appointees.
C. Public infrastructure should not compete with the demands of growth, but rather grow proportionally with it. An impact fee, as proposed in the Hunter Interest Growth Strategy, should help fund this proportional increase in public infrastructure.
D. I would advocate development concepts that would serve to minimize pollution, including “hamlet” or village-oriented designs that would, through shorter distances between residences and major local hubs like grocery stores, reduce air emissions.
E. I propose to require candidates running for public office to reveal their tax returns to the public and list their close relatives.
F. (1) The consolidation of city and county school systems is not even a feasible idea until the qualities of the school systems are able to reach an equilibrium of some degree.
(2) The consolidation of city and county governments would be rather imprudent and unfair to those who chose to reside in the city for their extra and somewhat superior public services at the cost of a city tax. This decision would also be fiscally injurious to county residents who may very well have to pay for increased services to be at par with those of the former municipalities. Ultimately, a referendum would most likely be the best course of action to settle this issue.
(3) I fully support any method to keep both government officials and the citizenry well-informed of the facts surrounding any issue, including a feasibility study on consolidation.
G. Normally healthcare responsibilities fall under the jurisdiction of the state and federal governments as well as fiscally able individuals. However, I have a grandmother, Vera, whom I love very much, and I want to make sure the elderly and the financially incapable receive all the aid they can get. Money should not come between the sick and injured and proper medical assistance.
IV. Questions for CANDIDATES FOR
A. Regular
meetings and overt publicizing of my commission email and telephone number
would certainly help, however the burden ultimately falls on the voters and
their motivation to respond to public questionnaires and regularly give their
input on certain issues.
B. Impact fee- Needed to help finance adequate public facilities for the rising population.
Open space requirements- requires developers to furnish residents with adequare natural, open, and “ green” spaces.
Zoning regulations- Zone certain lands for future development and, as the Hunter Strategy suggests, establish densities (like 20-acre minimum lot size) that would discourage construction.
C. (1) A wheel tax for the sole sake of generating revenue would burden the population with more taxes, something that should only be considered in dire circumstances as a last resort.
(2) As I have previously stated, I would fully advocate such a fee.
(3)
I would like to explore the possibility of legalizing and
taxing/licensing of the sale of fireworks in
D. Through appropriate and adequate housing provisions and healthcare.
E. I would like to see the continuation of the current practice with some slight modifications. This would include possibly employing the services of court clerks and county judges to, whenever possible, take the place of hiring an attorney, thus saving money.
F. I
desire to see