Andrew Friedson - Candidate, County Council, District 1

The Activist - Montgomery County, Maryland & Beyond

BIO

• Grew up / educated in Montgomery County
• Worked for State Comptroller / Scrutinized Contracts
• Advised on State Pension System
• On Board for Maryland College Savings System

ON STATE OF MONTGOMERY COUNTY / STRUCTURAL ECONOMIC ISSUES

• Revenues growing more slowly despite increased taxes
• Federal Government Not Growing As Before
• Workforce is Aging
• Earners to Non-Earners is Out of Whack
• Only way out: lift up wages / create jobs
• 40% of Children Eligible for Free and Reduced Meals
• More people are leaving office space than are entering office space

NEED A HIGHER TAX BASE (It has been shrinking)

• County has been raising taxes to compensate for this

HOW DO WE GROWN THE ECONOMY?

• Education - people want to live where good schools are
• Transportation
• Economic Development (can’t do the above without growing the tax base)

BUDGET PROCESS NEEDS IMPROVEMENT

• Optimized for innovation / adaptation
• Must use revenue for what it was earmarked

EDUCATION

• Discrepancy in Results
• Overcrowding Issues
• Many Schools are Attractive / Others Aren’t - Mismatch in Attraction to Families
• Highest costs of child care in the US
• DC has more accessible child care
• Too focused on college readiness / need career readiness as well

ON FINANCING THE CAMPAIGN

• On doing traditional campaign financing (not taking public financing)
• On D1 Neighbors Report regarding donations
• Addressing D1 Neighbors Report Showing Large Corporate / Real Estate Donations

ON THE THESIS THAT INFRASTRUCTURE HASN’T KEPT UP WITH DEVELOPMENT

BUDGET PROCESS

• Change budget reconciliation process
• 1 year budget doesn’t work
• Use a value proposition to make sure that investments are yielding results
• Evaluate impact on budget related to small business / non-profits

COUNTY SHOULD GET OUT OF THE ALCOHOL BUSINESS

• Holding back economic development / revenue
• Spending on alcohol is 41% below state average
• Wholesale service for restaurants is a disaster
• Restaurants in MoCo Can’t Complete Due to Lack of Alcohol Services
• Must take care of workers in alcohol business to transition to something else

MODERNIZE / IMPROVE GOVERNMENT

• Make permit obtainment easier
• Make it easier to interact with government

COUNTY COUNCIL’s MAJOR RESPONSIBILITIES

• Oversight
• Pass a Budget

SHOULD THE COUNTY LOWER THE RESERVE FUND PERCENTAGE

ON DEMOCRATIZING MUNICIPAL BONDS