Issues

What are Arizona’s biggest challenges, and how will Eric help promote solutions?

1.  Attracting Quality Jobs
We must recognize Arizona’s critical needs, especially in infrastructure and education, and invest our resources in a way that will improve our long-term growth. We must:

• Diversify our economy; encourage high- tech industries to develop in Arizona;
• Strengthen our schools;
• Train workers;
• Ensure that our universities remain world-class centers for research that also offer a solid education for every Arizona child; and
• Work to attract high-tech businesses, by:
  o  supporting Science Foundation Arizona;
  o  offering research and development tax incentives; and
  o  investing in alternative forms of energy.

2.  Protecting Education
Strong public schools are the foundation for Arizona’s future. As a school board member for the past eight years, I see how many of our critical education needs are unmet. Educators face tough choices in the classroom. We must:

• Be smart about our investments in education;
• Adequately fund our education system to prepare all our students for the 21st century;
• Keep dollars in the classroom;
• Reduce class sizes;
• Make college affordable to every Arizona family; and
• Increase our number of college graduates.

3.  Addressing Immigration Reform
We need sensible immigration reform that solves the real problems facing our state. We must:

• Increase border security to stop human smugglers, drug and gun traffickers, and criminal cartels from entering our country;
• Fix our flawed visa system so that foreign citizens return to their country of origin immediately when their visas expire; and
•  Develop a mechanism for dealing with the 12 million people who are already here illegally without overburdening our existing judicial system or draining resources from fighting more-serious criminals.

I promise to work toward real solutions
that will make our state safe
and our economy strong.”

 

Eric at work on the Scottsdale
Unified School District Governing Board