PRIORITIES

Accessible, affordable healthcare needs to be available to every Texan.  The current leadership tells us this is impossible - they are wrong. But it will take robust structural change in the form of Medicaid expansion and investment in our healthcare infrastructure to make sure our community members get the care they need.  I know first hand that this is literally an issue of life or death.

High quality public education is one of the most noble endeavors of a democratic society.  How do we best support schools and educators?  By funding education in a way that supports all public schools.  Recapture is a bad deal. It misplaces the burden of cost on well funded school districts instead of on the state.  And school vouchers - these are antithetical to democracy.  Who suffers the most are  the children of Texas.  It’s not right.

When working as a nurse in Chicago, I was a member of National Nurses United.  My contract of employment, heavily influenced by the union, ensured that I was able to provide high-quality nursing care to patients while receiving fair pay and excellent tuition reimbursement for my doctoral education.  Unions are in place for a reason. 

Even with a homestead exemption, many Austinites (including me and my husband) run the risk of eventually being taxed out of our homes.  And for those who rent, increasing taxes are even more of a burden, as the cost of increasing property tax ultimately drives up the cost of rent.  Hard working Texans need relief.  We need to re-route the multi-million dollar tax breaks allotted to the ultra wealthy and to corporations and use this money to provide tax relief to Austinites and other communities across the state. 

The current ban on abortion has already led to the death of Texas women.  This will not stop so long as reproductive healthcare is controlled by the government.  Any woman who has to make a decision regarding termination of a pregnancy will get nothing but compassion from me.  Beyond my compassion, her decision is absolutely none of my business, and certainly no business of the government.

The state needs to make energy affordable while also protecting our natural resources and promoting climate justice.  This will require significant investment in renewable energy, water conservation, and responsible development with a realistic/energy agnostic approach that  shores up existing oil and natural gas resources.