Alabama House District 37 is an open seat this year because Rep. Bob Fincher is retiring. The district covers Randolph County, most of Chambers County and part of Lee County, including much of Opelika and a small part of Auburn. Democrat Michelle French answered Opelika Daily News' questions. Republican Jeff Monroe did not respond.
The questions:
- What do you feel are the top three concerns of the citizens of House District 37?
- How will you address them?
Michelle French (D)
Answers received Oct. 7.
Red and Blue aren’t working for you—Let’s go purple!
Economic Stability, Public Education and Healthcare overlap in so many ways. In District 37 Public Education and Healthcare are the two largest local employers. They offer a level of economic stability and are the first two indicators to potential industry of the viability of locating in our small towns.
Affordability/Economic Stability
Lower Utility Bills—water and power are necessities. Air conditioning is no longer a luxury. Alabamians are paying some of the highest rates on utilities in the country. We need transparency in rate setting from companies making multibillion dollar profits when our citizens are suffering. Rates should be approved by PSC and should be approved by the legislature. Price gouging should be made illegal, rate setting should be transparent, and Alabamians should be allowed to pursue alternate energy sources without penalties.
Alabamians should NEVER be forced to foot the bill for data centers.
The Internet is necessary for schoolwork and business. The telecom companies who took federal money to provide rural internet should not be allowed to gouge customers—if they can’t provide service at an affordable rate, then it should become a public utility.
The legislature should establish a liveable minimum wage! If your business model is dependent on your employees getting SNAP and Medicaid, then you are bad at business.
Allow tax breaks to companies who provide quality childcare for their workers. This allows parents back into the workforce. Childcare should not cost more than salaries. Parents who are accessible in case of a child emergency are more confident workers.
Change the tax system to one that is fair to our working and middle class families and not in favor of the already high-earners. By allowing taxpayers at the higher end of the spectrum to pay a lower percentage we are unable to generate enough revenue for public safety, roads, bridges and schools.
Support small businesses by investing in the Small Business Development entities. Establish programs that give entrepreneurs a head start and encourage incubation in areas that are not considered outside large cities. The reality is that good job growth comes from small businesses, not tax abatements for large plants who come in and never pay their fair share. Small businesses should be offered tax advantages to grow and invest.
Public Investment allows talent to stay in Alabama and contribute to their home communities if they choose, rather than being forced to leave the state for prosperous, fulfilling jobs.
Strengthen Public Education and make it affordable from Pre-K through college.
Public schools need more investment—especially those in economically strapped communities. They should not have to have fundraisers for basic supplies such as toilet paper.
Public dollars belong in public schools. The CHOOSE Act is a fiscally irresponsible government handout to parents who can already afford private schools and to homeschoolers who are not held to the accountability standards of public schools.
Alabama’s Pre-K is a proven success and should be available to every public school.
Higher education and technical schools should be accessible and affordable. Even our community colleges and trade school programs are required to go into trades and are unaffordable.
Teachers should be paid according to their education and experience as professionals. Their salary should be tied to the cost of living. Tier 1 Retirement should be restored.
All of this could be accomplished if we established a clean lottery bill tied to education. Our neighbors in Georgia have successfully funded schools and The Hope college scholarships for nearly 40 years.
Healthcare
Our rural hospitals are in imminent danger. 12 closed since 2011 and nearly 20 are in imminent danger. This has also put stress on our larger hospitals in cities. Both Federal and State lawmakers must work together to solve multiple problems starting with forcing reimbursement rates to be in line with other states instead of the lowest rates.
Alabama is the most dangerous state of the Union to be pregnant. Establish a way for healthcare providers to locate in rural communities, with obstetric services. Pregnancy should not be a death sentence, so laws should be clarified so that doctors will provide the care that has been standard for many decades. If a doctor doesn’t treat a woman with a miscarriage in a timely manner, that doctor should face a review and consequences. Legislation should clearly demand standards of care.
Healthy Moms equal healthy families.
All Alabamians deserve access to affordable mental health services. We need to make this investment in crisis centers for in-patient and out-patient care. Technology has made it possible to reach life-saving care.
Mental health services contribute to better physical health, addiction treatment and prevention. Prisons should not be the only place people can get treatment—treatment should be preventative.
Jeff Monroe (R)
Monroe did not respond to our emailed questions by the deadline.
How we did this: On Oct. 1, Opelika Daily News emailed the same two questions to both candidates in each contested state legislative race on Lee County ballots, with a deadline of Wednesday, Oct. 7. We accepted answers through that evening. Answers appear as written; we corrected obvious spelling errors only and did not edit for length, grammar or content. Statements are the candidates’ own. Read more about our process and the full schedule.
