Nevada League of Women Voters hosts second election forum in Brewery Arts Center in Carson City

League of Women Voters of Northern Nevada, AAUW Capital (NV) Branch and Sierra Nevada Forums presented the second of four election forums of 2022 on Friday, Oct. 10 located at the Brewery Arts Center in Carson City.

The Carson City School District Trustees from District 1 who participated in the forum included non-partisan candidate Maria "Lupe" Ramirez running against non-partisan candidate, Jason Stinson. The Carson City School District Trustees from District 6 who participated in the forum included non-partisan candidate Molly Walt. Non-partisan candidate, Shanna Cobb-Adams was invited but did not respond.

The Carson City Board of Supervisors from Ward 1 who participated in the forum included non-partisan candidate Wade Bradshaw running against non-partisan candidate Stacey Giomi. The Carson City Board of Supervisors from Ward 3 who participated in the forum included non-partisan candidate Curtis Horton running against non-partisan candidate James Wells.

The moderator for this forum was Lea Case.

In each of the different parts of the forums, they are given an opening statement, asked questions and allowed a rebuttal. Some of the questions in all of the forums are questions from the audience. Below are the summarized responses of each candidate.

The Carson City School District Trustees

The forum between candidates from District 1, Ramirez and Stinson and candidate from District 6, Walt began with their opening statements. It was agreed to let Walt give her opening statement first.

• Opening Statements:

In his statement, Stinson discussed that he thinks he can make a change in the school and he can help the district get on a better track. He thinks the question on the ballot could lead the district into dangerous territory. This is the starting point where he can start to make a difference.

In Ramirez's statement, she explains that she currently holds the position for Secretary position for the Trustees. She's running for re-election because she feels more confident contributing to discussions of academic development and parent-inclusion.

In Walt's opening statement, she discussed that she wants to stay involved in the community and the schools, which is where she believes she can bring the voice of community parents into the board of trustees.

Here are the questions and summarized responses of each of the candidate, including rebuttals:

• Question 1: After a period of disrupted in-class learning due to the pandemic, how should the school district address the declines in student academic performance?

Ramirez: The district is already addressing that. She said the schools were tasked to come up with an intervention program to help improve students' performances.

Walt: The district is addressing it in different means, as Ramirez mentioned. There is after-school tutoring. Attendance is a big issue and they are trying to get the students back in school. She said at one point they lost truancy officers and she'd love to get them back, depending on budgets.

Stinson He believes the decline is due to COVID-19 and parents are pulling students out of school because of poor curriculum, poor leadership and loss of budgets. He wants to see the truancy officers too, but the federal government is preventing the budget from coming in. Parents also need to be held accountable and step up and do their part.

Ramirez's rebuttal: She said the board has a lot of support from the Sheriff's office, but they need to make sure the parents are behind this.

• Question 2: What measures would you implement to recruit, train and retain a skilled teaching workforce?

Walt: The first step is retention. She said the goal is to support the administrators. She said Carson City also needs to work on boosting administrator morale and keep the teacher supported. She also emphasized that looking at recruitment is important which means keeping the pay equitable nationwide.

Stinson: He said they need to focus on teacher retention first and morale, especially with recent teacher assaults that they cannot do anything about. He said Carson City needs to support their teachers and offer a better retention package for higher pay and a better work environment. He said they're also overburdened with extra work from "red tape."

Ramirez: Teachers recommended reaching out to them so board members can get their input. She said including teachers in the conversation will make them feel important and show their voice matters.

• Question 3: What do you perceive as the greatest fiscal challenge for the Carson City School District and what specific actions would you take to address it?

Stinson: He said the legislation moved the budget to be divided in Carson City however they choose which took away a lot of the school budget. He said the legislators are solely to blame and things are only going to get worse from here. He said he would make the community more aware to vote for change and get better representatives.

Ramirez: The funding formula has affected Carson City tremendously, she said. They haven't been able to hire more people to help in classrooms, so she encourages communities to go talk to legislators about this problem.

Walt: She said the formula isn't working and she doesn't think it's working for any district in Nevada. She thinks as members of the board they can be more vocal in the legislation coming up. If there is no change in the formula, there will be no change. The goal for her is to get the community to show the education system more pleasantly to attract more teachers.

Stinson's rebuttal: He agreed with a lot of what the candidates said.

• Question 4: What actions and resources do you believe are necessary to protect our students and teachers from an active shooter?

Ramirez: She said that the district has a strong relationship with the Sheriff's Office and that their campus is safe for employees and students.

Walt: It's unfortunate that students are exposed to this. However, she thinks training for employees and students are important and she has been impressed with the security measures the district implemented.

Stinson: He said he's not very pleased with what the school district is doing. The shooters are usually bullied kids on medication that creates suicidal thoughts and emotions, where they open fire on schools that they know the layout of. He believes the classroom and back doors are not secured. He also wants to allow some teachers have a concealed carry that only few people on campus know about.

Ramirez's rebuttal: She said her biggest concern is giving teacher's additional responsibilities since they already have a lot on their plate.

• Question 5: Under what circumstances do you believe it is appropriate to ban books or curriculum content?

Walt: She says she doesn't think there are any circumstances. She said the goal is to learn from history and she doesn't think she would ban any.

Stinson: He said he doesn't think there should be any reason to ban books. However, he said there could be restrictions or disclaimers on books, but he doesn't think any books should be banned. The most controversial books are the ones that could be the most educational, according to Stinson.

Ramirez: She agrees. She thinks books are instrumental to the education of children. Getting rid of books would be a loss in the students' education process.

Stinson's rebuttal: He agrees, he thinks it's a dangerous road we should keep away from.

• Question 6: [From the audience] How do you feel about school choice?

Stinson: He fully supports school choice and vouchers because it forces public schools to compete just like actual businesses. If they enact it, it makes schools have to compete for quality and for price. He also thinks they should include religious and private schools in this type of method.

Ramirez: She believes it is a family decision. She is happy with the education her daughter received for free public education and she said she would never change that. Essentially, in her mind it is a parent's decision

Walt: Before doing the school choice, the budget formula needs to change, according to Walt. In Carson specifically though, her question is how would transportation work for school choice, because it could pose a problem for the school district budget if it is their responsibility. However, she agrees it is a family's choice.

Stinson's rebuttal: He tells Walt that it is not the school's responsibility to transfer the student's it is the parents'.

• Question 7: [From the audience] Do you think school district trustees should monitor classes?

Ramirez: No. Their only employee is the superintendent and that is their responsibility is to monitor and they are doing a good job.

Walt: She agrees with Ramirez. The school board is responsible for hiring the superintendent to do that, so she hopes they are hiring a good person for the job. She believes it respects the chain of command.

Stinson: He believes it is not their job, but they could go into classrooms that receive a lot of complaints so they can see what's really going on for themselves.

Ramirez's rebuttal: She believes they are all in agreement.

• Question 8: [From the audience] What are you going to do about bullying and safety?

Walt: The goal for her is to give the administrators the tools that they need to combat the problem. She said they need to work on implementing policies and support the administrators.

Stinson: He said he wants to see actual action with bullying. He reported issues with his daughters and they brush off the reports. He would like to see administrators held accountable for lack of action on their part and see students held accountable for bullying, like doing community service. He said he would also like to see parental accountability since the problem starts at home.

Ramirez: As far as bullying, she said the administration is on it and they address the matter as soon as they hear about it based on their system in place. She said parents are involved in the conversation and students are discipline with bullying. She also said it's important to disseminate the information about safety to the parents so they know what measures are being taken place.

Stinson's rebuttal: School safety is not taking seriously enough, Stinson said. He thinks bullying is also not being taken seriously enough, as seen with the boy who recently brought a gun on campus.

• Question 9: [From the audience] Who is or should be responsible for what is taught to the public school students and how it is taught?

Stinson: He explained he believes the parents and students should be responsible first. After that, he said the final curriculum should be approved by the district, administrators and the board next.

Ramirez: The curriculum in place is mandated by the Nevada Department of Education. She said if parents have concerns, she will invite them to talk to the administrators, but they are following what is demanded by them.

Walt: She believes state legislators are creating the law and it won't always be perfect for every child. She had curriculum committees during her time as an educator, which she said was effective for her. They go through different types of curriculums and decide what curriculum the school district should adopt. She said starting with the teachers is a better idea and does not agree that it should be set by the legislators.

Stinson's rebuttal: He agrees with Walt and that the problem is that Nevada legislators have the deciding power.

• Question 10: [From the audience] What actions should be taken in school to prevent discrimination against minority students?

Ramirez: To her knowledge, she believes there are no discrimination. She said her educators are respectful to one another and she believes they are teaching the students the same.

Walt: She agrees with Ramirez. She said from her experience of talking to parents about possible discrimination, none have told her about about any issues of discrimination.

Stinson He said he remembers an entire tribe of Native Americans coming to a school board meeting about their children getting bullied. One boy he reports was getting his hair pulled. However, no action was taken and this wasn't the first time this happened. He said he would make sure the proper people were held accountable for not acting on the issues.

Ramirez She said that the situation was addressed in the proper manner. She explained that there are certain restrictions they must follow in issues like that.

• Closing Statements:

In Walt’s closing statement, she discussed that she can represent various voices in the community and with her activity in the community, she can be an advocate for the community's youth.

In Stinson's closing statement, he explained that he will implement everything he wants even if he has to go "kicking and screaming" and agrees that both he and Candidate Ramirez just want to bring about change for the community.

In Ramirez's closing statement, she wants to use her knowledge and experience to the foundation of their future leaders. She believes in supporting every child and that every student has the opportunity to reach their highest potential and she wants to support these efforts.

The Carson City Board of Supervisors

The forum between candidates from Ward 1, Bradshaw and Giomi and candidates from Ward 3, Horton and Wells began with their opening statements. It was agreed to let Bradshaw give his opening statement first.

Carson City Ballot Question: Shall Carson City continue to collect an existing excise tax of five cents ($0.05) per gallon on diesel fuel sold in Carson City, with the revenue generate from the excise tax to be used for the sole purpose of constructing, maintaining and repairing public highways, roads, streets and alleys located in Carson City?

• Opening Statements:

In Bradshaw's opening statement, he said he has experience from when he worked for the fiscal agent for the State of Nevada Medicaid as the electronic claims coordinator. He believes he is the perfect choice to assess effective and secure online platforms utilized by local governments based on his background in informational technology. People want to see solutions to their concerns, so he wants to tackle the tough issues they want fixed.

In Giomi's opening statement, he reiterates he's been a Ward supervisor for nearly four years. He said he feels a deep connection to the citizens here and he wants to serve them to the best of his ability. He said he will continue to do this if re-elected.

In Horton's opening statement, he has a lot of experience dealing with problems and issues throughout the community and he spent a lot of his adult life serving the community and he enjoys doing it. He hopes to continue that service as member of the Board.

In Wells' opening statement, he worked as the State Budget Director and the Director of the Governor's Finance Office. With this experience during the recession, he was able to learn how to balance the needs of the government and the needs of the taxpayers. He wanted to use this experience to benefit the community to keep Carson City moving forward.

• Question 1: Many of Carson City's road need maintenance or repair. What's your position on Carson City Ballot Question 1 which pertains to continuing the collection of an excise tax of $0.05 per gallon on diesel fuel sold in Carson City to help offset the cost of highway and road maintenance?

Giomi: He hopes citizens realize the importance of it and that they do pass this, but it's up to them. He said gas taxes have failed on ballots in Carson before. The state pays a diesel tax and he hopes they agree to continue the local tax too because the Carson City roads are in bad shape and are in need of repair. It won't cure all, but it will help

Horton: He said he agrees with Giomi. It is important to maintain this tax and it has been difficult to keep the roads alive. He said they need the funding for it, so he encourages everyone to support it.

Wells: He said even if the diesel tax does continue, which is probably likely, it's important to realize it's the only local tax on diesel and it's a small part to the rest of the steps. He said keeping them in better shape with save us money than pushing the problem out for too long.

Bradshaw: He said there were over $500,000 dollars that were annually, but the public does not know how the money was spent. If the public does not know where the money goes, he asked how they would vote for something they don't understand. He wants to be more transparent as a board. He thinks the tax is terrible timing because of the economic "hurricane" that's about to happen.

Giomi's rebuttal: He said they are only going forward with the ballot if the people vote with. He says their board does struggle with communicating with the people because the public is not interested, but they have access through their website.

• Question 2: What do you see as the greatest budgetary challenge for the Board of Supervisors in the immediate future and how would you address it?

Horton: He said he thinks it's maintaining local roads since there is no funding available for it, other than what they have for it currently. He said they need to reach out to look for federal and state funding help and then putting the funding to good use. He thinks there's room for improvement in the system, but he agrees with a lot of what they're doing.

Wells: He said the city only has a $250 million dollar budget, and much of it goes to salaries and benefits, so figuring out where to make small changes to create big differences is the starting spot. He agrees with Horton and said the roads are the first step. He thinks it's time to look for a permanent funding source.

Bradshaw: He agrees, roads is a commonly talked about problem and they don't have enough in the budget to handle it. He thinks there should be a referendum and they have to decide as a community what they are going to do. He believes it shouldn't just be on the Board.

Giomi: He also agrees, roads are to be talked about. However, the critical things he thinks should be talked about including maintaining better asset management and paying attention to unfunded mandates from the legislature, something he fears most of all. He said vital input from the community about how money is spent is important too.

Horton's rebuttal: He agrees with Giomi that the people need to speak up about the topic. He said the thing to consider is the road problem is all over the city, so all must be involved in the solution.

• Question 3: What measures should the Board of Supervisors implement to help ensure Carson City has an adequate supply of safe and clean drinking water, now and in the future?

Wells: Water and sewer are a two-pronged issue, he said. There's water right and infrastructure of pulling water out of the ground. He believes the city has good water rights, but the infrastructure struggles, which is what actually needs to be fixed.

Bradshaw: The people need to know the update of water usage and growth, he said. They need to be transparent and gain public trust about the issue of water.

Giomi: The study that came out in 2017 allows them to adjust based on new demands. He said the critical issue is the infrastructure and delivering safe water. He said the biggest driver for the costs are the federal government and the EPA.

Horton: He thinks the measures are in place for preparing the system for future growth under the authority of Public Works and the Board. He believes they need to continue this practice and move forward in a positive way.

• Question 4: What specific actions should Carson City take to promote economic growth and diversity and assist small businesses to increase their success?

Bradshaw: He believes the issue there is to look at the city's ordinances and codes to make sure there's an easy path of entry for local businesses. He's heard about this issue from many businesses around town. He said it goes back to transparencies, forming potential workshops and explaining the ordinances to local businesses.

Giomi: He agrees. He thinks making ordinances not too much of a burden will help. It is a matter of listening to the public so they are not over restrictive, he explained. Beyond that, he thinks to generate and drive business they could also bring supporting events to Carson City.

Horton: He said they need to remove the impediments for small businesses like codes and ordinances while also making the town clean and inviting for people. He said maintaining projects like beautification of downtown will encourage people to visit small businesses. He said talking to business owners will help too.

Wells: He said the city needs to maintain a regulatory environment that is simple, fair and stable. As far as economic development and drawing in new businesses, the things to improve upon is the package of Carson City as a whole and the potential benefits in education, healthcare, housing, etc.

• Question 5: How would you address homelessness and increase the availability of quality, affordable housing in Carson City?

Giomi: He reiterates homelessness is an issue along with affordable housing. He said the Board just recently approved in concept, a plan to address homelessness using ARPA funds, to develop a housing first model to create housing. This is not a shelter, but a program to bring people out of homelessness and into success. The idea is finding housing for them first to solve the problem.

Horton: He says that when you talk about the homeless population, it's a huge subject. Additionally, he said, the local government should assist, but Carson City needs to rely on the services that are already out there for this population. He said he is reluctant to give taxpayers money to building more things for the houselessness population. In the sense of affordable housing, he said it's difficult and takes time.

Wells: He agrees with both Horton and Giomi. The goal is to match people with the services they need. He believes there are programs already and that the city could take advantage of those. Low-income tax credits are available for affordable housing, but they have to look for employers that match the wage of what it costs to live for.

Bradshaw: He said some people need a hand up to be successful. He said different options include a fully-funded government program or partnerships with non-profits. He does not believe the government should be the provider for all. He said for affordable housing, he wants to see more long-term solutions and more expanded development. He said they are only just starting on the problem.

Giomi's rebuttal: He used his time to talk about affordable housing where he agreed with the Sierra Flats project and said the Board should find ways to exchange the ability to have workforce housing with developments.

• Question 6 How do you believe cannabis dispensaries are impacting our community and what in your opinion is the appropriate number of dispensaries for Carson City?

Horton: He believes the law for four is the appropriate number. He doesn't think there's a great effect on the community. The Sheriff reports are there are no big issues. He doesn't agree with cannabis in general, but that's his own personal view.

Wells: He said the impact is still kind of unknown. There's not a track record for DUIs with marijuana. But he hasn't heard of a lot of other impacts. He personally disagrees with cannabis, but he agrees with the law.

Bradshaw: He agrees that the candidates that the Nevada Legislature gave them four licenses, so the dispensaries are going to be there. He thinks they don't know the long-term impact of having cannabis here. He also said they don't have the technology to have the data for DUIs for marijuana and there is an air quality issue from the smell.

Giomi: He makes a joke about Doritos and then talks about how they don't know the long-term affects and they don't have the technology to test for marijuana DUIs. He said it is too new of an issue, but he still agrees with free market. He said going from two to four dispensaries did not make sense to him, but it was still a Board decision. He strongly opposes people growing their own marijuana though.

• Question 7: [From the audience] Would you support publishing a Carson City version of the Controller's annual report the state published in 2019?

Wells: He said he believes in transparency in government and publishing a simplified annual report is beneficial to the community. However, the extensive one is not comprehensible, so simplifying it would be more beneficial.

Bradshaw: He said he absolutely agrees. He believes in transparency and increased community engagement. He wants to create partnerships with Carsonnow.org and Nevadaappeal.com to get the knowledge base out to the community.

Giomi: He agrees that making public records more accessible is a good idea. It is available and making it more summarized could make it more helpful to read online. He said they struggled with the financial accounting system because it was so old, so over the last few years they've been converting and so they haven't been able to implement the new ideas.

Horton: He agrees with everything that was said. He wants it to be in a better format that's available to the community.

• Question 8: [From the audience] What will you do to address the issue of opioid settlement dollars, not going to the intended purpose in Carson City?

Bradshaw: This comes back to transparency, he said. Making it simplified and understandable will help.

Giomi: He said they've had hearings about the opioid settlement. The money has not come in, but it will come in overtime. When the plan is approved, then they will expand the opioid funds, but there has been no approved plan. When the plan comes through, the public will be able to give their input. He believes the money should go to enforcement of treatment in this community.

Horton: He said all funding needs to have a plan for it. Monitoring the process closely and managing the funding carefully is critical, he said.

Wells: He said the idea is your plan dictates how you spend the money as it comes in overtime. He said some of the money should go to preventing opioid addictions. He believes the public input will be important in the plan process.

• Closing Statements:

The speakers then gave their closing statements, starting with Giomi.

In his closing statement, Giomi said he has a demonstrated history of servicing the community. He learned the important things of the community, including taking personal responsibility, being fiscally responsible with taxpayers money, giving a hand-up, giving every citizen a voice, etc. He wants to leave the community better than when he came here.

In Horton's closing statement, he said he considers himself a man of the people. He spends a lot of time with the citizens and managed a lot of projects with plenty of money, showing he has a lot of experience. He enjoys being a problem solver, but does not push to be in the lime-light. He wants to serve his community.

In Wells' closing statement, he said he and Horton do agree on a lot. His experience of working in the government can help provide good experience to the Board. He believes the residents deserve a transparent, accountable and a responsive government.

In Bradshaw's closing statement, he said people have genuine concerns and that he wants the people to work together as a community to address these concerns. He plans to make Carson City a place that instills people with pride in their accomplishments.

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To view the livestream of the second election forum on Oct. 10, click here.

To access nonpartisan information on local and state candidates, go to www.vote411.org

Mail-in ballots will be sent to all Carson City voters. In person early voting is from Saturday, October 22 through Friday, November 4. Election Day is Tuesday Nov. 8.

For more information, check the Carson City elections website https://www.carson.org/government/departments-a-f/clerk-recorder/electio... and the Secretary of State elections website https://www.nvsos.gov/sos/elections/election-information.

The League of Women Voters of Northern Nevada is a non-partisan non-profit organization supporting public information and involvement to promote informed voting and public participation.

Sierra Nevada Forums provides citizens with fact-based verifiable information to assist them in making well-informed decisions on issues of importance to our community and beyond.

The mission of the American Association of University Women is to advance gender equity for women and girls through research, education and advocacy. AAUW Capital (NV) branch is the local entity.