Rae Waters

Rae Waters

Waters, Rae (Democrat)

Phone: (602) 679-3292

Email: rae@raewaters.com

Website: www.raewaters.com

4401 E. Sacaton St., Phoenix, AZ 85044

Age: 54 (6/15/56, Ft. Dix, NJ).

Arizona since: 1967.

Occupation: Community columnist, Arizona Republic, 2002-06.

Marital: Married (Jim).

Children: 2.

Religious preference: Catholic.

Education: B.S., sociology, NAU, 1978.

Political experience: Kyrene School Board Member since 1998; candidate, 1998, 2002 and 2006; AZ House since 2009.

Memberships have included: AZ School Boards Association; National School Boards Association; WestEd Board of Directors.

Issues:

Political influence: Mary Padilla, a former staff member at Kyrene. She was not a politician but she really helped me recognize the value of trying to understand the perspective of those with whom I may disagree. She highlighted for me the importance of civil discourse and helped me to hone the skill of “agreeing to disagree” on one issue then working together on another.

Budget recommendations: We need to continue to evaluate all programs for effectiveness and waste, and ruthlessly but intelligently eliminate unnecessary or redundant functions to make government and public dollars more efficient. Additionally, we need to move to close some of the gaping loopholes that exist in our tax structure. There are billions of dollars leaking through tax loopholes every year that are being exploited by those who want to avoid paying their fair share, and we can and must close them to lower the tax rates and maintain revenues.

Other concerns: Arizona desperately needs good jobs and quality education. These two areas have a mutually beneficial, symbiotic relationship: An educated workforce will meet the personnel needs of employers and will attract new, high-wage industries to our state. Simultaneously, businesses, both large and small, will obviously help Arizona’s economic recovery and will provide resources for education, pre-K through college.

Fiscal philosophy: I am a fiscal conservative who believes in making sure there is public accountability for public dollars and that expenditures produce real value.

Background & experience: Coming from a school board, a non-partisan position, has taught me to put politics aside and work for the good of the people I represent. It is far more important to come up with good solutions to the challenges facing our state than it is to blindly adhere to party politics and partisan rhetoric. In my first term, when no Democratic bills were being heard, I was able to reach across the aisle to append my ideas to bills introduced by Republicans. I also sponsored a bill, passed almost unanimously and signed into law by the governor, that addressed the issues of air quality, such as mold, and prevents catastrophic roof collapse like the one at C.I. Waggoner in Tempe. It was one of the few Democrat-authored bills to actually make it into law. I am also proud to have worked with a bipartisan group of legislators to sponsor and pass important education reforms for Arizona’s schools.

Prop 100 sales tax: I do not believe that the temporary sales tax solves our financial problems. The Legislature should have taken a more comprehensive approach to fixing the budget, rather than punting it to the voters with promises that may or may not be fulfilled. That said, once it was on the ballot it was imperative that it passed to protect education for this year.

Pro-life/pro-choice: We need to continue to work to eliminate the need for abortions.

One last thing: As a mom, school board member and legislator, I am frustrated with the lack of attention to the things we should be addressing in our state: education, jobs, public safety, etc. I helped make the Kyrene School District one of the premier districts in Arizona, all while keeping an eye on the bottom line. For large school districts, we are No.1 in the state when it comes to putting money directly into the classroom. Additionally, thanks to prudent financial planning, Kyrene has been able to minimize cuts to the classroom. I strongly believe we can get Arizona back on the right track. It will take hard work, tough decisions and a willingness to leave partisanship behind. I believe that my experience in education as well as my experience handling public funds are skills that will serve the hard-working families of Arizona well.

Government transparency: I come from a background where we are covered by open meeting laws. I believe the same should be true for the Legislature. I believe meetings should be posted with adequate notice for the public to attend. All meetings and hearing should be open and accessible to the public. No legislation, including budget bills should be passed in the middle of the night. We should be managing our work better.

Campaign Finance: public