Elections 2014 Just another Arizona Capitol Times Election Coverage site
Democrat – Legislative District 19 Senate
Phone: (602) 679-4200
Email: friendsforlupecontreras@gmail.com
Address: 10724 W Durango , Avondale, AZ 85323
Age: 38. (07/27/75, Phoenix, AZ).
Arizona since: Birth.
Occupation: Director of new business, Pomeroy & Associates, since 1999.
Marital: Married
Children: 6; 4 grandchildren
Education: Estrella Mountain Community College and Glendale Community College.
Political experience: None.
Legis exp: House since 2013.
Interests: Spending time with family, hunting, golfing, camping, coaching wrestling.
Two biggest issues: I first ran for the Legislature in 2012 because my family was frustrated by the state of education and lack of quality jobs. These are the two biggest issues we face as a state, and they are intimately intertwined – by improving our K-12, community college and university systems, we attract more businesses that provide high-quality jobs. High-quality jobs improve our state’s revenue stream, and we have more funds to invest in our education system. We’ve got to continue to push the cycle forward. I will continue to work to better our education system and improve access to vocational training, and I will continue to support expanding tax credits for research and development so we can draw more quality employers into our great state. I believe this is the formula for creating a healthy economy and large, thriving middle class.
Budget priorities: Education, education, education. We have made some great strides – I was very happy to support the governor’s Student Success funding proposal this last year – but if we want our kids to have access to the best education possible we have got to start prioritizing education spending in a much bigger way, and we have got to look at seriously reforming the way our school funding system works. There is far too much inequity built into the system and too much state money is getting funneled into private schools. While I support the principles of school choice, it cannot be “choice” at the expense of our public school system. If we cannot find the funds in our current budget, we’ve got to look at new sources of revenue – for instance, bringing back the one-cent sales tax for education. In my view, “can’t” isn’t an option here. Education must be a priority.
Fiscal philosophy: I’m a pretty simple guy. Don’t spend more than you make, and in state government – as with anything else – you get what you pay for.
Common Core: I strongly support higher standards in our schools. While I understand that the Common Core standards may not be perfect, they are a dramatic improvement and really raise the bar on problem solving and critical thinking skills – skills that will give Arizona’s kids a leg up in the long run and make Arizona more attractive to employers looking for capable employees.
Gifts to elected officials: This hasn’t been an issue for me – granted, I was a freshman Democrat! However, I have supported and will continue to support reforms to the laws governing the way in which special interests attempt to influence elected officials.
Transparency in government: Transparency is critical. My door is always open to my constituents – or any concerned citizen, for that matter. Prior to my election, I was a political outsider and I know as well as anyone that our legislative system can be a bit confusing to outsiders. And yet it’s these “outsiders” that we are supposed to be serving in the first place! I think technology has gone a long way to increase transparency, but there is definitely still room for improvement. For instance, we make huge policy changes through floor amendments, and yet the floor amendments are not even available to the public until after they’ve been adopted. That’s crazy. We need to look at what procedural changes we could be making, but also take it upon ourselves to reach out to our districts and our constituencies and encourage more involvement in the process.
Pro-life / pro-choice: I am Catholic and I firmly believe in the sanctity of life. That said, I do not believe it is my role or the role of the state to tell a woman what she can or cannot do with her own body. Our job is to improve access to health care and education so that we can reduce the number of unwanted pregnancies overall.
Public policy advice: The Capitol seems to be crawling with experts with no shortage of advice on policy issues! We have a citizens’ Legislature and so obviously we can’t each be well-versed in all policy areas the day we take office, so I appreciate the opportunity to learn from the people down there. I try to get information from “experts” on all sides of an issue when I am weighing a decision, but ultimately I have to think about my constituents. Ben Miranda was a very dear friend of mine, and he always gave me excellent guidance, and I greatly respect Senator Anna Tovar and have turned to her more than once. I’ve been very blessed to have so many good, thoughtful people in my life. The job we do – making the laws for the six and a half million people of Arizona – is way bigger than I am, and I am honored to have the opportunity to serve.
