|
With an emphasis in education, Bob Hassoldt said he hopes to redirect the flow of votes of Latah County residents from incumbent Shirley Ringo to claim seat 6B in the Idaho House of Representatives.
“We definitely have different focuses,” Hassoldt said. “My opponent comes more from a public sector and I’m more of a private sector.”
Hassoldt, a Republican from Kendrick, has been a resident of Latah County for 31 years. He is currently a self-employed consultant forester with a master’s degree in business administration from the University of Denver. Hassoldt underscores education in his campaign and he said he feels strongly about keeping the University of Idaho, one of the biggest employers in Latah County, intact and in a healthy state. This translates in part into keeping the law school out of Boise.
“My candidate has gone on record stating that she supports the expansion of the UI Law School to Boise,” Hassoldt said. “I guarantee you that Boise will end up with our law school.”
The extension of the UI law school has been an issue for an extended period of time. The board recently ruled that no expansion would be taking place at this time.
“If you talk to Mr. (Sheldon) Vincenti who is running against (Gary) Schroeder,” Hassoldt said, “He’d tell you he’s been trying to save the law school for year — this is not an issue that’s just going to go away.”
Hassoldt believes if the law school is expanded into Boise, UI will lose the school entirely.
“When the good times get rolling again, Boise will want to expand their law school and think ‘Hey and Moscow wants to follow our lead,’” he said. “I guarantee you Boise will end up with the law school.”
Ringo, already having served eight years in position B, has a completely different perspective concerning the UI law school expansion.
“UI would still be administering the law school,” Ringo said. “I just don’t see the threat.”
Ringo said she feels a greater focus should be on higher competitive wages for professors and researchers.
“It’s important,” Ringo said. “We don’t want to lose the law school, but as of right now, the state board ruled no.”
Higher wages is the issue Ringo has been trying to address in legislature and the joint finance committee for years.
“When it comes to being able to recruit top-notch people … we are competing in the national and global market, and we’re not measuring up,” she said. “Many people can drive seven miles to the west and get a job at Washington State University and not even have to move out of their homes.”
Along with further issues at UI, candidates both had a general focus on higher education standards in District 6.
“Idaho is an export economy,” Hassoldt said. “If we don’t have people that can function on a national and world level in the academic world, we are going to do very poorly.”
He said it is not fair for students to leave UI ill prepared to compete on a global level. Hassoldt said he purposes more rigorous standards at the K-12 level.
“Taxpayers end up paying for remedial classes at the college level, there’s no reason why there should even be remedial classes at that level,” he said
Hassoldt said vocational studies are necessary to maintain the state economy while Ringo closely examined K-12 education.
Focusing on broader issues, Ringo and Hassoldt have different perspectives on the financial crisis and the recent holdback announced by Governor Butch Otter.
“I don’t feel District 6 will be affected too severely,” said Hassoldt. “Agencies have built in slack for times like these— there might be a slight reduction in services but nothing catastrophic.”
According to Hassoldt, infrastructure will be the worst to suffer.
“Everyone will be feeling the pain with transportation,” he said. “You’ll see it come out of car registration and the gas tax.”
Ringo has a dissimilar perception because she said the Idaho legislature has always been fiscally conservative.
“We have rainy-day funds for times like these,” Ringo said.
As far as the state budget is concerned, according to Ringo, the state has accounts that will help carry District 6 through the crisis.
“What we need to be concerned about are small businesses,” Ringo said. “We need to make sure that they are still able to stay afloat.”
 Add as favorites (16) | Views: 277
|
