Montgomery County Council District 7

A: Montgomery County must take a proactive, diversified approach to economic recovery. We can’t rely as heavily on the federal government as we have in the past. That means making the county more business friendly by streamlining permitting, reducing unnecessary regulatory barriers, and supporting small businesses that are the backbone of our economy.

We should also invest in workforce development programs that help displaced federal workers transition into private sector opportunities, particularly in growing industries like healthcare, technology, and skilled trades. At the same time, we need to attract new employers by making Montgomery County competitive again—focusing on infrastructure, public safety, and quality of life. Economic resilience comes from diversification, and we need leadership that understands both public service and private enterprise to get us there.

A: Our schools are one of our most important investments, but simply increasing spending without accountability isn’t sustainable. We need a balanced approach that prioritizes classroom outcomes while ensuring taxpayer dollars are used effectively.

First, we should conduct a thorough review of administrative costs and identify efficiencies so more funding reaches teachers and students directly. Second, we must address declining enrollment by right-sizing resources where necessary while maintaining educational quality. We should also strengthen partnerships with parents, educators, and the private sector to support programs that prepare students for real world success, including career and technical education. Strong schools require smart budgeting, transparency, and a focus on results. Not just spending.

A: Rent stabilization has provided short-term relief for some residents, but it is not a complete solution to our housing challenges. In some cases, it can discourage new housing development and reduce long-term supply, which ultimately drives costs higher.

We need to evaluate its effectiveness honestly by looking at both the benefits and unintended consequences. Protecting tenants is important, but we must also ensure policies don’t make it harder to build the housing we need. A balanced approach includes targeted protections for vulnerable residents, while also encouraging new construction and maintaining a healthy housing market.

A: Yes—responsible, well-planned development is essential to addressing our housing shortage. We simply cannot meet demand without increasing supply.

That said, growth must be smart. We should focus development near transit, job centers, and existing infrastructure, while preserving the character of established communities. We also need a mix of housing types like affordable units, workforce housing, and options for families, seniors, and young professionals. The goal is not just more development, but better development that aligns with community needs and long-term planning.

A: Data centers can bring economic benefits, including tax revenue and infrastructure investment, but they also raise legitimate concerns around energy use, environmental impact, and land use.

The county should approach data center development cautiously and strategically. That means setting clear standards for location, energy efficiency, and environmental impact before approving projects. We must ensure these developments don’t strain our power grid, harm nearby communities, or crowd out other economic opportunities. Done right, data centers can be part of our economic future, but only with strong safeguards and transparency.

A: The Dickerson incinerator presents a complex challenge. While it plays a role in waste management, there are valid environmental and public health concerns that must be addressed.

We should begin planning for a long-term transition to more sustainable waste solutions, including increased recycling, composting, and modern waste technologies. However, any transition must be realistic and ensure we maintain reliable waste disposal capacity. Abrupt closure without a viable alternative would create serious problems. The right approach is a phased, responsible plan that balances environmental goals with practical needs.

A: Montgomery County should be a place where all residents feel safe interacting with local government and law enforcement. Trust between communities and public safety agencies is essential.

At the same time, we must operate within the law and ensure policies are clear, consistent, and focused on public safety. I support policies that prioritize local resources for local responsibilities, while ensuring that serious criminal activity is addressed appropriately. The goal should be balance, by protecting community trust without compromising safety or creating confusion for law enforcement.

A: I bring a perspective grounded in real world experience, not politics. I spent 15 years as a firefighter and EMT serving this community in critical moments, and I have built a small business while facing the same challenges many residents deal with. I understand the importance of showing up, making tough decisions, and being accountable for results. I am running to bring practical leadership, fiscal responsibility, and a focus on what matters most to families, including safe communities, strong schools, and a healthy local economy. This campaign is about putting residents first and delivering common sense solutions that move Montgomery County forward.

A: We must hold the line against tax increases that threaten to increase costs on families - many still facing the impacts of losing jobs in the federal workforce or contracting space. We must preserve the fiscal flexibility in our reserves necessary to fill targeted needs and gaps when they come up. I am proud to serve on the Council, which has done this swiftly and efficiently with special appropriations during the past fiscal year to provide food assistance, ramp up job training and workforce development, and backfill funding for programs like supportive housing when the federal government threatened to pull its commitments. This requires us to be responsible and realistic with County spending and to ensure we have sufficient emergency reserves going to emergency needs instead of simply growing long-time programs and functions of County Government. We also must continue to streamline permitting processes, support workforce development education, and pursue employers in growing, high-paying industries. I have shepherded real permitting reform through the Council already and will continue this work.

A: I am proud to have supported a $803 million increase in the County’s contribution to MCPS over the past four years - an average annual increase of 7%, consistently more than the minimum required by State law, and a record amount in such a short period. We have taken on MCPS’ increased needs in many areas: We have increased teacher salaries above the State’s Blueprint levels, making us more competitive for quality educators. We have added much-needed Special Education professionals and provided MCPS with the resources it needs to lower average class sizes.

With lower enrollment and increasing economic challenges that will negatively impact tax revenues, we should focus on maintaining the level of investment we have. We must be strategic, targeted, and realistic: Continued large increases for any part of County Government are unlikely. I will work with the school system to find the opportunities to streamline and be more efficient. One example is that MCPS has, over many years, taken on some counseling, health, and other functions such as parent support that should be conducted instead by the County’s Department of Health and Human Services. MCPS should focus on preparing students to be career or college ready.

A: I voted against the rent stabilization law and predicted at the time that it would exacerbate our affordable housing crisis. Statistical indicators show it has effectively shut down supply of the new rental units needed to meet the demand, evictions continued to increase, and the average annual rent increases remain virtually identical to the average rent increases before passage of the law. I support consumer protection-based policies to prevent exorbitant, bad-faith increases that outpace inflation and believe we need to adjust the law accordingly. We can do that by amending the law in some of the ways I supported during this Council’s legislative process - setting a date certain after which new rental housing is exempt, setting a higher rent increase cap, being realistic about the costs of substantial renovations to uphold housing quality and meet other regulatory requirements, and repealing the harmful vacancy control provision that makes it difficult to finance any new housing projects. As has been shown in jurisdictions which are seeing increased housing supply, we can stabilize and even lower base rents by adhering to basic market principles, and protect tenants from price gouging without making it financially unfeasible to bring new rental housing to market.

A: You cannot solve a supply and demand problem without increasing supply. We need more housing supply of all types to meet the demand that has driven housing prices to unaffordable levels for too many in our community. I am proud of my record on the Council of supporting smart and responsible laws and investments in income-restricted affordable housing, market-rate housing aimed at nurses, educators, and public safety professionals, transit-oriented housing, and different types of single-family housing in major corridors.

We have seen how in other regions around the country significant new housing supply directly correlates to stabilized and even lower rents and for-sale prices. We also must continue to work to provide the transportation, school, and public safety infrastructure needed to support new housing.

A: We should be cautious and take the time needed to create as foolproof a policy as possible. Important to me in any data center use is that these facilities generate their own energy and do not happen in residential areas. We must also address and limit use of natural resources like water and set up concrete preventions against the sort of numerous large-scale facilities that have been built in other jurisdictions in the region. At the present time, we do not have appropriate protections related to the development of data centers in Montgomery County, and we must change that.

A: We should close the incinerator when we have a responsible and better way to handle trash. We must move forward more rapidly with curbside composting and food waste collection, and set up the County facility needed or partner with others in the region to do so. Compostable food waste is the number one largest portion of the current waste stream we can reduce.

We must continue pursuing other alternative strategies such as advanced systems that can identify recyclable material mistakenly put in the trash in order to pull those materials out before they are sent to the incinerator or a landfill. It would be a mistake to allow the closure of the incinerator to overburden the already at-capacity Shady Grove Transfer Facility in the District I represent. This facility, where all trash collected in the County comes first before it is sent via train to the incinerator, is important to keep in mind when making these significant decisions about our waste systems. The communities of Derwood and Shady Grove around it do not deserve more truck traffic, more trash, and less efficient operations due to any operational changes.

A: This Council has acted quickly to ensure immigrant members of our community know Montgomery County, especially County law enforcement, will never conduct immigration enforcement or work with ICE. This is critical so that immigrants in our community can trust that County public safety professionals will work to protect them. I am proud of legislation such as the U-VISA Act, which I co-sponsored and that makes it easier for immigrant victims of crime to get the support they deserve.

I support the legislation passed by this Council to enhance and make clear we will protect immigrants and that ICE activities are not welcome here. I have consistently worked with colleagues to try to craft law that is legally sound and durable given the limited ability local government has to influence or limit federal immigration activities. I believe we owe that to immigrant members of our community.

A: Voters should re-elect me to another term on the Council based on my demonstrated record of carefully crafted legislation, commitment to asking the difficult questions and engaging in meaningful oversight of how funding is being used by our executive branch and MCPS, and my integrity in serving all of our residents. I did not hesitate to use the legal framework of our Montgomery County Inspector General and our State Inspector General for Education to probe into the crisis of MCPS’s handling of a sexual harassment scandal involving one of its principals. I am a strong supporter of our public safety ecosystem - supporting the men and women who perform this high stress work, understanding the challenges facing our community, and expecting the high quality service we have continued to deliver in Montgomery County. Finally, I have demonstrated capability to see the complexities of the needs of our community and need for multidisciplinary approaches to addressing them, whether it relates to affordability and economic development, our housing supply, behavioral health or other social services - I am focused on being strategic and methodical in my choices to best deliver positive outcomes on behalf of our residents.

A: I believe Montgomery County can best recover from the economic strain caused by federal layoffs and budget cuts by focusing on strengthening our local, private-sector economy and making it easier for businesses to grow and succeed.

First, I would prioritize supporting small businesses and reducing the cost of doing business in the county. Too many local businesses are already struggling, and in times of economic uncertainty, the county should be working to lower barriers—not add to them. That means cutting unnecessary regulations, reducing fees where possible, and creating a more business-friendly environment that encourages both retention and new investment. Second, we need to rebuild and diversify our job base so we are less dependent on federal employment. Montgomery County has a highly skilled workforce and strong potential in sectors like technology, life sciences, and entrepreneurship. I would focus on attracting and growing private-sector employers while also supporting startups and small business development to create sustainable, long-term job opportunities. I also believe we need more accountability and practical economic policymaking. Large-scale plans should be carefully evaluated to ensure they do not place additional financial burdens on residents or businesses without clear benefits. Our focus should be on policies that deliver real, measurable economic growth and stability. Finally, supporting workforce transition is critical. Many residents affected by federal layoffs have valuable skills, and we should invest in workforce development programs that help connect them to private-sector jobs or provide pathways to start their own businesses. Overall, my approach is to build a more resilient, locally driven economy—one that supports small businesses, encourages private-sector growth, and ensures Montgomery County remains an affordable and competitive place to live and work.

A: I believe the best approach to addressing growing budget needs for Montgomery County schools is to focus first on responsible spending, efficiency, and prioritizing direct classroom impact before considering any broad increases in funding.

First, I would support a thorough review of how existing school funds are being used to ensure that resources are primarily directed toward classroom instruction, student services, and core educational needs rather than administrative overhead or non-essential spending. With costs rising and enrollment shifting, it is important that every dollar is used as effectively as possible. Second, I believe the county should prioritize reallocation and optimization of current resources before seeking additional funding. This includes examining staffing models, adjusting to enrollment changes, and identifying areas where consolidation or efficiency improvements can be made without negatively impacting student outcomes. I also think increased transparency and accountability in the budgeting process is essential. Clearer reporting on how funds are allocated and how spending decisions impact student performance would help ensure that resources are being used in a way that directly benefits students and families. Finally, when additional funding is truly necessary—for example, for maintenance, special education, or safety-related needs—it should be targeted, justified, and tied to measurable outcomes rather than broad, ongoing increases without clear accountability. Overall, I believe the most sustainable path forward is to improve efficiency, strengthen oversight of spending, and ensure that budget decisions are focused on delivering the greatest possible benefit to students in the classroom.

A: I do not believe the county’s rent stabilization policy has been an effective long-term solution to the affordable housing crisis, based on its structure and the broader economic incentives it creates.

While the intent—to protect renters from sudden and excessive rent increases—is understandable, rent stabilization tends to treat the symptom rather than the underlying cause of affordability issues, which is insufficient housing supply. In practice, these policies can reduce incentives for new development and discourage investment in rental housing, particularly when landlords face limits on how they can adjust rents relative to rising costs such as maintenance, insurance, and property taxes. Over time, this can contribute to a tightening of available rental units, reduced housing quality, or fewer new projects being built, which ultimately makes affordability challenges worse rather than better. It can also lead to inefficiencies in the housing market, where mobility is reduced and available units are not always allocated to those who need them most. From my perspective, a more effective approach would focus on increasing housing supply through streamlined permitting, reduced development barriers, and policies that encourage private investment in both market-rate and moderately priced housing. Expanding supply is the most reliable way to address long-term affordability pressures. In short, while rent stabilization may provide short-term relief for some tenants, I do not view it as a sustainable or sufficient solution to the broader housing affordability problem in the county.

A: Yes—overall, I believe increased housing development is one of the most effective ways to address the affordable housing crisis, especially in a high-demand region like Montgomery County.

The core issue driving affordability challenges is that demand for housing has consistently outpaced supply. When there are not enough homes available, prices and rents rise regardless of other policy interventions. Increasing development helps correct that imbalance by expanding supply, which puts downward pressure on prices over time and creates more options across different income levels. However, I also think the effectiveness of development depends heavily on what gets built and how quickly it can be delivered. If new housing production is slowed by lengthy permitting processes, high regulatory costs, or restrictive zoning, then supply cannot keep up with population and job growth. In that case, affordability problems persist or worsen. I also believe development should be diverse and targeted, including a mix of market-rate housing, moderately priced units, and higher-density projects near transit corridors. This type of balanced growth can help reduce cost pressures while also supporting economic vitality and reducing commuting burdens. At the same time, it is important that development is paired with investments in infrastructure, schools, and transportation so that growth does not strain existing services. In short, I believe increasing housing development—when done efficiently and strategically—is a necessary and effective part of addressing the affordable housing crisis, because expanding supply is the most direct way to improve long-term affordability.

A: The county should approach potential data center development with a balanced, evidence-driven framework that weighs economic benefits against long-term environmental, infrastructure, and community impacts.

First, I believe the county should require clear, upfront impact assessments before approval decisions are made. Data centers can bring significant tax revenue and investment, but they also place heavy demands on electricity supply, water resources (in some cooling systems), and local grid infrastructure. Those impacts should be quantified early, not addressed after construction begins. Second, I think it is important to ensure transparent evaluation of tradeoffs at the local level. That includes analyzing how much long-term revenue the county would gain compared to the cost of infrastructure upgrades, utility strain, and any potential impacts on residential development capacity. Decisions should be based on net benefit to residents, not just short-term economic gains. Third, the county should coordinate closely with utility providers and state energy regulators to ensure that any large-scale data center expansion does not compromise grid reliability or raise costs for residents. Data centers are highly energy-intensive, and unmanaged growth can create broader system-wide consequences. Fourth, I believe zoning and site selection should be strategic and targeted, concentrating data centers in areas where infrastructure already exists or can be expanded efficiently, rather than placing pressure on residential or mixed-use growth corridors. Finally, the county should consider community benefit requirements, such as infrastructure contributions, sustainability standards (including energy efficiency and water usage limits), and commitments to renewable energy sourcing where feasible. Overall, I believe data center development can be part of a strong economic strategy, but only if it is carefully managed, fully evaluated for unintended consequences, and aligned with long-term community and infrastructure sustainability.

A: I believe the county should not treat the Dickerson waste-to-energy facility as an automatic “keep open or close” decision, but instead evaluate it within a broader, long-term solid waste strategy.

The facility plays an important role in reducing landfill dependence and managing municipal waste locally, and it provides a disposal pathway that avoids exporting all waste out of the region. From that perspective, shutting it down without a replacement plan would likely create near-term logistical and cost challenges. However, I also think the county should seriously evaluate alternative and complementary waste management strategies over time, rather than relying heavily on a single aging system. That includes expanding recycling and composting capacity, reducing overall waste generation through stronger diversion policies, and exploring newer waste technologies that may be cleaner or more efficient. The county should also continuously assess the facility’s environmental and public health impacts, as well as long-term maintenance and upgrade costs. In my view, the most responsible approach is a gradual transition strategy: maintain reliable waste disposal capacity in the near term while actively investing in alternatives that reduce reliance on incineration over time. This avoids disruption to essential services while still moving toward more sustainable and modern waste management practices.

A: The county’s role, in my view, is to ensure public safety, uphold the law, and protect all residents while also respecting due process and constitutional limits on local authority. That includes making sure that individuals who commit violent crimes are investigated, arrested, and prosecuted appropriately, regardless of immigration status.

I support the county cooperating with federal law enforcement agencies, including ICE when there is a valid legal basis such as a judicial warrant or criminal enforcement need. At the same time, I believe that local law enforcement should remain focused on core public safety responsibilities—responding to crime, preventing violence, and building trust with the community so that victims and witnesses feel safe coming forward. I also support clear policies that ensure county resources are used appropriately and that cooperation with federal agencies is structured, lawful, and transparent. This helps maintain both effective law enforcement and public confidence in local institutions. Overall, I believe the county should prioritize enforcing the law, supporting coordination with federal partners in cases involving serious criminal activity, and ensuring that public safety remains the central focus of local government.

A: I am asking voters to elect me because Montgomery County needs a serious course correction—one that prioritizes accountability, common sense, and results over political comfort and one-party control. For too long, residents have watched costs rise, schools struggle, and public trust erode while the same political leadership remains entrenched. I believe that kind of one-party rule is unacceptable because it weakens accountability, limits debate, and removes the urgency to solve real problems. Government works best when it is challenged, questioned, and forced to justify its decisions to the people it serves. I bring over 25 years of experience in economic and financial analysis, where I have evaluated policies, markets, and government programs based on data, outcomes, and real-world impact—not ideology. I understand how decisions made in government translate into higher taxes, strained services, and missed opportunities for working families. As a longtime Montgomery County resident and parent, I have a direct stake in the future of this community. I care deeply about restoring excellence in our schools, improving public safety, and rebuilding an economy that works for everyone—not just those already well-connected. My campaign is about accountability and results. That means demanding transparency in spending, focusing resources on core services, supporting small businesses, and ensuring that policy decisions are measured by their impact on residents—not political narratives. I am running because I believe Montgomery County deserves leadership that is willing to challenge the status quo, restore balance to local government, and put residents—not politics—first.