Published: October 14, 2008 10:33 pm      

Candidates talk economy during forum

EDMOND — Issues impacting the lives of Edmond residents and Oklahoma were the focus of a candidate forum Tuesday morning at Oklahoma Christian University.

“It’s a very important time in the history of our state,” said Peggy Geib, Edmond Area Chamber of Commerce board chairwoman.

The chamber hosted the event, which featured House District 31 candidates Jason Murphey, incumbent R-Guthrie, and Jennifer Sherrill, D-Guthrie; District 39 candidates Marian Cooksey, incumbent R-Edmond, Graham Guhl, D-Edmond, and Richard Prawdzienski, I-Edmond; District 83 candidates Randy McDaniel, incumbent R-Oklahoma City; and Olivia Cavanaugh, a Classen School of Advanced Studies student representing Ed Holzberger, D-Nichols Hills.

Diversification has served the state well, said McDaniel, who was endorsed by the Oklahoma State Chamber of Commerce. The state’s leadership in biotechnology and a commitment to alternate sources of energy will help the state’s economy, he said.

“We can’t let Oklahoma fall behind Texas when it comes to wind energy,” said Sherrill, an attorney. “Oklahoma lost jobs as oil companies moved to Houston and we can’t let that happen to wind energy.”

The development of biofuels would benefit the agricultural industry, Sherrill said.

Prawdzienski said a way to help Oklahoma to grow would be to recruit Californians to move to the state.

“California has over a 10 percent income tax,” said Prawdzienski, who retired from an integrated logistics systems acquisition career with the U.S. Air Force. “If we go to California and ask them to come here, maybe they’ll come here and build a car in Oklahoma. They can create a battery operated car. The guys in California did it. Let’s bring them here.”

Guhl said lawmakers need to learn the ramifications of how elderly stockholders lost money during the plunging stock market. He also would provide tax relief for small business owners who adequately insure their employees.

“I think most of us remember the 1980s,” said Cooksey, a Realtor. “And when our economy went down — the lending industry, the housing industry and the oil industry, our economy was in a mess.”

Oklahomans reacted by diversifying the economy to keep the state strong, she said. Any tax increase would be counterproductive, she said.

Education was another topic of discussion presented by Geib. An imbalance in the school formula results in Edmond receiving less state aid funding than rural school districts in Oklahoma, she said.

“What actions would you take if elected to bring a balance to the funding formula?” she asked.

Prawdzienski said parents are responsible for their children’s education. He advocates that parents write a check each month for tuition to fund their children’s education. This would make parents more involved in their children’s schools, he said.

Holzberger is an independent thinker who believes in a pay as you go plan for state programs including education, Cavanaugh said of her former science teacher.

Guhl said the state has a moral obligation to provide an education for its children. However, inefficiencies and government waste prevail in the state’s school systems, he said.

“I clearly believe it’s very proper and appropriate to consolidate many school districts to eliminate and reduce the amount of taxpayer burden in order to fund those schools,” said Guhl, assistant district attorney at the Oklahoma County District Attorney’s office.

Murphey said OU has one employee for every two students. He and Sen. Patrick Anderson, R-Enid, sponsored a bill that looked at how OU issues debt.

The debt wasn’t being approved by the Legislature or the people, Murphey said.

Such a debt load makes it hard to fund “real needs” for higher education, he said. SB 1398 will benefit UCO in the long-term, he said.