District 24 Assembly Candidates Give Answers

In the race for state Assembly in District 24, Republican incumbents Gary Chiusano (Augusta) and Alison Littell McHose (Franklin), Democrats Leslie Huhn (Sparta) and Jim Nye (Sparta), and Independents Mark D. Quick (Johnsonburg) and Rose Ann Salanitri (Branchville) are running for two seats in the Nov. 8 election.

Patch asked each candidate to fill out the questionnaire below. Here are their responses. As of publication, Patch had not received responses to requests for information from McHose, Quick and Salantri.

Gary R. Chiusano (R-Augusta)

Age: 60

Occupation: Financial planner

Previous elected or appointed positions: I have served as a state assemblyman since 2008. My initial public service experience was in my hometown of Frankford, serving on the school board and then the township committee, and also as the township’s mayor. In addition, I was a Sussex County freeholder, and have served as the board director.

Other community associations: Trustee and founding member, Senior Quality of Life Foundation; past president (and inductee), Sussex County Sports Hall of Fame; member, United Way of Sussex County; former treasurer and trustee, Lafayette Federated Church.

What town do you live in, and how long have you lived there? I have lived in Augusta (Frankford Township) for the last 23 years.

How long have you lived in the district? I previously I had lived in Hardyston Township for 22 years.

What do you see as the most pressing issues in a coming term, and what would you do about them? To create an environment that retains and attracts businesses and jobs, I will work to reduce overly burdensome regulations and taxes on businesses. For example, recently the governor signed several of my measures to reform state taxes on businesses. These changes will improve the business climate in New Jersey. This has reinforced my resolve to push in an aggressive manner for some of my other bills, i.e. the ability to carry forward losses, lower the sales and use tax, and curtail frivolous lawsuits.

As a member of the assembly budget committee, I have the opportunity to advocate for fiscally responsible government. During this trying recession, difficult decisions have been made with regard to balancing the budget. I think this means that there must be a more responsible level of spending and a resistance to tax increases. I have advocated for both. This approach towards budgeting has led to two years in which the state has adopted budgets with less spending than the previous year, something New Jersey has not seen in a long time.

As a co-sponsor of the Fair School Funding bill, I will work to distribute school funding in an equal manner, and eliminate measures in the formula that penalize the suburban and rural districts in Sussex, Warren and Morris Counties. Currently, 60 percent of the state’s entire school funding resources is unfairly distributed to just 20 percent of the schools. A reform in the funding formula will allow our municipalities to lower property taxes for our residents while allowing for more funding for our school children.

What's one fact about you that most voters probably don't know? Under Democrat control we had continually higher taxes, higher fees, and overregulation of our residents and business owners. This is the reason that New Jersey has lost its competitive edge. This type of tax-and-spend policy is the very reason that jobs left our state in the first place. Raising taxes to increase spending and promising everything to everyone without the ability to pay for it is precisely what got us into trouble in the first place, yet it is exactly what our opponents have promised to do if they get elected.

As a supporter of the pension and benefit reform and the 2 percent cap on spending, we will preserve the pension system for teachers and other public workers without putting a disproportionate burden on our taxpayers.

As a strong supporter of the Second Amendment and a member of the National Rifle Association, I am proud to have the support of the NRA and the New Jersey Outdoor Alliance. It is also a pleasure to have the endorsement of New Jersey Right to Life.

Along with my colleagues Senator Steve Oroho and Assemblywoman Alison Littell McHose, we are one of the few legislative delegations to share a joint office where we pride ourselves on having a professional staff which is highly responsive to the needs of our constituents.

Leslie Huhn (D-Sparta)

Age:  47

Occupation: I have worked as a registered nurse for the past 18 years. The last 15 years I have worked in cardiac surgery intensive care.

Previous elected or appointed positions: I serve on the Parent Board for the Biryukov Academy of Arts and Music in Sparta.

Other Community Associations: Co-founder and president, Sparta Unites for our Schools (SUfoS); Girl Scout Troop leader; BRAVO music appreciation instructor, Sparta School District; member, American Association of Critical Care Nurses

How Long Have You Lived in the District? My family and I have lived in Sparta for almost 10 years. We have two daughters attending public schools.

What do you see as the most pressing issues in a coming term, and what would you do about them? Education–SFRA must be fully funded.  Assemblywoman McHose and Assemblyman Chiusano supported Gov. Christie in cutting $1 billion in school aid this year that would have all gone to suburban and rural school districts.

We can fully fund SFRA while shielding 99.8 percent of New Jersey’s residents from a tax increase by reinstating the millionaire’s tax. Fully funding SFRA will lower class size, reduce property taxes and create thousands of jobs within our local school districts.

Transportation–The 2010 census revealed that Sussex County now has the worst average commute in New Jersey. Sussex County has earned this dubious distinction during Assemblywoman McHose’s and Assemblyman Chiusano’s tenure in office.

We must invest in our aging transportation infrastructure. Rebuilding our bridges, tunnels and roads will create thousands of new jobs while improving the quality of life here in our district.

I will also propose a tax incentive that will reward employers for expanding telecommuting opportunities to employees. This will ease congestion on our roads, reduce wear and tear on our vehicles, and lower our consumption of gasoline. The money our residents save on commuting can then be redeployed into our local businesses and communities. To illustrate, people who telecommute are far more likely to patronize stores and restaurants within their own community during their lunch hour. Instead, our residents patronize the stores and restaurants in the out-of-county communities where they work. We must bring this business back to our district.

Jobs–No state in the nation lost more jobs in 2010 than New Jersey. Our unemployment rate now exceeds the national average and is second highest in the Northeast. The policies of Assemblywoman McHose and Assemblyman Chiusano have destroyed thousands of police, teacher, firefighter and public worker jobs.

By reversing the cuts to education and investing in our transportation infrastructure, we will create thousands of jobs. This will put our state back on the right path for growth.

What’s one fact about you most voters don’t know? When I was 15 years old, I lost my mother to cancer and my father was unable to care for my sisters and me. By age 16, my sisters and I were living alone in an apartment and paying rent. At 19, Ronald Reagan eliminated my Social Security survivor benefits which forced me to drop out of college. In my early 20s I secured a good union job offering me a living wage and health insurance. This job enabled me to save enough money to go back to college and earn my bachelor's degree. This allowed me to graduate from college debt free, and I have been working as a nurse for the past 18 years. My story represents the opportunity our country presents its citizens. Sadly I am afraid my story is no longer possible in today’s New Jersey. Jobs that pay a living wage are increasingly difficult to find, access to healthcare is more difficult, and property taxes are escalating at an alarming rate. College tuition has skyrocketed. We need new leadership in the 24th District to move our state in a new direction.

James B. (Jim) Nye (D-Sparta)

Age: 70

Occupation: Educational publishing consultant

Other community associations: Sparta Education Foundation; St. Mary’s Episcopal Church

How long have you lived in town? 9.5 years in Sparta

What do you see as the most pressing issues in a coming term, and what would you do about them? The most pressing issue is addressing the needs of the people of the 24th LD by focusing on local matters as much as possible, attending to state-wide and national matters only as required. In my estimation, there has been an imbalance of attention paid to issues other than those in the district by the incumbents.

Jobs–We need a well thought out jobs plan that is multi-faceted. Some program that rewards small business for hiring, support for infrastructure projects such as road and bridge repairs that employ local people, re-education and training programs for those who need new skills. We need to get public service employees (teachers, police, DPW, etc.) back to work.

Education–We need to fully fund the formula laid out in the School Funding Reform Act of 2008. We need to review carefully the program to institute charter schools to make certain that starting such a school fills a need in a district and that need should be established on the basis of a public referendum.

Taxes–We need to establish an income tax program that reduces real estate taxes by implementing a tax on income over $400,000 (starting with dollar one over), which would pay for public school funding.

Care for our seniors–There need to be tax rebates that will allow our seniors to remain in their homes in our communities.

What's one fact about you that most voters probably don't know? That my wife and I have two beautiful adopted daughters, 4 and 8, who are in the Sparta Public Schools.