Planet Detroit Candidate Survey
What are the three most pressing environmental issues facing the communities you seek to serve? Please rank them in order of priority and briefly explain why you chose each.
1. Clean Drinking Water — Clean Water Protection and Infrastructure Modernization Access to safe, clean drinking water is a fundamental right. Communities across Michigan continue to face concerns about aging water infrastructure, lead service lines, stormwater management, and contamination risks. Protecting our water resources and investing in modern infrastructure is critical for public health, economic development, and maintaining Michigan’s natural resources for future generations.
2. Clean Energy — Responsible Energy Development and Affordability Families and seniors are struggling with rising utility costs while Michigan continues its transition to a more diverse energy future. We must ensure energy reliability, affordability, and environmental responsibility can coexist. I support investments in modern energy infrastructure, grid reliability, and clean energy innovation while protecting consumers from excessive costs and ensuring businesses remain competitive.
3. Contamination — Sustainable Economic Growth and Land Redevelopment Our region has an opportunity to revitalize underutilized and brownfield properties while protecting open spaces and neighborhoods. I support responsible development that creates jobs, attracts investment, and cleans up contaminated sites using science-based, risk-driven approaches.
Michigan law requires utilities to reach 100% clean energy by 2040. If elected, would you support maintaining this law, or would you support revising or repealing it? Please explain your position.
Maintain the current law and timeline
As State Representative, I would focus on policies that achieve environmental progress without placing undue burdens on families, seniors, or employers. Michigan can be a leader in clean energy while also ensuring that our residents have access to reliable, affordable power and good-paying jobs throughout the transition.
More than two dozen Michigan communities are considering or have approved large-scale data center developments. These facilities can consume as much electricity as a small city and place significant demands on local water and energy infrastructure. What role should state government play in overseeing data center development, and what guardrails should the state legislature enact to protect communities where data centers are proposed?
believe Michigan should take a proactive role in overseeing large-scale data center development to ensure economic growth does not come at the expense of local communities, utility customers, or natural resources.
Data centers can bring investment, construction jobs, and long-term economic opportunities, particularly as Michigan positions itself as a leader in technology and innovation. However, their enormous demands on electricity, water, and infrastructure require thoughtful planning and accountability.
I support the following guardrails:
1. Infrastructure Impact Assessments Before approval, developers should be required to demonstrate that local energy grids, water systems, and transportation infrastructure can support the project without shifting costs onto existing residents and businesses.
2. Ratepayer Protection Michigan families and small businesses should not see higher utility bills because of energy-intensive data centers. Large users should pay their fair share of infrastructure upgrades and system expansion costs.
3. Water Use Transparency and Conservation Standards Communities deserve to know how much water a facility will consume and what measures are being taken to reduce waste, recycle water, and protect local water resources.
4. Local Community Input Residents and local governments should have a meaningful voice in the approval process. Transparency and public engagement are essential when projects of this scale are proposed.
5. Economic Accountability If state incentives are provided, they should be tied to measurable benefits such as job creation, workforce development partnerships, local hiring commitments, and long-term investment in the community.
6. Clean and Reliable Energy Planning Data centers should be encouraged to utilize energy-efficient technologies and contribute to Michigan’s long-term clean energy goals while maintaining grid reliability.
My overall position is that Michigan should welcome data center investment, but growth must be responsible. The state should create a clear framework that protects residents, safeguards natural resources, ensures affordability, and guarantees that communities receive real and lasting benefits from these developments.
PFAS contamination has been detected in drinking water, groundwater, and surface water across Michigan. Cleanup efforts are underway, but many affected communities are still waiting for action. What is the single most important step the officeholder in this position should take on PFAS in the next term?
The single most important step Michigan should take on PFAS in the next term is to accelerate the identification and cleanup of contaminated sites while ensuring affected communities have access to safe drinking water immediately.
While long-term remediation is critical, families should not have to wait years for clean water. The state must prioritize funding and coordination to identify contamination sources, hold polluters accountable whenever possible, and expedite cleanup efforts. At the same time, Michigan should continue investing in water treatment infrastructure, well testing programs, and emergency solutions for communities currently impacted by PFAS contamination.
As a State Representative, I would support policies that focus on three objectives: protecting public health, increasing transparency so residents know when contamination is present, and securing the resources needed to speed up remediation. Clean drinking water is not a partisan issue—it is a basic responsibility of government. Michigan should continue leading the nation in addressing PFAS while ensuring no community is left behind waiting for action.
Michigan residents in some communities face disproportionate exposure to air pollution, contaminated water, and industrial waste. Do you support requiring Michigan regulators to assess cumulative environmental and health impacts on overburdened communities before approving new permits for polluting facilities?
Yes
Utility rate cases directly affect what Michigan residents pay for electricity and gas. DTE and Consumers Energy have requested frequent significant rate increases in recent years. Should elected officials play a greater role in holding utility companies accountable for rate hikes and rising energy costs?
Yes. While the primary responsibility for reviewing utility rate cases belongs to the Michigan Public Service Commission, elected officials have an important role in ensuring transparency, accountability, and consumer protection.
Michigan residents deserve reliable energy service, but they also deserve confidence that rate increases are justified, necessary, and delivering measurable improvements. Too many families, seniors on fixed incomes, and small businesses are struggling with rising energy costs and cannot absorb repeated rate hikes without scrutiny. My position is that utilities must be able to invest in infrastructure, grid modernization, and clean energy, but those investments should not come with a blank check. Any rate increase should be accompanied by clear evidence that it is necessary, fiscally responsible, and beneficial to the residents and businesses paying the bills. The goal should be a balanced approach that ensures reliable service while keeping energy affordable for Michigan families.
Enbridge's Line 5 pipeline runs through the Straits of Mackinac and carries crude oil and natural gas liquids between Wisconsin and Ontario. A proposed tunnel beneath the lakebed to house a replacement pipeline has faced legal and regulatory challenges for years. What is your position on the future of Line 5?
I support a balanced approach that protects both Michigan’s environment and our energy reliability. My position is that if Line 5 is to continue operating, it must do so under the highest possible safety standards.
The Straits of Mackinac are one of Michigan’s most important natural resources, and any spill could have devastating environmental and economic consequences for communities, tourism, and the Great Lakes. At the same time, Line 5 plays a significant role in supplying energy and fuel used by Michigan residents, businesses, and industries.
For that reason, I support moving forward with a solution that prioritizes environmental protection while maintaining energy reliability. The proposed tunnel concept deserves thorough scientific, environmental, and engineering review to ensure it significantly reduces risk compared to the existing pipeline configuration. Any project should include strong oversight, emergency response requirements, ongoing inspections, and clear accountability for the operator.
Ultimately, my priority is protecting the Great Lakes while ensuring Michigan residents are not subjected to unnecessary energy shortages or dramatic cost increases. Decisions regarding Line 5 should be guided by science, safety, environmental stewardship, and the long-term interests of Michigan families rather than political ideology alone.
Drinking water is becoming increasingly unaffordable for Michiganders in both rural and urban areas, leading to water shutoffs. Would you support legislation that caps water bills for low-income Michiganders and adds shutoff protections?
Yes, I would support legislation that helps ensure access to affordable water for low-income Michiganders while providing reasonable protections against shutoffs.
Clean, safe water is a basic necessity, not a luxury. No family should be forced to choose between paying for water, food, housing, or medication. This is especially important for seniors on fixed incomes, working families, veterans, and individuals facing temporary financial hardship.
I would support a water affordability program that ties assistance to income, helping ensure that households are not paying an unsustainable percentage of their income on water and sewer services. I would also support targeted shutoff protections for vulnerable residents, particularly during extreme weather conditions and for households with seniors, children, or individuals with medical needs.
At the same time, any affordability program must be financially sustainable and should include state support, infrastructure investment, and efforts to reduce water system inefficiencies so that costs are not simply shifted onto other ratepayers.
My goal would be to strike a balance between protecting public health and maintaining financially stable water systems. Access to clean water is fundamental to public health, economic stability, and human dignity, and Michigan should work to ensure that no resident loses access to this essential service because of financial hardship.
Michigan is home to more than 18,000 contaminated sites. Do you support or oppose legislation to hold polluters accountable for cleaning up these sites?
Support
I support legislation that holds polluters accountable for cleaning up contaminated sites.
The principle is simple: those responsible for contamination should bear the primary responsibility for remediation, rather than taxpayers or surrounding communities. Residents should not have to live with the health, environmental, and economic consequences of pollution while footing the bill for cleanup.