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.
Many communities in District 3 continue to face disproportionate exposure to environmental hazards, including air pollution, industrial contamination, aging infrastructure, and unsafe water systems. Environmental issues are first and foremost public health issues. Residents should not have to choose between affordable housing and a healthy environment. Protecting Detroit families from environmental hazards reduces healthcare costs, improves quality of life, and creates the conditions for long-term community stability. Second extreme weather events, flooding, heat waves, and aging infrastructure increasingly threaten Detroit neighborhoods. Climate resilience requires strategic investments in stormwater management, modern water systems, grid reliability, and green infrastructure. These investments not only protect residents and property but also create jobs and strengthen the local economy. Preparing for future environmental challenges is more cost-effective than responding to disasters after they occur. Lastly, environmental burdens have been concentrated in lower-income and minority communities while economic benefits often flow elsewhere. Environmental policy should be designed to create opportunity as well as protection. Investments in clean energy, remediation projects, green spaces, and sustainable development should prioritize communities that have borne the greatest environmental costs. The goal is not simply to manage environmental problems, but to create healthier, more prosperous communities where residents can thrive.
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
We should continue working toward the 2040 target while ensuring that our energy grid remains dependable, energy costs remain manageable, and communities that have historically relied on traditional energy industries are not left behind. Success will require innovation, infrastructure investment, and policies that balance environmental responsibility with economic opportunity.
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?
The state government needs to play a proactive role by establishing clear, consistent standards for energy use, water consumption, environmental impact, and community engagement. Local residents deserve transparency about how proposed developments will affect infrastructure, utility costs, natural resources, and quality of life before projects are approved. The legislature should enact guardrails that require comprehensive environmental reviews, infrastructure impact assessments, and meaningful public input, while ensuring that developers contribute fairly to any necessary upgrades to local water, energy, and transportation systems. Michigan can welcome economic development and technological growth, but it must do so in a way that protects taxpayers, preserves critical resources, and ensures that communities share in the long-term benefits of these investments.
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 most important step we can take on PFAS in the next term is to accelerate cleanup and remediation efforts in affected communities while ensuring that polluters are held accountable for the costs. Michigan residents should not have to wonder whether their drinking water is safe or wait years for action after contamination is identified. My commitment to this issue is rooted in my own work serving on the Jefferson-Chalmers Community District Council and the board of the Jefferson-Chalmers Water Project, where I have worked to defend my childhood neighborhood against unfair GLWA practices and advocate for residents' water rights. Those experiences have reinforced the importance of safe, reliable water and responsive government action. State leaders must prioritize resources for testing, cleanup, and infrastructure improvements in impacted areas while aggressively pursuing responsible parties whenever possible. We owe it to Michigan families to move beyond identifying contamination and focus on delivering timely, measurable results that restore confidence in the safety of our water and environment.
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
Residents who have already faced disproportionate exposure to pollution should not bear additional environmental burdens without a thorough evaluation of the potential consequences. Sound environmental policy requires looking at the full impact on public health, quality of life, and community well-being, while ensuring that economic development is pursued responsibly and equitably.
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?
Elected officials have a responsibility to provide oversight and accountability when utility rate increases directly affect the cost of living for Michigan families and the competitiveness of our businesses. While utilities must be able to invest in maintaining reliable infrastructure and modernizing the energy grid, rate increases should be transparent, justified, and carefully scrutinized to ensure customers are receiving value for the costs they are being asked to bear. I believe consumers deserve a stronger voice in the process and greater confidence that decisions are being made in the public interest. Our goal should be an energy system that is reliable, affordable, and accountable to the people it serves.
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?
The Great Lakes are one of Michigan’s most valuable natural resources, and protecting them must be a top priority. The continued operation of Line 5 in the Straits of Mackinac presents significant environmental risks. Rigorous environmental review and strong regulatory oversight of any proposed replacement or tunnel project to ensure that Michigan’s water resources, ecosystems, and communities are protected. At the same time, we must recognize the importance of energy reliability and work toward a responsible transition that reduces dependence on aging fossil fuel infrastructure. Michigan should prioritize investments in modern, sustainable energy solutions while ensuring that residents and businesses have access to affordable and reliable energy. The long-term goal should be to protect the Great Lakes, safeguard public health, and build a more resilient energy future for our state.
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?
Access to safe, affordable drinking water is a basic necessity, and no Michigan family should lose access to water because they are struggling financially. I support legislation that caps water costs for low-income households and provides reasonable shutoff protections, while ensuring that water systems remain financially sustainable and able to maintain critical infrastructure. My perspective is informed by my service on the Jefferson-Chalmers Community District Council and the board of the Jefferson-Chalmers Water Project, where I have worked to defend residents against unfair water policies and advocate for greater accountability in how water services are managed. We need solutions that balance affordability, infrastructure investment, and fiscal responsibility, while recognizing that access to clean water is essential to public health, economic opportunity, and quality of life.
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
Yes. There needs to be legislation that holds polluters accountable for cleaning up contaminated sites across Michigan. Taxpayers and local communities should not be left to bear the financial and health costs of environmental damage caused by others. Cleaning up contaminated properties protects public health, restores community confidence, and creates opportunities for redevelopment and economic growth. I have been advocating for residents facing environmental and water-related challenges, this is not new for me. Effective policy should ensure that responsible parties pay for remediations, while providing the resources needed to address legacy contamination that continues to impact Michigan communities. Protecting our environment and supporting economic development are not competing goals—they go hand in hand when communities have clean, safe places to live, work, and invest.