PLATFORM STATEMENT

Mitzi Yates, Candidate for County Commission, District 3
PLATFORM STATEMENT

It is time for transparency. “The Hamilton County Commission continues to spend millions of dollars in the backrooms of the county courthouse. The Hamilton County Commission continues to make important policy decisions without public notice or debate,” Yates says. Meetings should be scheduled at times convenient for the public. All agendas and official documents to be voted on should be posted online at least 48 business hours prior to meetings. 

Keep low taxes with fiscal discipline. Yates believes in keeping taxes at present levels.   She believes that fiscal discipline and efficiency in government can pay for essential services without an increase in taxes. 

Fighting crime and gang violence requires long-term solutions. Commonsense long-term solutions to crime prevention and intervention save money. Wasteful spending on short-term solutions that do not work is fiscally irresponsible. In addition, Yates believes creating and maintaining prevention and intervention programs will save the lives of many innocent victims, as well as the lives of  kids lured into gangs. "The cost of running these programs pales in comparison to the cost of law enforcement,” she states. “When you consider the cost of incarceration is anywhere from $25,000 to $45,000 per year per prisoner, it becomes obvious more commonsense solutions are badly needed.”

The District 3 community should be involved in big development decisions.

"A development roughly the size of Hamilton Place, called 'Chattanooga Village', is being considered,” Yates notes. “The first phase will be a 400-unit apartment complex, with retail and offices developed thereafter. It being proposed for 193 acres on Highway 153 North adjacent to Boy Scout Road." While Yates recognizes the jobs and economic growth such a project would bring to the area, she believes a complete assessment must be done. “The community should decide this big issue,” she states.