COUNTY COMMISSION 19TH DISTRICT

Most of Birmingham, Part of Royal Oak, Huntington Woods, Ferndale

DEMOCRAT

CHARLIE CAVELL

Charlie Cavell is currently completing his first term as county commissioner for the 19th District. Prior to becoming a commissioner, Cavell worked as a housing advocate at a homeless shelter, a counselor in Detroit Public Schools, and as a policy staffer. He is a board member for Community Corrections Advisory Board, Substance Use Disorder Policy Board, OCHN, Area Agency on Aging and is on the executive committee for Southeast Michigan Council of Governments (SEMCOG). Cavell has a bachelor's in social work from Wayne State University and a masters in social work from University of Michigan.

Underground and surface waters

While I support this very much in spirit, Oakland County as a government cannot supersede the local control given to cities, villages and townships set forth in state law. Despite that I do believe that we must protect our water as it will only become more valuable as climate change and development progress.

Septic testing at point of sale

In short, yes, I agree. There are many things that homebuyers are not made aware of at the purchase of a home. This includes septic system viability. It also includes property tax pop-ups. Both of these, and more, are issues I and the OakGov team have looked into changing locally but have found this is in fact a state issue. That being said, we can and should fund our dealth Department more robustly to be able to protect our water.

Public museums tax

Yes. I also think we should make sure the proposals replicate what the DIA did to insure free entry to all Wayne, Oakland and Macomb County residents as well as fund community centered programming. This way people will more easily see their taxes at work.

Validity of voting returns

Yes, yes.

Key issues

The two numbers that give me the most concern are: 1) 31 percent of Oakland County households cannot afford a $400 emergency (United Way ALICE report); 2) 5,000 children under the age of 18 are unhoused in Oakland County (Oakland Schools, Homeless liaison). Our society is not thriving when so many people are so close to not surviving. I have and will continue to work to make (a) basic needs more widely available ($25 million towards attainable housing, erasing medical debt for 80,000 families); (b) provide options for a good quality of life (Student Loan Forgiveness Initiative launching in September); and (c) make myself available to people so they will believe in their governments ability to improve our community.

REPUBLICAN

PAUL TAROS

Paul Taros is retired. He has a bachelor's degree in business administration from University of Michigan and a master's degree in business administration from Wayne State University.

Underground and surface waters

The author of this question seems to want the government to control every aspect of our lives. Everyone wants clean drinking water and safe lakes to swim in. We already have numerous agencies that monitor and protect our water. We do not need more regulations and a bigger government to monitor how much lawn fertilizer and weed control chemicals we use.

Septic testing at point of sale

I trust people to act in their own best interest. A buyer would ask about the condition of the septic system and maybe request an inspection, so they would know the condition of the septic system and whether any major repairs will be required. So, no, I do not think the county commissioners should adopt a requirement that a septic system must be tested before a home is sold.

Public museums tax

\Art museums, zoos and other institutions fill one’s soul with wonder and amazement. However, the Detroit Institute of Arts, which has assets in excess of $500 million in assets, still thinks it’s entitled to the hard-earned money of taxpayers. The executive director of the DIA receives a salary of over $500,000 a year but is still incapable of figuring out how to operate the DIA without taxpayer assistance. In these tough economic times taxpayers do not need more taxes. So, no, I would not be in favor of asking taxpayers for another tax.

Validity of voting returns

The McBroom report cited many errors and irregularities made by Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson.The report stated that the mass mailings of absentee voter ballots and applications were troubling. The report states “it appears the list chosen by the Secretary of State's Bureau of Elections were often older and previously purged.” This raises the question why was this error made or was it done intentionally by people in the Secretary of State's office? The report talks about 289,866 illegal votes as determined by the Voter Integrity Project, yet they did not pursue and investigate this issue. The Michigan court of claims struck down Jocelyn Benson's guidance on signature matching which required workers to presume the validity of signatures, ruling that mandating such was a direct violation of the administrative procedures act. There seems to be numerous errors on the part of the Secretary of State, which merits further investigation into the SOS’s actions and the election results. Considering the above facts, I will not accept the results of the 2020 election until an impartial investigation is conducted into the above irregularities. I will certainly accept the results of the 2024 election if it is conducted fairly and free of fraud.

Key issues

Keeping Oakland County’s AAA bond rating is particularly important. A key aspect of being fiscally responsible is the ability to prioritize our spending. My opponent supports crony capitalism. He wants to give millions of taxpayer dollars to wealthy developers, so they can build low-income housing in neighborhoods over the objections of area residents. The free market is the best method of allocating capital. Therefore, it follows that if Oakland County needs low-income housing, developers will undertake these projects without the use of taxpayer dollars because it is profitable for them to do so. By eliminating subsidies and handouts to well-connected businesses, we can strengthen our balance sheet and increase our funding for the Sheriff’s Department, mental health services and other important programs. The current commissioner foolishly wants to end cash bail for nonviolent offenses, while I strongly support law enforcement and want to continue requiring bail for criminal offenses.