Additions to last week's Election Edition

The following candidate profiles are being printed following the July 30 Big Horn County Newspapers Election Edition. Bryan McCarty’s questionairre was returned on time, but missed, we apologize for the error. Jeff McCollam’s has been included as a late entry at his request. Candidates’ responses are printed as received, with spelling, grammatical and word-limit edits as needed.

Big Horn County Commissioner

Jeff McCollam (R)

Bio

I am Jeff McCollam, and I am running for Big Horn County Commissioner. I live in Lovell. I have three sons and 11 grandchildren. We all live in Big Horn County. I have lived in Big Horn County most of my life. I’m a high school graduate. I have worked in the oil field, construction and mechanical fields. I own an auto repair and sales business in Lovell. I have no conflicts of interest. I just feel that together we can preserve what we have in Big Horn County and plan for the future opportunities.

What do you believe are the top issues facing the county?

Roads need fixed. There are county paved roads that haven’t been touched for years. They need to be chip sealed or repaired to preserve them for a few more years. Replacing them will be expensive. Landfills are expensive to go dump trash by the pound. Years ago it didn’t cost to dump in the landfill. Now people are dumping all over in the hills. We need this to stop. Libraries are important. My granddaughters use Lovell’s library very often. WiFi in the library helps families on hard times that can’t afford it or people unemployed for job searches and unemployment benefits. County fair is important. Kids learn a lot raising animals and working together. There is a need for every department in the county.

What are you bringing to the office that will help with these issues?

I like to work with numbers. I have been going through the past few years of our budget, expenses, wages, etc. There are departments that overspend what was to be their budget, and there are departments that don’t spend what they were supposed to spend. I feel that I could help the other commissioners go through our budget, looking at past records, and we can come up with a budget that is more accurate for what we need.

How will you prioritize with a shrinking county budget? 

I kind of went over this already. I do have a few ideas of other revenue that we can receive, and I believe there is some wasteful spending that can be cut back. There should be bids let out on purchases and sales. We should try to spend within the county and use businesses in the county, utilize the buildings we have in the north and south and maintain them properly.

What is your stance on government transparency? How do you hope to keep the public in the loop?

I want the public in the loop. Every newspaper should print the minutes, budget, wages, expenses of all county and town business. It’s important the taxpayers know how their money is spent. Every person needs accountability for everything.

If anyone wants to talk on issues or have questions, they can look me up on Facebook page at Jeff McCollam for county commissioner or they can stop by my shop in Lovell at 105 East Main. I would like to answer everyone’s questions.

Secretary of state

Bryan McCarty (D)

Bio 

Hometown Mansfield, OH, mostly grew up In St. Louis, MO; education: MBA, University of British Columbia; work history: mostly railroad industry related: largely BNSF Railway and both predecessors and General Electric’s locomotive business; party affiliation: Democrat; How long have you lived in Wyoming: seven years. 

Voter ID and fraud have been in the news a lot recently.  What are your thoughts about those issues in Wyoming?

Negligible meaningful impact on any modern-day election, proposed fixes largely already incorporated into voter registration and election administration processes. A contrived non-issue.

Several states, including Wyoming, provided their voter information to the federal government.  What are your thoughts about this?

Illegal, and perpetrators should be tried in court.

What will be your stance on registered agents?

Not clear what the point of the question is. Overall, I would say it is fine, as long as they comply with the law defining their activities.    

The SOS office does more than elections. Could you expand briefly on those duties and how you prioritize them?

Other than ensuring secure, valid elections, my top priority would be to administer Wyoming’s public lands as the vast majority of voting age residents agree they should. 

What is your stance on government transparency including public notices, open meetings, public records and communication with the press? How do you hope to keep the public in the loop? 

Transparency of the activities of elected officials in the execution of their duties is indispensable for a functioning democracy. I would do everything practical (especially legally required) to maintain public transparency of my activities in executing my duties.