Candidates for House Race 149 answer the questions on voters' minds based on Listening Lab Results
In sit down interviews with each candidate, 13WMAZ asked about issues important to you: Ethics in Government, Federal/State Spending/Taxes and Inflation.
13WMAZ is bringing the answers to questions you have for candidates for House Race 149 based on our Listening Lab survey.
This election cycle, we're incorporating the results we gathered from the Listening Lab surveys Central Georgians filled out earlier in the year.
In the Bleckley, Dodge, Twiggs and Wilkinson County areas, the top 5 issues participants pointed out were: ethics in government, federal/state/ spending taxes , immigration, blight and inflation.
We sat down with the two candidates in the race for House District 149: Democrat Floyd Griffin and Republican Ken Vance.
In separate sit down interviews, we discussed the issues you said were most important to you when it comes to the this race: spending, blight and inflation.
Here is what the candidates had to say:
Inflation Listening Lab Issue 1
What can the general assembly do to help with the problem of inflation?
Griffin: Well, working through the app, a preparation process and it really starts with the governor and providing a budget to the General Assembly to act on and it depends on what's in the budget and how we deal with that.
Vance: Well, it really goes down to the Agricultural and Consumer Affairs Committee in helping our farmers do the best they can as efficiently as they can. So those goods can go to market at, at a fair and reasonable rate and inflation. It's killing us going to the grocery store. Five dollars for a gallon of milk and three dollars for a dozen eggs is crazy. But we've got to do those things to help our farmers in Georgia produce good crops as efficiently as they can and sell them for a good price. And at the same time by doing that, we help the prices in Georgia and the grocery stores stabilize.
Federal/State Spending Listening Lab Issue 2
Do you have any ideas to help with decreasing taxes?
Griffin: We have to look at the budget. That is the main issue and determining what the taxes is gonna be. Therefore, I need to see what the governor's budget is gonna be about and if there is gonna be an increase or decrease in his budget. Then I have to look at the other legislation that comes forward to determine or that particular legislation is going to increase or decrease.
Vance: That's really a big, big thing. Sometimes you do something to help this over here and it hurts that over there. So, you've got to be kind of balanced about how you do this tax thing. You know, property tax owners, they certainly need some relief. The taxes on businesses, the employment taxes and all that they have to pay. We have to be very careful about how we do this and not try to [make] snap judgments.
Blight Listening Lab Issue 3
What is your plan to deal with blight in Milledgeville and surrounding counties?
Griffin: A lot of that deals with the local entities, the county and the city. I will work with the county and the city from a legislative standpoint to try to help with that. But they have to also play a major role in bringing their concerns to me as a legislator.
Vance: With blight, you have to go to those property owners and - I think Macon's done a pretty good job of it - go to those property owners, give them an amount of time to fix up their property and, and if not, then you have to do those necessary governmental regulatory things in order to make it right. I do think Macon has done a good job. I think they're an example to a lot of cities around the state.
Meet the Candidates Background
Both candidates have been in politics for multiple years.
They're also both fathers, and both live in Milledgeville
This election cycle, we're incorporating the results we gathered from the listening lab surveys you filled out earlier in the year and curating a list of questions to ask candidates in Central Georgia.