Tim Moore

State Rep. Tim Moore was elected in November 2004 to his first term in the Michigan House to represent residents of Arenac, Clare, Gladwin, and northern Bay counties.  He was re-elected to his second term in 2006.  Prior to serving in the Legislature, he owned and operated Moore’s Napa Auto in Farwell.  Rep. Moore is married to Andrea and they have three boys: T.J. (6), Brennan (5), and Nikolas (22 months).  They reside in Farwell.

Monday

April 28, 2008

Making Our Communities “The Place to Live”

How fitting it is that I have the opportunity today to blog on the Michigan Municipal League website, because today I am attending a meeting with teachers from my district, and then later attending an event with local government officials in Gladwin County.

At my meeting with the group of teachers we will be discussing ways to improve the quality of education in our area, as well as the funding challenges local school districts have.  In order to make our area the most desirable place to live, our communities must provide quality education programs so that our children will find good paying jobs and stay in Michigan.  Since joining the Legislature, I have been an advocate for increasing the state aid to the lowest-funded schools in Michigan and in my district.  We need to be equally funded with all of the schools in the state so that our students have every opportunity given to other students in Michigan.

I am also looking forward to sitting down with local government officials in Gladwin County today and discussing issues relevant to them.  I would like to thank Kerry Posey, Madalyn J. Hubble, and Dennis Perry for organizing this event.  We will be sitting down to discuss in a bipartisan manner what can be done to make Gladwin “The Place to Live.”  We have incredible natural resources and talented, hard working people in the 97th District, and our job as elected officials is to be the top promoters for our area as both a destination to live and a destination to visit.  Topics will include infrastructure, tourism, and revenue sharing amongst others.  If you have not already done so, come visit Gladwin this summer, I promise that you will enjoy it.

Check back tomorrow to hear Tim’s thoughts on fixing Michigan’s mortgage crisis.

Tuesday

April 29, 2008

Fixing Michigan’s Mortgage Crisis

Today, much of my day in Lansing is scheduled for committee meetings, House session, and visiting people from the district who are at the Capitol attending various functions.  For instance, we have members from the Michigan Retired School Personnel downtown for a reception.  I also have a constituent in town to receive an award from the Michigan Community Action Agency.  I would like to thank Jill Sutton and everyone associated with the agency for the hard work that they do for the residents of the 97th District.

I would also like to apologize to Sharon Stalsberg, the township supervisor from Pinconning Township.  The township is receiving grant and loan money from the USDA Rural Development in conjunction with Earth Day.  Today is an exciting and big day for the township, but unfortunately as often happens due to committee and House session schedules, I cannot attend.  I will be sending a member of my staff to convey congratulations to Pinconning Township officials and residents.  Keep up the good work!
 
Now to our Mortgage Crisis.  The committee I attended today was Banking and Financial Services, which I serve on as vice chair.  We have been working months to develop solutions to the mortgage crisis here in Michigan.  Michigan is struggling worse then most states with home foreclosures and action is needed.  With our economy already struggling and more people leaving Michigan then coming to Michigan, the Legislature must take steps to help keep families in their homes without causing an overwhelming burden.

Check back tomorrow to hear Tim’s thoughts on taxpayers and government spending.

Wednesday

April 30, 2008

Taxpayers Deserve Access to Government Spending

The Legislature’s work on next year’s state budget has been the focus in Lansing for the last few weeks, and much of the initial negotiating will be continuing for the coming weeks before all the numbers are in place and agreed on.  As legislators, we have access to the pages and pages of dollar amounts that make up Michigan’s annual spending so we can review the priorities and make informed decisions.  Many of us have supported making this information available to the public via the Internet so that state taxpayers should be able to see exactly where their valuable dollars are being used by their government.

Attorney General Mike Cox and Secretary of State Terri Lynn Land have already posted their departmental spending on a website allowing Michigan citizens to look at the name of the vendor, the type of service being provided, the term of contract, the amount of the contract, how much has been spent, and how much is still outstanding on each and every contract.  The House has under consideration legislation to implement similar access to all state department information in its Government Funding, Accountability and Transparency Act, or FAT Act.  The measure is fashioned after bipartisan federal legislation that became law in 2006 to require the federal government to post itemized spending reports online.

I believe opening government spending information for the public to view will put an end to mismanagement and overspending, which will help eliminate the need for future tax increases.  Allowing taxpayers to see how their money is being spent on their behalf also will increase their understanding of the financial balancing act the state must perform and encourage everyone to be active in supporting priorities to focus on in Michigan.

Check back tomorrow to hear Tim’s thoughts on visiting Lansing.

Thursday

May 1, 2008

Local Residents Visit Lansing for Business, Pleasure

Our 2009 budget work continues today, and this time it includes a visit to the Senate side of the Legislature with Clare County resident Sheila Bissonette.  Sheila is from the Pere Marquette Library in Clare and she is in Lansing today to testify before the Senate committee on the state History, Arts and Library Department budget.  I just saw Sheila not too long ago when I visited the library to read to children throughout Arenac, Clare, Gladwin, and Bay counties libraries and elementary schools during ‘March is Reading Month.’  I commend Sheila and all those who work hard to make our public library system work for residents who otherwise would not have access to the wide variety of information and services libraries deliver to our communities.  I was happy to support Sheila and her testimony for the importance of continued state support for public libraries.  As the Senate committee members work on finalizing the HAL budget proposal, I will continue to remind them of the great points Sheila presented them at the hearing, and work with my colleagues to ensure on-going funding for libraries.

It was also my pleasure to see and hear the Linwood Elementary Choir at the Capitol today as the students came down for a special singing performance.  School groups and other organizations frequently perform on the front Capitol steps for all to enjoy.  Often, the participants are from the Lansing area because of the distance and time constraints of the school programs, so it was great to have the Linwood students able to make the trip.

Check back tomorrow to hear Tim’s thoughts on keeping communication lines open.

Friday

May 2, 2008

Area Meetings, Appointments Help Keep Communication Lines Open

My schedule today includes a regular monthly meeting with Bay-Arenac Intermediate School District officials and leaders.  These meetings, and similar ones with officials from other school districts, help keep me informed on education issues that face our communities.  They also give me an opportunity to share what the Legislature has been working on regarding education, along with what could be coming up next.  I am able to hear the thoughts, concerns, and opinions of the people who know best how some of the proposals will affect our schools, make suggestions on how to improve those ideas, or even supply me with the information to fight against proposals that will not serve our students best.  As you can guess, a frequent topic centers around education funding, which goes back to the equity issue and closing the state aid gap, but the meetings often touch on such a wide range of issues—both in the schools and throughout the region—that are challenging or encouraging our people.  I am very appreciative of these chances to share and learn from these folks so I can best represent our communities’ needs.

While on the east side of the 97th District, I took the opportunity to stop in at the Bay County Building.  I like to visit informally with our area elected officials and those who serve the public’s needs when I’m out and about in between appointments.  Much like the school meetings, my time with County Clerk Cynthia Luczak and her employees keeps me in touch with local happenings, strengthens our line of communication if there is a local issue I can help in Lansing with, and provides me another view of how our state government can support local efforts.

My Friday appointments wrap up in Arenac County on a meeting with a resident that has asked to share information and concerns about the roads.  I receive many calls each day from 97th District constituents at my Lansing office who are looking for help on various state level issues or with state departments, and much of these inquiries and assistance I can provide over the telephone.  I also have regular office hours in each county about once a month so that people can come in just to say hello and visit, or if they have an issue that needs working.  If the topic is more involved than a simple phone call, the person can’t make the office hour period, or it needs more time to go over the information, or we need to look at something at a specific site, I always try to be available to visit directly with the person.  This can be difficult to arrange, but I enjoy that part of the representative job that lets me meet residents directly and help make even a small difference in their lives.

In closing, today’s blog, I want to thank the MML crew for giving me this opportunity to share my week and my thoughts with their readers.  I welcome everyone to come enjoy all the 97th District and its people have to offer visitors to our area, and I look forward to what is yet to come for our great state of Michigan.

Check back on Monday to hear from Secretary of State Terri Lynn Land.