Dan McDonald

1. I have a long track record of service to the community and felt my skills learned in business, my ability to manage large groups of people and my complex problem solving skills would prove to be helpful in providing the services needed by county residents from county government

2. Besides political experience, what unique qualifications would you bring to office that no one else could match? I don’t have political experience, my experience is in efficiently running large businesses. The county is basically a $55 million corporation with over 300 employees. My experience matches up perfectly for managing an organization of this size. I am also a creative problem solver that listens to all sides of a position before forming an opinion. I place a high value on honesty and integrity and will bring those values to the office of commissioner.

3. Top three issues not necessarily in order are the local economy, protecting the culture and rural nature of Bonner County and affordable housing.

4. A number of these issues can be address via smart planning and creating an environment that invites business in while protecting the rural nature we all love. It’s not an eith-er/or and both can be accomplish- ed based on the my re- search to date.

5. It would be to create a path to prosperity while protecting the local culture. We lose a great deal of our local kids as they can’t find careers here, that is a drain on both our culture and hurts everyone in Bonner County.

6. I do support HJR 5 and I have looked at how rules and regulations can and do go around those we have elected to represent us.

7. No. However, currently education funding takes up more than 60 percent of the state budget. We do however have an endowment fund at the state level with a great deal of money that I would like to see utilized to improve school facilities. With respect to education, the LPOSD had done an excellent job providing a high quality of education at a minimal cost. As a publically funded entity, I fully support their ability to be fiscally responsible while retaining their high educational rating.

8. I don’t but like education, I think the missing piece is the federal endowment dollars that dried up when we stopped properly managing the federal lands. New legislation and partnering may help provide some financial relief for both transportation and schools in the near future.

9. I do support it. It really shouldn’t have an effect on those employees who continue to do the excellent work they are currently doing. I’ve had the opportunity to interact with the department heads and a number of the employees and I believe we have some of the finest people in the County working for the people of the county. While there is a great deal of hype and hand wringing over this, I believe we will find that it will be business as usual.

10. Absolutely yes. P&Z is there to serve the people of the County while protecting the rules and regulations. The new director understands the service side of his job and his department are looking for creative ways to reduce the time and money required to develop their property. This will increase construction and provide a vehicle for both job creation and economic growth while staying within the parameters of our Zoning ordinances.

11. While I don’t have an issue with conservation easements, my bone of contention is primarily with the Forest Legacy program that provides tax dollars to for profit companies and individuals who still retain the land and the ability to, in this case log it. Seems like a big gift in a time where our country is $20 trillion in debt. My other concern is the reduction in access that goes along with these types of easements. I felt the easement could have been better planned to provide more mixed use opportunities while protecting the ecologically sensitive areas.

12. At the county level, I don’t currently see one issue overcrowding another.

13. As previously stated, it’s the economy and jobs. Our county’s economy is lagging behind that of most counties in the state. The current commissioners have laid the groundwork and have taken proactive steps to create the environment to improve the economy and I will continue to do the same.

14. Other than the normal demonization from a small group in the opposing party, I really haven’t faced a great deal of criticism. That being said, I have no issue listening and taking criticism as it creates learning opportunities as long as the criticism is based in fact.

15. There are a great number of factors that affect job growth and wage increases, some are within our control, some not. I will be looking for opportunities to create an environment that will attract the kinds of businesses that are a good fit within our county and thereby bring good jobs.

16. Well, after going through 15 questions, I really can’t imagine looking for another question to answer. That being said, I believe that anyone who seeks a political position needs to have a heart for service. Political office is a service position so the question would be to describe their past experience serving others and their plans to do so while in office.

I have an extensive track record of serving our community as a whole. Part of what if do in my current job is to provide good service. I plan on taking the same posture as commissioner, I am here to serve the people of Bonner County to the very best of my ability.