Candidates for Fort Worth area Texas House District 94 on November 8 ballot
Tony Tinderholt
Political Party: Republican
Did not respond
Dennis Sherrard
Political party: Democrat
Age as of November 8, 2022: 63
Campaign website: www.dennisfortx94.com
Occupation: Retired IT Executive - Small Business Owner
Education: BA Political Science
Have you run for elected office before? (Please list previous offices sought)
No
Please list highlights of your civic involvement:
Volunteer various charities (Food Banks, Homeless Support, ); Former Precinct Chair; Former VP of local Democratic Club
Who are your top three campaign contributors?
myself; Lynn Morgan; Ted B. Lyon
What is the most important distinction between you and your opponent(s)?
I’m of the belief that representatives should actually listen and represent their constituents. All of their constituents.
What are the three biggest issues in this race?
Voting Rights; Women’s Rights to Bodily Autonomy; Gun Violence
Should property taxes be lowered? What can the state do to lower property taxes for Texans?
Yes. The current funding mechanisms are skewed to put burden of property taxes on residential homeowners. Tax law (specifically Chapter 312 and 313) of the current tax codes allow for abatements and exemptions of commercial property that decrease the amount of tax dollars collected. The burdens to cover the offset are then forced upon homeowners. Chapter 313 is set to expire at the end of 2022, and it should not be renewed.The Texas Constitution requires that taxes must be equal and uniform. No single property or type of property should pay more than its fair share. Unfortunately, Large commercial property owners pay far lower than the appraised value of their property. For example, residential property owners are taxed around 75% of the property’s market value whereas large properties such as multi-million dollar hotels are appraised at a far lower level of its market value (25%). Abatements and value offsets should be reformed so residential property owners see relief.
What should the state do to address immigration at the Texas-Mexico border?
The first thing to do is stop politicizing the issue. Democrats and Republicans have done a pitiful job for decades developing a real solution on this. It is both a federal and state responsibility to have a coherent immigration policy in our country and our state. The country and the state need immigrants. We have over 11 Million jobs open in this country and immigrants can fill many of those positions. Busing migrants to Washington D.C. doesn’t help.1. We need to enforce our laws. Those seeking asylum in this country are in a legal status that allows them to be here as their claims are processed. Those coming in illegally (e.g. no asylum claim), should be arrested and deported.2. The state specifically, can partner more effectively with federal law enforcement with respect to fighting human trafficking and drug importation. An actual cooperative level of enforcement would be beneficial to Texans as well as those who are legally attempting to come to the United States.
Do you support changes to Texas gun laws? If so, what changes? Would you support raising the age to buy AK-style rifles from 18 to 21?
Yes, Raising the age of acquisition to 21 years old for any weapon is a good start. So are Red Flag laws. So are universal background checks that include private sales. So is competency and proficiency training. The idea that anyone at age 18 being able to buy a gun with no training and understanding of the responsibility they have for safety is making the state more dangerous.As almost everyone knows, most deaths due to gun violence come from suicide (2/3rds) . The State’s performance on improving mental healthcare is pathetic and needs to be reformed and the issue is connected to gun violence.There are about 4,000 people who die in Texas every year from gun violence. That’s about 1 person every 2 hours.I know this is a controversial issue, particularly in Texas, but the current methods of dealing with gun violence are not working. I say so, the police say so, and families of the victims of gun violence say so. We have got to be better on this.
How should Texas continue its efforts to make schools safer?
I’m assuming the question is about making schools safer from gun violence. This is just one element of making schools “safer”. From a gun violence perspective, a two-pronged approach needs to be employed. First, getting smarter on who gets to acquire a gun is going to help the situation. Second, because many of the recent school shootings have been committed by students or former students, an increase of mental health resources in the schools would help identify at risk students, and then work to get them help before they act out. Any tactical element or method (e.g. entry and egress modification), additional school resource officers trained for emergency response, or other form of security that is practical should be adopted and employed.Other elements of school safety include ensuring the school facilities are up to code standards, have adequate HVAC and ventilation systems (e.g. HEPA filtration), clean water, and current fire control systems.
Should Texas change its abortion law to make exceptions for rape and/or incest? At what point in a pregnancy should abortion be barred, if at all?
Yes, Texas should codify Roe v. Wade into law. Abortion should not be barred. The decision to terminate a pregnancy is the woman’s and her physicians.
What can the state do to help students who are lagging behind grade level in subjects like math and reading? What specific policies do you support to improve achievement in Texas schools?
I think a moratorium on the STAAR testing is necessary and put in its place some measurement scheme to identify the gaps in grade-level achievement that some students are experiencing whether from the COVID interruptions of in-person learning or some other factor. An increase in remedial education resources with a specific goal to get students who are lagging back to grade level is warranted. An extension of the school year or the school day for additional time in classrooms may be needed in order to give students the in-person time that can help them get back to grade levels. Increased levels of para-professionals assisting teachers in the classroom to provide one-to-one learning time for students could also help facilitate improvement in achievement and should be considered where practical.
Should there be a statewide ban or limit on gender-affirming health care treatments for transgender Texans younger than 18? Which medical procedures or treatments and why? How should such a ban/limit be enforced?
No, I think this is a situation best left to the parents of the children and their physicians. The state shouldn’t be getting into this.
Do you support Medicaid expansion? What changes would you like to see in the healthcare system to make care more affordable and accessible?
Yes, it is shameful that Texas didn’t do this when it was originally possible. The state has left billions of dollars behind and it has severely affected Texas citizens. In my opinion this decision was a political decision more than anything else, and Texans suffered needlessly. If we expanded Medicaid, an additional 1.7 Million Texans would have access to health insurance that would allow them to be healthier. This needs to happen now. Additionally, the cost to healthcare for all Texans would be positively affected by expanding Medicaid because of the cost burden of the non-covered that are being paid by taxpayers for things like emergency room visits would be reduced. Additional work to lower or cap drug prices for those who are suffering from chronic illnesses is something the Texas legislature should consider. Driving down drug prices will be a major benefit to our seniors and many who need these drugs daily.
Texas is expected to have a huge budget surplus in the coming legislative session. How should those dollars be spent and what priorities should be addressed with those dollars?
There are three primary areas I would focus on with the surplus. 1. Critical Infrastructure reliability for obvious reasons. This includes not only the electric grid, but water systems across the state and an increase in broadband connectivity to rural areas. 2. Increased funding to Public Education in the form of elevated teacher pay and COLAs for retired teachers. 3. Re-open rural hospitals that have closed in the last few years. We’ve seen over 26 facilities closed since 2010 and it has made access to care much harder for rural Texans.
Should Texas loosen its marijuana laws? Would you support the legalization of marijuana for recreational and/or medical use?
Yes, and yes.
Should Texas legalize casino gambling? Should the state legalize sports betting? If so, what should be the framework and parameters?
Yes, and yes. I believe we should adopt gaming standards that are similar to those in place in Nevada. Strict controls and oversight of income flows through betting operations should be in place and audits performed on a regular basis. Gaming licenses should be hard to obtain, and once achieved, be re-evaluated on a periodic basis to ensure the entity is complying with the standards established.
Has the state done enough to fix the power grid? What should be done going forward to ensure its successful operation, particularly in times of extreme weather?
No, the state has not done enough.The state needs more transmission lines and more generation. Texas needs to build back-up generation capacity, by either interconnecting with the federal grid, or building it ourselves. Texas also needs to hold the “power supply chain” companies more accountable for their actions.We must also realize that Climate Change is going to continue to cause extreme swings in weather events (either like Winter Storm Uri, or the excessive heat waves we see in the summers), stressing our power infrastructure. Recognizing this and responding to it with a longer term strategy that adopts multiple sources of power generation, additional distribution methods, and holding the power suppliers and generators more accountability for power assurance is needed.
