Jeff Frederick Wants To "End Politics As Usual"

Candidate provided profile:

Jeffrey M. Frederick served three terms in the House of Delegates, the lower body of the General Assembly of Virginia representing Eastern Prince William County, one of nine jurisdictions in Northern Virginia. He is the first and only Latino ever elected to the Virginia legislature.

During his legislative career, Mr. Frederick was a member of four standing committees: Finance; Transportation; Health, Welfare, and Institutions; and Privileges and Elections. He was first elected in November 2003, re-elected in November 2005, and again in November 2007 with 59% of the vote — in what many view as a strongly Democratic-leaning district.

He has served on several boards and commissions, among them the Northern Virginia Transportation Authority, and the Virginia Small Business Commission, where he was Chairman.

Jeff is a concerned citizen and community activist, having served on the Civilian-Military Council at Marine Corps Base Quantico and is a graduate of the FBI (Federal Bureau of Investigation) Citizen’s Academy. He has been active with Virginia Citizen’s League, the Masons, and a past member of the board of directors for the National Capitol Area Chrysalis/Emmaus community. He also previously served on the boards of both the Hispanic Business Roundtable and the Latino Coalition. Jeff and his family attend All Saints Church in Dale City, Virginia.

Professionally, Jeff is Chief Executive Officer of GXS Strategies, a Virginia based internet, technology, and communications company. He founded the company in 1998, which specializes in online activism and in providing IT solutions to government agencies. He is also President of Tribord Management, a real estate investment management firm.

Jeff is a graduate of Oxford College and Emory University with degrees in economics and political science.

Jeff is a Virginia native (born in Fairfax hospital). He and his wife, Amy, live in Montclair with their children Gracie, Isabel, and Michael.

Jeff Frederick's Official Campaign Website

Question 1: What is the top issue facing the residents of the 36th District and how do you plan to address it?

I want my three children to grow up in as good or even a better Virginia than I grew up in. But when the state Senate responds to every challenge facing us with job-killing tax hikes, new regulations and wasteful government programs, it makes a mess of our economy and jeopardizes Virginia's future. To create jobs and help Virginia families, we need to get the government out of the way; improve transportation and infrastructure; end government waste so we can fund our priorities; and ensure children are getting the quality education they deserve.

It's time to put people over politics.

Question 2: Should Virginia stop being in the business of selling alcohol? Why or why not?

Yes and no.  We need to find the right balance between appropriate and limited regulation of alcohol while getting the government out of the exchange of commerce between private individuals or entities.

Question 3: Would you support an increase in the gasoline tax if it went to fixing transportation problems only? Why or why not?

No. People are struggling and can’t afford to pay more in taxes.  And, state government has enough money.  Families and small businesses have to figure out how to do more with less every day; to prioritize and make ends meet.  Small businesses are faced with a constant challenge to do things better, faster, and cheaper.  Part of our problem is that government continues to approach things with the same outdated methods and proposed solutions.  For example, while having Metro move south is a laudable and desirable goal I support, given that it is a $3 billion project that would take at least 20 years to complete, that’s not something I view as viable.  Yet, a more modern solution for transit along our major corridors is Bus Rapid Transit (BRT), which looks and acts just like a Metro train, with platform stations and dedicated travel lanes (but pavement instead of tracks) costs a fraction of the cost of Metro to build and maintain, and is adaptable to changing preferences, such as a move of job centers.  BRT is being used very successfully in other parts of the world.  Too often government makes the process the goal – like is the goal to get Metro south, or is the goal to provide better mass transit options?  I’d go with the latter, so let’s focus more on the result rather than the method.  Another example, VDOT measuring their success on how many projects are on time/on budget and how many roads they build.  In my small business, on time/on budget is a requirement, not an accomplishment.  We should be spending our transportation dollars almost exclusively on things that reduce or eliminate congestion; and we should be measuring our success in addressing transportation on one metric: how much each taxpayer dollar going to transportation is reducing or eliminating congestion.  That’s it.  People don’t care how many roads are built, interchanges reconfigured, or how many buses are on the roads – all they care about are results – and in the case of transportation – the ability to get from point A to point B in a reasonable period of time.

And, the notion that we can “fix” transportation simply by raising the gas tax (or other taxes) is false and misleading.  In northern Virginia, we will likely never get transportation fixed until we are able to better link transportation plans to land use planning.  That is, we need to do a better job of ensuring that transportation infrastructure (as well as schools, public safety, etc. for that matter) are in place before new development. With more fuel efficient vehicles on the roads, the gas tax is a poor way to fund transportation.

That all said, having an economics degree, I think it is crazy that we have a fixed amount tax, such as the flat 17.5 cent per gallon tax on gas.  It should be a percentage that grows with inflation and the economy over time.  I’m not advocating a tax hike, but rather changing the current flat tax to a revenue neutral percentage that can keep pace with the economy over time.

Finally, our roads are not being funded because Richmond CHOOSES not to give us the money we need. Virginia's budget has almost doubled in the past decade, but transportation funding has not.  And after the first ever independent audit of VDOT, over $1 Billion was found in unspent funds.  The money is there for transportation, but NOVA isn't getting its fair share.

Question 4: There has been a lot of discussion about revitalizing the Rt. 1 Corridor. How would you support this initiative if elected?

In the House of Delegates, I sponsored legislation that would require infrastructure before growth, insuring we have roads, schools, and public safety in place before new development.  My legislation also provided the funding to expand commuter parking lots for sluggers along Route 1.

But there is still much to do, and a great deal of potential.

We need to provide the right incentives to attract businesses to the Rt. 1 corridor, tying those incentives to number of jobs created; and we need to provide the right incentives to attract investments to the corridor, tying those incentives to each dollar invested.  Doing these things will create a rising tide for our area, lifting all boats, with new and higher paying jobs created and a revitalized Rt. 1 with higher end retail establishments and real, practical, and cost effective transportation improvements.  Studying things is great, but we can’t continue to study Rt. 1 for another 20 years – we must get on with making our area a better place to life, work, and raise a family.

This isn’t rocket science.  All over the world where the goal has been to grow a local economy and revitalize a community, the tools are not new or unique.  But you must act.  For example, Ireland cut their corporate tax rates and the result was that businesses flocked there, hired employees, and the economy grew.  Another example is the city of Richmond.  The main drag there is Broad Street – which a decade ago was not the kind of place you wanted to get out of your car at night and walk around.  Today it is a booming place, with new restaurants, hotels, a theater (not a movie theater, but a real one with shows, etc.), a new courthouse, and much more.  Richmond used a property tax abatement program that keeps property taxes on improved properties the same as they were before the improvements for at least a decade into the future.  That’s how Richmond has attracted so much investment that has been the cornerstone of the revitalization there.

With BRAC coming to Belvoir at the top of this district and Quantico at the bottom, not only do we have an obligation to address the challenges along Rt. 1, we have such an opportunity filled with potential.  Again, we can’t afford to study Rt. 1 for another 20 years – let’s get on with it.

Question 5: Unfunded mandates cause big problems for local governments. Just like some candidates sign a no-tax pledge, would you ever consider singing a pledge to not approve unfunded mandates? Why or why not?

Yes, I would consider signing such a pledge.  So much of the way government is run in Virginia from the state level to the localities is antiquated.  We’ve got to have fundamental reform on a host of things (taxation, transportation, land use, education, for example), and in doing so, develop a stronger partnership with localities where they can focus on what they can do best, while the state focuses on those things it can and should do well.  Unfunded mandates are just gimmicks to pass the buck to localities from the state. We can’t keep doing the same thing over and over again and expect a different result.