Frey on Olney issues
The Enterprise queried Texas Senate candidates on local issues, and received responses from Democrat Dale Frey. Republican Brent Hagenbuch did not respond to several emails and phone calls.
Enterprise: What is your position on school vouchers?
Dale Frey: I stand against the School Voucher Scam. I always need to remind those on the other side of the aisle that this “School Choice” program is not true “Choice” when it takes away our Choice of Public Schools for those parents who like them. That is exactly what this program is designed to do, and if you need any proof of this, look at the fact that this program does not utilize the massive surplus that we very much do have in Texas. Our Great State of Texas is the 8th largest economy in the world behind France - so we can pay for our broken roads, our infrastructure, or even a School Choice Program if we really wanted to, but, this “School Choice” program is deliberately designed to not utilize this surplus. It instead sacrifices Public Education funding from our already defunded Public Schools. The School Voucher Scam is not the will of the people - it is the will of Tim Dunn and Faris Wilks, the two top Texas GOP donor extremists.
Enterprise: What can Olney do to bridge the gap between its $13.5 million in bond revenue and the $16 million-plus cost of a new water treatment plant?
Mr. Frey: This indeed is a complicated matter, but there are a combination of things that can help at the local level, and I believe Olney deserves some assistance from the State level as well. First, at the local level, Olney should utilize low-interest loans from the USDA as well as make some attempts to see if it is possible to rebid or adjust the project scope to see if we can bring down the needed cost. At the State Level, I believe that the purpose of Proposition 6 was to assist us here - I believe it is ridiculous to say Olney does not [yet] qualify for Prop 6 and that we need to wait for us to fall into an emergency situation. As your State Senator, I will make arguments and challenge any claims of Olney not meeting the qualifications for Prop 6. We also should be utilizing our massive surplus in Texas to invest in our water grid - this is a problem throughout all of Texas. It’s not just Olney, Wichita Falls, along with many other areas are facing water scarcity issues. We need to invest more into water transport infrastructure, water recycling centers, and water reservoirs.
Enterprise: What can be done about the lack of mental health services in Olney?
The lack of mental health services in rural towns like Olney is a widespread issue, and there are several strategies we can take on this. On the local level, and I know it sounds exhausting, but we must continue lobbying - while Olney’s initial efforts may not have been successful, there are several funding mechanisms that support mental health services we can shoot for; i.e. via the Texas Health and Human Services Commission, and with applying for grants from programs like the SAMHSA or the Texas Resiliency and Recovery program.
Aside from that, given the remote nature of Olney, expanding telehealth services for mental health could be one of the quickest and most effective solutions.
I believe in also petitioning our Mobile Crisis Outreach Teams (MCOT) to be readily available in the area, and pushing for 24/7 coverage in our Texas rural regions.
Enterprise: What is your stance on Texas’ ban on abortions? Does this law need to be adjusted and if so, how would you adjust it?
It is absolutely ridiculous to think that things have gotten this far. It is absolutely ridiculous to think that in this state, there are no exceptions for incest, no exceptions for rape, no exceptions for child-incest, nor any exceptions for child-rape. I believe in putting the Choice to the patient and the doctor. Uncle Sam has no business forcing his way into the room when you are consulting your OBGYN. A woman’s body does not belong to Uncle Sam, it belongs to herself. Full stop.