District 8 Utah House hopefuls Kyle, Waldrip focused on taxes, education
Steve Waldrip, left, and Jason Kyle face off in the June 26, 2018, Republican primary for the District 8 seat in the Utah House, which covers the East Bench of Ogden and eastern Weber County. They're pictured at a June 5, 2018, debate at Pleasant Valley Branch library in Washington Terrace.
Steve Waldrip listens to other candidates during a debate for Republican primary candidates at Pleasant Valley Library on Tuesday, June 5, 2018. Waldrip is running to represent Utah House District 8.
Jason Kyle answers a question during a debate for Republican primary candidates at Pleasant Valley Library on Tuesday, June 5, 2018. Kyle is running to represent Utah House District 8.
For Jason Kyle, Republican hopeful for the District 8 seat in the Utah House, taxes are the thing.
“People, they’re sick of being taxed,” he said. “For people on a fixed income and young families, the taxes really hurt them.”
Steve Waldrip, also vying for the seat, puts an emphasis on his business background and involvement with government through business and community service.
At Business Depot Ogden, where he was project manager for 13 years, he helped bring in 4,000 jobs and $500 million in private business, by his reckoning. He worked with government economic development officials in his BDO role and currently serves on the Ogden Valley Planning Commission, an appointed Weber County body that addresses planning and zoning issues.
The two face off in the June 26 GOP primary with the winner facing Democrat Deana Froerer in the Nov. 6 general election. District 8 covers part of Harrisville, the East Bench of Ogden and the largely rural expanse of eastern Weber County. Gage Froerer — the current District 8 representative and Deana Froerer’s brother-in-law — isn’t seeking re-election to the post but is running for a Weber County Commission seat instead.
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As for issues, Waldrip, who lives in Eden and now runs his own consulting firm, Waldrip Management, education is the top priority. “We value education highly in our state but our actions don’t always match our values,” he said.
He advocates for higher teacher salaries and thinks there are several areas to explore to come up with the needed resources. Reform of outdated provisions of the tax code might benefit businesses, helping generate extra revenue, while review of state tax incentives and the firms getting them could yield savings.
Beyond that, he said $600 million a year in general fund money goes toward transportation infrastructure and calls for a closer look to figure out if there are ways to limit such transfers. “We need to balance that aspect of our budget,” he said.
Kyle says the state needs to move to zero-based budgeting or some other means of more closely scrutinizing the spending plan on a regular basis. He’s environmental health and safety manager at a medical imaging company and lives in Huntsville.
“I’m the candidate that will help protect the rights of the people,” he said. “I’ll defend our Constitution vigorously.”
Contact reporter Tim Vandenack at tvandenack@standard.net, follow him on Twitter at @timvandenack or like him on Facebook at Facebook.com/timvandenackreporter.
