Craig Wilcox: Candidate Profile

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Note: Answers provided have not been edited for grammar, misspellings or typos. In some instances, candidate claims that could not be immediately verified have been omitted. Jump to:BioQA Bio City: McHenryWebsite: www.ElectColonelCraigWilcox.comTwitter: Candidate did not respond.Facebook: Candidate did not respond.Office sought: McHenry County Board District 4 Age: 48Family: JaniceJoey-high school seniorAlissa-5th gradeBriana-5th gradeOccupation: Ethics and Leadership InstructorEducation: Bachelors - Electrical EngineerMBA - Business ManagementMasters - Military Operational Art ScienceMasters - National Resource StrategyCivic involvement: Veterans Assistance Commission DelegateVFW Post 4600 memberAmerican Legion Post 481 memberMoose Lodge memberEmcee - Keep the Spirit of '45 AliveElected offices held: Candidate did not respond.Questions Answers There were significant voting problems in the March primary. Are you confident sufficient steps have been taken to avoid a repeat in November? What role, if any, should the county board have in such matters?I am not confident that sufficient steps have been taken to avoid a repeat problem and will personally be visiting each polling location in McHenry County District 4, like I did during the primary election, to check on voter confidence that their votes will be counted and their perception of the service provided by the elected County Clerk and their office. The county board members represent the voters and need to actively voice their concern if any elected official, including fellow board members, are failing to meet the expectations of the position they are elected to hold.Why are you running for this office, whether for re-election or election for the first time? Is there a particular issue that motivates you? If so, what?I am running to serve my local community and be a prime proponent for reducing property taxes across the board. We need solutions that reduce the number of government entities and reduce the levy demand placed upon our homeowners and business owners. No longer should voters accept any answer from an elected official or board other than reduced levies. The days are gone where elected officials should ever say "we are only X% of the tax bill" or "we must take the PTELL increase or else we are leaving money on the table". Taxpayer money belongs to taxpayers.Describe your position regarding the balance between county spending and revenues as it exists today, then describe the chief threats you see looming in the future and how the county should deal with them.My opinion holds that tax levying bodies in McHenry County have a propensity towards grabbing as much tax revenue as possible under PTELL, and then find ways to spend that revenue or hold it in reserves for capital projects that should be voter referendum issues. That is the chief threat to McHenry...the taxing bodies budgeting process. That process needs to change and we must aggressively pursue a process that identifies what is the minimum required, and then spend even less. Tax revenue must remain in taxpayer wallets until it is needed, and only then for voter approved activities.How do you rate the county government on transparency and the public's access to records? If you consider it adequate, please explain why. If you think improvements are needed, please describe them and why they are important.When I first considered entering the race for County Board, I was amazed at the issues and detail I could find on the local government websites. I felt that the county board was being very transparent, or atlas complying with the letter and intent of transparency guides. However, as I have learned, not all taxing bodies in McHenry are as transparent, and their are still issues with tax funds in reserve accounts, or exchanges between funds that occur quietly with questionable goals in mind. We need a government of the people, by the people, for the people...period!Please list any elected office you've ever run for and what the result of that election was. Have you ever been appointed to fill an unexpired term?My first race was for County Board in the Primary Election this past March. We received more votes than any challenger, in any County District, so we are excited and energized going into the General Election.What other issues, if any, are important to you as a candidate for this office?One item that is important to me is decency during the campaign. As a candidate I pledge to remain true to the ideals of honest debate, where we might debate the validity of certain positions on vital issues, but we do not attack or debate the candidates personally. I feel that negative attack campaigns hurt the nation, the state, the county, and the local community. If we want to change our system for the better, then lets talk about that vision and the path to achieve it.Please name one current leader who most inspires you.One leader who inspires hope is Paul Ryan, Speaker of the House. He is frugal, sleeps in his office and is a budget expert.What is the biggest lesson you learned at home growing up?The biggest lesson was learning to be frugal, not spending more than you have. I want our government to start working that way.If life gave you one do-over, what would you spend it on?I would have learned at an earlier age to listen more and talk less (two ears/one mouth), which translates to actively listening to other opinions.What was your favorite subject in school and how did it help you in later life?Math was my favorite subject and it fostered my engineering degree and love of problem solving, not just equations, but problems on a grand scale.If you could give your children only one piece of advice, what would it be?Dream often and dream big, then everyday take one step forward towards achieving those dreams.