Tim Walsh: 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: Round LakeWebsite: http://www.walshlakecounty.com/Twitter: Candidate did not respond.Facebook: Candidate did not respond.Office sought: Lake County Board District 16 Age: 54Family: Tim lives in Round Lake Beach with his two children, Alexa Garcia Walsh and Sean Michael Walsh. Alexa is studying communications at the College of Lake County, is a lector at the family's church, and is running Tim's campaign for Lake County Board. Sean is attending Robert Morris University and is studying to become a teacher. They adopted their mini Dachshund, Beanie, from Placing Paws, a shelter in Lake County.Occupation: CPA and owner of Walsh One ConsultingEducation: Tim graduated from Rutgers University in 1985 with a Bachelor of Arts degree in Accounting. He holds a Certificate of Public Accounting from the University of Illinois. He is a member of the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants and the Illinois CPA Society, where he served on the Financial Statement Review Committee. He has taught accounting and business seminars at the College of Lake County.Civic involvement: Tim has spent many years working to improve his Round Lake community. He has been elected to serve on the Board of Directors of the Gurnee Rotary Club and the Lindenhurst/Lake Villa Chamber of Commerce. He is also an active member of the Round Lake Chamber of Commerce, and has served for over 20 years on the Board of the Lake County Chamber of Commerce, including two terms as Chairman.Elected offices held: n/aQuestions Answers Why are you running for this office? If you are running for re-election, is there an important project you want to implement? If you are a challenger, is there a particular issue that motivates you? Please explain.I am running for office to do something about out-of-control property taxes. In Lake County, we struggle under the burden of the highest property taxes in Illinois, and Illinois has the highest property taxes in the nation.I will be fiscally responsible with the public's tax dollars on the County Board, and will hold government at every level accountable for their spending. In addition, I will continue to help educate the public on property taxes. When people better understand how their taxes are calculated, they are more equipped to fight them.What are your ideas to ensure the Lake County Discovery Museum remains relevant with county residents during the year it is closed while it moves from Wauconda to Libertyville and its new space is prepared?The museum offers many wonderful services in Lake County that continue even during this transition, and I believe this is an excellent opportunity to raise awareness for those programs. These school-based programs are sure to be kicking into high gear with the new school year starting.In addition, the museum has a strong presence on social media, and they should use these platforms to show regular updates on progress to engage the public and grow anticipation for the opening in 2017.Do you believe all of the county board's and forest board's committee meetings should be televised live and webcast? Why or why not?Absolutely, we must be as transparent as possible. All board proceedings should be easily accessible for the public and archived for future viewing. We must be accountable to the people we serve, and that doesn't happen if you are conducting the public's business behind closed doors. I am a big supporter of transparency and "sunlight" in government.Some municipalities are turning to Lake County government for contracted services in areas such as building inspections. For example, Lake Zurich signed a two-year contract with the county in late 2015 and expects to save $100,000 by paying $67 an hour for the inspections. Do you see this as a good thing for the county because of the revenue or are there concerns that should be addressed if these arrangements continue to grow? Please explain.This is a good thing. We need to better utilize cooperative purchasing, bringing governments together to pool their purchasing power and save money. I am also very supportive of bringing the public and private sectors together, utilizing strategic partnerships to reduce taxpayer costs and increase quality. Finally, I believe we should continue to work to modernize our operations, which would allow us to reduce labor costs through attrition.As a CPA and business consultant for over 30 years, I've spent a lifetime helping businesses streamline their costs. I will do the same with government spending in Lake County.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?n/aWhat other issues, if any, are important to you as a candidate for this office?Keeping employers in Lake County, and attracting new employers, ought to be our number one priority. I advise businesses throughout the area on how they can grow, hire, and succeed and have been a leader in our county and local chambers.Lake County can do a better job providing shovel-ready sites to businesses interested in our educated and motivated workforce. We can provide a package of incentives to businesses ready to expand or relocate. We can even work with neighboring counties to do joint activities that would attract businesses to our region. We must also invest in our transportation infrastructurePlease name one current leader who most inspires you.Bill Gates. As a Rotarian the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation has done remarkable things to help in the efforts to eradicate polio worldwide.What is the biggest lesson you learned at home growing up?As one of ten children growing up in a large family we always tried to work together to help each other out.If life gave you one do-over, what would you spend it on?I would have been more persuasive with my son Sean getting his Eagle Badge. He has his Life Badge and scouting was a great experience.What was your favorite subject in school and how did it help you in later life?Mathematics. It inspired be to become a CPA. I have always loved numbers and solving numerical problems.If you could give your children only one piece of advice, what would it be?Treat others as you would want them to treat you. Respect is a 2 way street and I'm proud to say my children are respectful.