HomeMy WebLinkAboutTom Woods Tom Woods’ Statement
I was born and grew up in Cleveland, Ohio. I don’t recall having a
choice in that but when I first came to work as a bartender in Montana in
1982, I quickly decided that this is where I want to live. While living in
Montana over the last 42 years I have been a bus driver, bell hop, bartender,
musician, maintenance specialist, personnel manager, guide, hotel manager
and most recently, a teacher. It’s not that I can’t hold a job, but as we all
know it takes a diverse skill set to succeed here. I’m currently a lecturer for
the Physics departments at MSU.
I met my wife Katie in 1992 while we were working in Yellowstone
Park. We moved to Bozeman in 1997 in order to go back to school at MSU
and succeeded in finding a rental in a very competitive market. In 1999, I
cashed in my retirement and we purchased a small duplex home for
$124,000. We sold that home in 2010 and paid down our student loan debt.
Another reason we sold our 2 bedroom house was that in 2005 and
2007 we were blessed with two great boys, Kelty and Finnian, who are 19
and 17 years old. We rented a 3 bedroom house for a few years before
purchasing our current home in 2015. We are fortunate to have done so as 9
years later I don’t think we could afford to buy the same house we currently
live in.
I tell this part of our story because I think it’s important for people to
know that I’ve struggled with the same affordability issues that face the next
generation. It’s gotten worse and I want to do something about it.
I’ve been active in local issues and politics for over 20 years. In 2012 I
successfully ran for the state legislature because I believe that government
should be conducted by real people and should serve the interests of real
people. That’s how I approached my responsibilities. My job was to read
legislation on a wide variety of issues, listen to opposing viewpoints,
communicate with constituents and vote on legislation in a way that best
served the citizens of Montana. I worked 12-hour days for a salary of $91.00
per day. I refer to my time in the legislature as “the worst job I’ve ever
loved.”
Tom Woods’ Statement
In the House of Representatives I was appointed to the Appropriations
committee, which is the body that crafts the $10 billion state budget. As a
member of the Education subcommittee, I worked with senators and
representatives from across the aisle to formulate the K-12 school budget as
well as the higher education budget. I helped MSU gain approval for the
Romney Hall renovation, negotiated the tuition freeze (in each term),
expanded our local medical school and veterinary programs and won
approval for more research dollars to flow to the university system. I’m
proud to say that K-12 funding was also expanded on my watch.
As one of your legislators, my particular focus was in trying to bring
transparency and fairness to hospital bills. I also fought to change the way
our monopoly utility treats ratepayers. These are battle in which I had
more losses than wins, but as a consumer advocate and a scientist I strongly
feel that we are not doing nearly enough to address health care costs and
climate change. I refuse to give up fighting for our children’s future.
It has been an honor and a privilege to represent your interests in the
legislature. If it were not for term limits I would still be serving there, trying
to keep the legislature from restricting the way Bozeman tries to deal with
our growth issues. I try to think of growth as being an issue, not a problem
but It’s becoming harder to maintain that optimism.
We have a great town and a wonderful community that is undergoing
rapid change. There is a lot of good that has come from those changes. I’m
very proud that Bozeman has become a more diverse and accepting culture
than when I first came here, but that is being threatened by the issue of
affordability. The City Commission recognizes this and I fully supported the
plan that was developed to address affordable housing. I really appreciated
the way it placed financial responsibility for affordable housing on the parties
that are profiting the most from the housing boom. That’s fair.
I am very disappointed that the legislature saw fit to wreck our
affordable housing plan. It has also seen fit to stymie our attempts to run our
Tom Woods’ Statement
city as we wish. If we want a local option tax we should be able to do that. If
we want to declare our community a place of sanctuary, we should have that
right. Unfortunately, we can’t rely on state government to help us with our
issues. We are going to have to go back to the drawing board and come up
with new solutions. I very much want to be part of that.
I’ve recently earned a Master of Public Administration degree, but I
feel my best preparation for public service comes from my experience as an
elected official. In the 5 elections I have participated in, I have knocked on
thousands of doors and spoken with thousands of constituents on the phone.
I’ve discussed a wide variety of issues with an even wider variety of
perspectives. In addition to getting to know our community better, this
experience has taught me to be a better listener. I’ve learned to be patient
and find common ground with those who hold different ideologies than I do.
I’ve also learned that crafting public policy is not about “winning.” It’s about
trying to do the best we can to plan for a better future.
I want to help.
Tom Woods
1447 Cherry Drive
Bozeman, MT 59715