Hendrickson's Message

Election day is tomorrow and today we hear from one candidate on the statewide ballot for Governor Independent candidte DuWayne Hendrickson of Minot Hello I am DuWayne Hendrickson Independent candidate for Governor of North Dakota I would like to thank the KX Network and the citizens of North Dakota for this opportunity to express my views My wife of 29 years and I have been lifelong North Dakota residents and have had the opportunity to raise our four children in this great state We are proud to be residents of North Dakota Having family members in occupations ranging from Agriculture to the energy industry education to financial services as well as being a former small business owner I feel that I have a strong perspective on the opportunities and threats facing North Dakota s citizens and businesses One of the biggest issues in North Dakota is our increasingly high property tax With local education being as much as 50 or more of our property tax I would propose legislation to increase state funding of education to alleviate the property tax burden on our state s home owners As a state we have to ensure that our residents and prospective residents can afford to purchase a home or stay in their current home We also have to encourage local governments to become more fiscally responsible to lessen their burden on property tax We also have to get our state budget under control It took North Dakota over 100 years to reach a 1 billion dollar budget but has almost doubled under the current administration As Governor I would ensure that the state is only spending money in a fiscally responsible way that adds value to North Dakotas current and future residents If we do not control our costs now we will leave North Dakota in worse financial shape for future generations and make it more difficult for them to prosper As governor I would promote spending on infrastructure and improving the incentives for small businesses in our rural communities We are currently facing many obstacles with our rural infrastructure regarding roads and utility access for our oil industry and growing communities We also need to look at increasing other sources of alternative energy sources such as wind bio-fuels and coal as well as improving our ability to transport that energy to more communities and states to increase revenue for North Dakota We are also fortunate that in these difficult financial times that North Dakota has a substantial budget surplus As Governor I will provide a disciplined approach for investing this surplus in a way that benefits the current North Dakota residents and makes us attractive to prospective residents and employers I will also dedicate some of this surplus to improve our education system by improving teacher wages to keep our highly qualified teachers in our state I will also commit to controlling our education spending in a way that allows us to provide a high level of education across all communities in this great state which will allow all of the children of North Dakota the opportunity for a quality education The more we can invest in our children today the greater their contribution to the success of this state will be in the future The future of our state depends on many different areas of concern However our number one priority needs to be investing in our state in a way that encourages entrepreneurship job creation increased wages and a diverse economy And while I may not have all the answers to all the concerns facing North Dakota today and in the future I will devote my time to working with all areas of state county and local governments to provide the best possible future for our state For more information about me and my vision for North Dakota please visit my website www hendricksonforgovernor com Again thanks for your time it is greatly appreciated and I hope to be speaking to you from the Governors office in the future A vote for Hendrickson on Nov 4th is a vote for building a better ND