Rachel is a twenty-year resident of Greenwich, mom to four daughters, entrepreneur, triathlete and a longstanding community volunteer, having served on the boards of Parkway Elementary School PTA, Kids in Crisis and the Audubon Center. Most recently, Rachel served two terms (4 years) on the Greenwich Representative Town Meeting for District 10.
My training as a triathlete has served me well as a state representative. Through grit, sweat and determination, in just two years, I’ve succeeded in bringing back nearly $100 million for our district’s schools, roads, and nonprofits. We’ve cut taxes, made historic investments in education, protected reproductive rights, reduced gun violence, and most importantly, we’ve improved and strengthened our state’s finances, earning upgrades from several major credit agencies.
I've received the endorsement of both the Democratic and Independent parties. One of the things I’m proudest of is that 98% of the bills we voted into law last session had bipartisan support. My colleagues and I across the aisle work together in a manner that is respectful and productive, and that’s something we can all be proud of.
If I’m re-elected, I’ll keep fighting to:
- Secure funding for our public schools so that our students are prepared to succeed and are learning in school buildings that are up to 21st century standards. And I will prioritize expanding access to childcare and early childhood education, so that parents can get back to work; - Ensure that we adhere to our fiscal guardrails, keep the rainy day fund fully funded, and continue to pay down our pension debt, work that is currently saving taxpayers $700 million per year; - Advance legislation to promote business growth, address our worker shortage, and improve the regulatory environment so our businesses can thrive.
And as I have for the past two years, I will continue to fight for the funding we need in Greenwich and Stamford for local projects that improve the quality of life, enjoyment and safety of our district.
In short, more hard work. More results. More real progress for Connecticut. I’m ready.
Connecticut is not immune to the national housing shortage. Insufficient housing hurts our businesses, both large and small, who struggle to find employees. Connecticut has over 90,000 unfilled jobs. It hurts seniors, who can’t afford to age in place. And it hurts young families, who can’t achieve home ownership. If these issues are not addressed, it will thwart our state’s economic growth.
I do not support state housing mandates. Local governments are better informed about how much additional density their infrastructure can handle, and where to locate it. The state must be a partner to local governments, providing resources and financial support for their housing plans. If we want to remain competitive, we have to support locally driven zoning and development.
We were all hit by an unwelcome surprise when we opened our electricity bill this summer. This summer has been the hottest on record in Connecticut. Heat waves drive us indoors and to crank our air conditioning. That increased usage impacts the public benefits portion of our bill as well.
Three quarters of the public benefits portion of our electricity bills is being used to pay for a 2017 deal led by Republican colleagues and passed on a bipartisan basis to save the Millstone nuclear power plant and thousands of jobs.
This kind of rate hike is simply untenable for many residents and businesses. While Eversource answers to its shareholders, as your representative, I answer to you, and there are things we should prioritize to bring our electricity costs down. Solutions include bringing greater scrutiny to the PURA commissioner appointment process such that we have appointees looking out for the consumer, moving the public benefits portion of the electricity bill to the general fund, and prioritizing clean energy and efficiency programs to reduce demand on the electric grid.
If I’m re-elected, I’ll keep fighting to make Connecticut a home that we can all continue to afford.