Blair County Commissioners – Vote for Two

Ted Beam

Office candidate is running for-Blair County Commissioner

Candidates Party - Democratic

Candidates age - 67

Town of residence - Altoona

Candidates immediate family - Wife-Cathy (Cronin); Father-Ted Beam, Sr.; Brothers-Tom, David. Sisters,, Sharon Baker, Ruth Anne Schultz, Dana Hanlon

Current occupation or retiree of. - Current Blair County Commissioner, retired from Altoona Area School District, 26.5 years

Previous experience in elected office - Altoona City Council, January 1984-December 1987. Altoona City Council, June 1995-December 1995

What would you consider your primary reason for running for office? I ran for office in Altoona and was elected a councilman at the age of 31. In four years as the Director of Public Safety, I continued to bring that department into contemporary times. When elected Blair County Commissioner in 2011, I faced many issues that had been neglected for a number of reasons. I worked with fellow commissioners as we started facing these issues and bring Blair County government to the 21st Century. I very much like to continue in that process as the county is progressing, and I'd like to think that I have been a part of that. I enjoy working for the

What is the biggest immediate challenge you expect to face if elected? The question all elected officials face is providing services properly and thoroughly to the public while keeping the taxpayers in mind when paying for those services. We as commissioners are mandated by the state to provide many services to our citizens. For some of those services the county is reimbursed; however, for many of them, we are not. The county is just obligated to pay for providing those services. We are not overloaded with frivolous services. We are not overstaffed with employees providing those services. To continue providing services to our county residents, to keep the cost at a reasonable level so our taxpayers aren't being unfairly crippled by the cost of these services, to continue to work on problems we inherited from the past, like an unfunded pension fund, and to continue to improve county facilities like roads, bridges, parks, the airport, the 911 center, the prison-these are the challenges the commissioners face every day.

What is the biggest issue facing the next board of commissioners?

There isn't just one big issue facing the next board of commissioners. The county pension fund has made great strides towards solvency in the past four years under Commissioner Erb's leadership. However, we need to continue so that the pension fund is there to pay for employees' pensions for which the county is responsible. If the pension fund isn't able to pay these pensions, the general fund must; that's a huge responsibility the general fund doesn't want. Our prison is old. The prison is not built efficiently with good sight lines where the staff can guard the prisoners constantly in a safe, secure manner. Continually working with the warden for the protection of the staff and finding more efficient ways to operate a facility that houses over 300 inmates when it built for much less than that, is another challenge. Rebuilding our roads and bridges is an ongoing dilemma the commissioners must face. Properly paying our employees a fair wage for the work they do while still keeping a diligent and conservative eye of the budget is another challenge. These are just a few issues that require constant attention, and not just frivolous answers with no prescribed solutions.

What are some of your primary goals to achieve as commissioner? I would like to do several things as a commissioner in my third and final term. We are currently working with PennDOT on a RoadMap Program where a $2 Million investment is matched with another $2 Million to improve Old Route 220 from Sproul to East Freedom. Likewise, we are preparing to ask for MultiModal Funding that will aid with paving that roadway. It has been neglected for too long, and I'd like to see it improved before I'm done. Likewise, the Blair County Airport has embarked on a building project where new hangars are being constructed, a stormwater improvement project is next, and an office building will be constructed. These projects will improve the county airport, increase the people who go to and use the airport, and ultimately improve the cash flow for the Airport Authority thus keeping this vital economic factor on solid ground for the betterment of the county. I've already talked about the pension fund, the prison, the employees' salaries, the continued preventive maintenance of the courthouse, Valley View Park, and Fort Roberdeau are all subjects on my agenda for the future.

What other comments would you like to make regarding the commissioners office and the direction you want to take the county in? I'd like to talk briefly about the county reassessment that was completed a couple of years ago. One candidate is calling it "the BOTCHED reassessment." This is completely unfair and not true. First, after careful study, discussion, and review, the previous board of commissioners determined that a reassessment was necessary after 58 years. We faced the problem of unfair property tax assessments for similar style properties head-on; it was time to correct the problem. We prepared the residents, at least a year ahead of time, explaining to them what to expect, how the reassessment would be conducted, and the option of appealing if a property owner didn't agree with his/her value. We knew there would be mistakes-there had to be when the company was reassessing over 60,000 properties for the first time in nearly 60 years. Again, the process was not botched-and to this day, even after the reassessment is completed, you, as a property owner, still have a right to appeal your value if you feel it has been improperly placed on your property. The question is simple-Would you sell your property for an amount within 10% of the value placed on it? If the answer is YES, the assessment is correct. If the answer is NO, then please appeal. The county wants proper assessment values on our properties, not old estimates, from 1958, that had any individual or organization challenged those in court, would have had a mandatory reassessment ordered. We had the courage to tackle this issue and it was done properly and according to the laws of Pennsylvania. Anyone who is telling you anything different is not telling you the truth.