Josh Boschee

I am running to continue the important work of making sure north Fargo and our region has a strong voice in Bismarck. As we continue to see an increase in the number of legislative proposals that don't serve the best interest of North Dakota, it is necessary to have pragmatic legislators who not only stand up against these extreme proposals, but also works with others to address priorities facing North Dakotans. I have a track record of supporting policies that improve the lives of North Dakota's working families, invest in our young people and support the small businesses and industries that drive our state's economy.

I believe my 10 years in the legislature and three years in legislative leadership have prepared me to continue serving. I am proud that our legislature is comprised of part-time, citizen legislators who spend more time living in their district than they do in Bismarck. However, this means it takes time for legislators to comprehend the complexity of many of the services and funding North Dakota provides. So my years of service give me the ability to work faster, more efficient and in a collaborative manner in the best interest of the people I represent.

CopyThe lack of affordable childcare has become a huge barrier to many of of the families through my district, our region and the state. We can no longer kick the can down the road and need to make major investments in not only increasing the number of childcare providers, but also the quality of childcare provided, additional funding for the child care assistance program and wage support for childcare workers, similar to what the state does for long-term care and independent living providers. I like a lot of what the Governor has proposed, as many of the ideas in his framework have been introduced by my Democratic-NPL colleagues over the years and supported in a bipartisan fashion. But I believe it's going to take more for us to tackle the true need this session. Based on the level of revenue the state has available, there is no reason why we can't make childcare as big of an initiative as we have with Operation Prairie Dog to fund roads and bridges. Childcare is infrastructure.

1) Additional resources for quality and affordable childcare. 2) Support for students and educators, pre-K through higher ed. 3) Pushing back against extreme policy proposals that give North Dakota a bad name and hurt our efforts to recruit and retain families, workers and businesses to our state.

There are many great recommendations that have come out of the state Workforce Development Council that include increasing the number of K-12 programs that connect students to in demand careers, supporting registered apprenticeship programs that allow North Dakotans to learn on the job and investing in quality, affordable childcare. We've hears from workers, employers, educators and community leaders for years on these issues. It's time to be bold and start implementing North Dakota solutions to these issues we continue to face.

I have been supportive of the Renaissance Zone program which has allowed our region's downtown communities to flourish. The missing piece is ensuring we also fund programs that support affordable housing and childcare. I think there is more we can do to invest in entrepreneurs, small business owners (especially those from underrepresented communities) and our local pre-K through higher education institutions to retain and recruit skilled workers who want to call the FMWF area home.