JOBS, ECONOMY AND LABOR: Sal Pace recognizes that the top issue facing our community is the economic crisis. Sal is committed to bringing good paying jobs to Pueblo. Sal supports efforts at the State Capitol to invest in Colorado’s infrastructure, bringing good paying jobs that cannot be outsourced oversees. He also supports measures to require that state contracts pay a prevailing wage – to ensure that when we spend taxpayer dollars, workers are earning a livable wage. Sal is running legislation to protect the economies of rural communities when water is transferred from one part of the state to another. He is also running a bill to require transparency in corporate incentives, to ensure that our taxpayer dollars are creating the jobs that were promised. Sal is also co-sponsoring several other job creation bills. Throughout his career, Sal has established a track record of creating jobs in Pueblo. As a former Congressional staffer, he was instrumental in helping to bring real dollars to Pueblo for the Army Depot, TTCI, HARP, Highway 50 passing lanes, Lake Minnequa, and the list goes on. He has been a leader fighting against the Army’s proposed expansion of Pinon Canyon, which would devastate the regional agricultural economy. Sal also is supportive of our friends in organized labor, and recognizes that a good job must pay livable wages. Sal believes that we cannot forget about our most vulnerable Coloradans in these tough times. In the legislature, Sal is sponsoring legislation to modernize Colorado’s Unemployment Insurance to ensure that people who need assistance in these tough times receives it. Sal also is co-sponsoring legislation to provide for a temporary moratorium on foreclosures in Colorado.
In Sal’s own words: “I have worked first hand to bring economic development to Pueblo. The citizens of this city not only need jobs, they need good paying jobs with benefits and the opportunity for upward mobility. Every person needs to make a livable wage, and that is why I support the labor movement.”
WATER: Sal Pace currently serves as the vice-chair on the House Agriculture and Natural Resources Committee, where he helps shape Colorado’s water policy. Sal is sponsoring legislation to require economic and ecological mitigation for rural communities when water is transferred to other parts of the state. Sal sponsored legislation in 2009 to enhance Colorado’s Water Efficiency Grant Fund Program to make more grants available to communities create conservation programs. He also was a co-prime sponsor of the Fountain Creek Watershed and Flood Control District to create a special district to work towards cleaning up the Fountain Creek. Sal previously served as Congressman John Salazar’s top aide on water policy.
In Sal’s own words: “Water is our lifeblood. We must protect water quantity for the entire Arkansas basin. Pueblo, as the regional hub, feels the sting when Rocky Ford or Crowley County are dried up. We’re all in this together. That’s why I support basin of origin legislation. Just as important as quantity is quality. Simply put, we cannot accept Colorado Spring’s treatment of the Fountain Creek. Residents of Colorado Springs don’t have to drink their effluent, but downstream residents do. The only solution is to create storage and reuse along the Fountain. I am proud to have introduced and passed legislation that can make this a reality.”
HEALTH CARE: Sal sponsored of HB 09-1273 to provide health care coverage to all Coloradans. He is a supporter of single-payer health care, ensuring that everyone has access to coverage. Sal knows that it’s less expensive to provide preventative care up front rather than having our Emergency Rooms serve as our first stop for our indigent care. Sal was also is the House sponsor for SB 09-166, the Prescription Drug Ethics Act to prohibit pharmaceutical companies from selling your confidential medical data, ensure that conflicts of interests don’t exist on boards of directors, banning gifts and ensuring disclosure of expenditures. In his former capacity as a legislative aide, Sal worked side by side constituents who desperately need medical assistance, but often cannot afford it.
In Sal’s own words: “We have a desperate problem regarding health care in America. There absolutely should not be a profit margin associated with whether a person lives or dies. Why do we often pay ten times the cost for pharmaceuticals than citizens in other countries? The system is broken. I am absolutely committed to fighting the insurance companies and pharmaceutical manufacturers; and I will hold them accountable!”
EDUCATION: Sal has been a college professor at CSU-Pueblo, PCC-SW and a teaching assistant while he a was a student at graduate school. He understands what it takes to teach students. He is committed to supporting teachers while at the State House. He also served as a member of the Pueblo City Schools Strategic Planning Core team, and understands the challenges facing our local school district. Sal was also appointed to sit on the Presidential Search Committee at Fort Lewis College in Durango, when his alma mater needed a new leader.
In Sal’s own words: “I am committed to fighting for Pueblo’s share of education dollars and to stand on the side of our teachers when I’m in the legislature. Teachers know best of all what students in the classroom need. I also am dedicated to breaking the cycle in Pueblo of teenage pregnancy and high school drop out rates. It’s going to take a community, but we must make these changes together. We also need to reassess the role that CSAPs play in funding our schools, because history, art and music need to be a core part of our students’ curriculum.”
