Stephen King is a lifelong resident of Connecticut and has been a resident of Andover for 14 years. Married to a native of the town, Stephen has a deep commitment to Andover. He is a graduate of Central Connecticut State University and the University of Connecticut, and currently works for UConn Health in Farmington. Stephen has been involved in business management throughout most of his career. His leadership experience extends to his role as Chairman of the Board and Chief Range Safety Officer of the Andover Sportsman’s Club, and President of the “Ye Connecticut Gun Guild”. Stephen is a certified NRA instructor and a Chief Instructor for the Department of Energy and Environmental Protection, teaching conservation education, firearm, and bow hunter safety courses. Stephen just retired from state military service after having served six years with the First Company Governor’s Footguard. Stephen is eager to dedicate more time to his community, leveraging his leadership, business acumen, and management skills.
Platform
Stephen has graciously replied to a number of emails on policy positions.
Rent Control
Availability and affordability of housing are dynamic parameters directly related to many factors including the state of the economy. I believe decisions are best left at the local level with minimal state oversight.
Reproductive Rights
I dislike how abortion has become such a divisive and politicized issue. A patient, the family, and their doctor should be at the center of this decision within the confines of some generally agreed to moral standards.
Police Accountability Bill
I stand in full support of those in uniform who enforce the law and put their lives on the line for the citizens of this state. In certain cases, actions should be examined closely if they fall out of line with training or enforcement standards. But failure of an individual to cooperate with the direction of law enforcement should not be tolerated.
Mandatory Transition to EVs
I see the current, forced transition somewhat harsh as it imposes the costs of 175 years of abuse of the environment by the human race on the backs of the middle class. I don’t discount the science, and believe we need to make changes, however I believe a more gradual and less burdensome approach would be a better path.
Affordable Housing
From what I understand, under 8-30g, if the amount of “affordable” housing in a town is not at least 10%, a developer can override local zoning to build, unless the town can provide a compelling reason to stop them.
Now 8-30g dates back to the late 1980’s. Some of your points speak to directly define the term “affordability”, which quite frankly I would view as a moving target over time. I don’t see any provisions to redefine that parameter, which I perceive as being a problem.
I see agreement on both sides of the aisle in putting forth effort to make housing affordable for those less fortunate. I agree that a more pragmatic approach is warranted and I would certainly support changes to 8-30g to bring it more in line with our current, or a fluctuating economy, instituting oversight on developers, and require consistency with land use.
Publicly Funded Community Colleges
I can support public funding of education if it reduces the cost to students without increasing institutional profits and ballooning any inflated salaries of educators and administrators.
Support for Medicare
Medicaid, Medicare, and state assistance for low income, elderly, the disabled, etc. are all important programs that are needed and should be funded with oversight
Gun Ownership
As a gun owner, instructor, and enthusiast I support and promote responsible ownership. I have no issue with certain regulations such as background checks and some registration requirements, however the continued chipping away of the rights of responsible gun owners needs to calm
Unions
I have seen both the good and the bad first hand from both sides of the union fence. The good being when labor gets treated fairly with wages and benefits and profits meet expectations of shareholders, the bad being when unions take advantage of their position with unrealistic demands.
Term Limits
Stephen supports term limits for congress, and has signed a pledge supporting term limits.
Fiscal Responsibility and Transparency
Stephen expresses concern over rising taxes and spending in Andover. He is particularly interested in understanding how the town allocates tax money and ensuring that resources are managed effectively.
Skepticism of Drug Legalization
Stephen voiced concerns about the legalization of marijuana in Connecticut, questioning how the tax revenue from its sale is managed, particularly in the context of federal banking regulations. This suggests a cautious or critical stance on the issue.
BoF Candidate
Stephen applied to be a member of the Board of Finance for Andover in February 2024. The two videos of this interview can be found here and here. We used the transcript of the interview to allow chatGPT to infer some of Stephen’s positions on policy.
Professional Qualifications
Based upon his linked profile, Stephen King is a Senior Systems Administrator with over 20 years of experience in information technology and healthcare computing. Currently employed at UConn Health, he manages the High Performance Computing (HPC) facility, supporting research initiatives across multiple campuses. His expertise spans healthcare information technology, Linux system administration, storage resource management, and network administration. His educational background includes a Certificate in Healthcare Information Technology from the University of Connecticut School of Business, a B.S. in Management Information Systems from Central Connecticut State University, and an Associate’s degree in Business Administration from CT State Tunxis. Stephen’s long-standing career highlights his proficiency in data center management, supporting large-scale, grant-funded research projects with a user base exceeding 700