Healthy Jobs

Let's convert the gas and electricity companies from private, for profit businesses to publicly owned utilities. Deregulation has led to higher prices, not lower prices for me. Making gas and electricity public owned utilities will lower the cost of those essential services for consumers and create a push to help individual residents and citizens to improve energy efficiency and reduce pollution.

Let's make sure that jobs in Houston pay a living wage. A living wage means that someone working full time at minimum wage can afford to rent at least an efficiency apartment. Many homeless people work full time but the minimum wage doesn't allow them to afford an apartment. The city of Houston had the power to create a living wage, based on measurable apartment rates, until the state legislature specifically took that power away from home rule cities. I want to aggressively lobby to take back that power for the people of Houston and I believe we can get a democratic vote in a city wide election that would pass a living wage law.