GILLETTE, Wyo. — Election season is well underway and County 17 has sent a list of questions to candidates who have filed to run for office
These questions are designed to give our readers a better understanding of the people behind the names on the ballot. All candidate responses submitted to County 17 are republished as they are received.
Below, get to know Alan Stuber who is running for a seat on the Campbell County Health Board of Trustees:
____________________________________________________________
1. Who are you?
My name is Alan Stuber, and I was born and raised in Gillette. I’m currently a Detective at the Gillette Police Department and have been at the department since 2013. Outside of work, I coach wrestling, football, and baseball. In my free time, I enjoy being with my family.
2. Why have you decided to run for office and what do you hope to accomplish should you be elected?
The main reason I am seeking re-election is because I owe it to CCH, administration, staff, and the community. Because of the massive amount of new information to learn, and the complexity of the organization, it’s my obligation. It takes a person approximately two years to understand all the information of how a hospital operates. If re-elected, I would be more efficient as I have already learned all the information and have been injecting my ideas and suggestions.
3. How do you plan on accomplishing your goals?
No answer submitted
4. What experience do you have that qualifies you for the office you are seeking?
With my five years of experience on the board with addition to additional years on other boards throughout the community, I am qualified to seek re-election. I have been privileged with the opportunity to pick the current administration and would appreciate the opportunity to continue working with them.
5. Do you feel you could be a good steward with taxpayer dollars? Why or why not?
Taxpayers’ dollars are always being considered and it’s important to know where that money is going. The 3 mills CCH receives is approximately 12-13 (approximately 6% of revenue) million dollars a year. Bad debt and charity care is approximately 20-25 million dollars a year. This is one of the many challenges the board is trying to fix. The current board and administration continue to work on improving patient volumes and cost management to make up for the loss of revenue on bad debt and charity care.
6. On the issue of transparency, where do you stand on ensuring all public business is conducted openly and in a manner that encourages public attendance?
For my five years on the board, there was very little community participation/attendance at the meetings. It has always been encouraged for the community to attend these meetings as all the information is presented during those times. Many hours of work go into making sure the information is accurate for those meetings. For example, the annual budget requires numerous hours to prepare for the upcoming year. There are numerous meetings between the board and administration. In the end, the final budget is presented, and the board is always prepared for public input. Unfortunately, there is no one from the public to ask questions. Fortunately, because of all the hard work from the board and administration, a quality budget is presented.
7. How have you made your office or board more transparent and open with the public?
9. Should you be elected, or re-elected, do you plan on seeking any major policy changes in your chosen office? If yes, what would those changes be? If not, why not?