CP Elections Guide: Jeff Hatfield (D)

Before you know it, Election Day will be here. Do you know who's on the ballot?

Jeff Hatfield, Democrat, is running for Vanderburgh County Commissioner — District Two in 2018. Check back as the CP Elections team compiles stories, videos and additional information about his candidacy.

BIO

Age: 57

Current Job Title: owner, Core Contractors Inc

Elected Offices Held: none

Appointed Offices Held: Area Plan Commission, Board of Zoning Appeals, Evansville Water and Sewer Board of Directors

Education: Bachelor of Science University of Evansville 

Q&A

What are your priorities goals? Why do they matter?

My three main priorities will be jail expansion, road improvements, and job growth:

• We need an affordable jail expansion. This will help provide a safer environment for our Confinement officers and help keep our community safe.
• A more robust road improvement plan will enhance our county’s quality of life. Road improvements are one of the few direct responsibilities of the county commissioners. I have personally been responsible for road construction in my career and I know that road preparation is just as important as the finished product.
• Our community needs job growth that pays a living wage. Families working minimum wage jobs need to work multiple jobs just to make ends meet. As commissioner, I will work with anyone, anywhere, to ensure that current good paying jobs remain and we attract new jobs that provide living wages.

How do you feel about expanding the Vanderburgh County Jail?

About 85 percent of those housed in the local jail were arrested for substance abuse. Do you feel more beds should be added or would an on-site outpatient treatment center help alleviate the growing Opioid use?

I am in favor of the jail expansion because it is currently unsafe for our confinement officers as well as those awaiting their due process in court. Our jail was built for 553 inmates a day. It currently houses between 668 and 821 inmates a day. To add to the problem, the state has mandated that Level 6 Felony criminals, the lowest felony, to be housed in our jails instead of prisons. We have 100 or more of these offenders that the Vanderburgh County jail has moved to surrounding jails, along with the state provided funds, simply because we have no room.

To be fiscally responsible requires us to build only what we can afford. To minimize the burden on our taxpayers, I will work with the county council and the sheriff’s department to create an affordable jail expansion plan. I am also in favor of obtaining more resources for an on-site outpatient treatment center that coincides with the Vanderburgh County Work Release program. This work release program, which also promotes sobriety, was revamped in 2015 when the sheriff’s department and county treatment courts worked together to create a more therapeutic treatment for participants, focusing on rehabilitation. It is an on-site treatment facility that has a capacity of 150-160 participants. Currently, there are around 130 participants and only five case workers. I would like to see this program expanded. Having an on-site treatment facility for mental health and substance abuse would be a step in the right direction in decreasing recidivism and eliminating the underlying causes of crime. If the on-site treatment center is expanded, this may alleviate the need for more jail expansions in the future. It is important to note that none of these programs work unless you have participation from all of the stakeholders involved: county and city government, local judges, employers and businesses, and its participants.

What capital projects could help Vanderburgh County’s quality of life?

The capital projects I believe could help Vanderburgh County’s quality of life include improving the safety of University Parkway, repairing roads and bridges across the county, working with state and local governments to build a new bridge to the south from I-69, and ensuring that any projects we undertake protect the many cultural attributes within our county.

What sets you apart from your opponent?

I have spent my entire career in the private sector as a business owner. For  34 continuous years, I have owned and operated a successful construction company. I know what it is like to be held responsible for all decisions made within my company. In the private sector, if a problem surfaces, we must solve it quickly and I am skilled at doing so. I have also volunteered my service to many community and governmental boards. By serving on the Area Plan Commission, the Board of Zoning Appeals and as a director on the Evansville Water and Sewer Utility Board, I have seen firsthand how government affects peoples’ lives. There is value in teamwork and in the cooperation of competing parties in achieving what is best for our community. I have served on the transition teams of two mayors from two different political parties. As a business owner, you need to have the ability to work well with others to get the job done. I will bring that same willingness to work with others to get things done for the betterment of our community.

What action plans do you have to attract economic growth and/or development to Vanderburgh County?

From time to time, county departments will propose new rules that govern us. I would like to see departments include in their submittals a study of the fiscal impact to the end user that any new ordinance or regulation may impose. We should take that cost analysis into consideration when we are contemplating new regulations to be imposed on citizens and businesses.

Second, after reviewing the 2019 budget, I have discovered savings that I would like to share with the county council. I believe we can either reduce the overall budget or redirect that savings to more road improvements and public safety.

Third, I believe reducing the amount of regulation should be our goal. We are competing directly with adjoining counties for economic growth. Vanderburgh County has many more regulations compared to these adjoining counties, yet there is no measurable difference in the quality of life or even in the quality of projects constructed. This I would look to change.