House District 10

By KRISTI ALBERTSON/Daily Inter Lake

This year's battle for House District 10 is best summed up by a classic line from Yogi Berra: It's deja vu all over again.

Just as they did in 2006, Republican Mark Blasdel and Democrat Carla Augustad are squaring off for the legislative seat.

The winner in the Nov. 4 general election will represent a district that stretches from Kalispell to south of Somers.

Blasdel won the election in 2006. With one session in the Legislature under his belt, he says he's ready to expand on progress he made in his first term.

"The first session was a learning curve," Blasdel said. "Now I can take back my knowledge and experience and be a bigger asset in the House."

Augustad, however, said it is time for a change: Government has too long been under conservatives' control. The country's recent economic problems are evidence of what happens under a conservative administration, she said.

"We're celebrating the success of conservatism," she said. "It's disaster capitalism. We created this disaster, and certain people will benefit greatly."

Blasdel, who owns Vista Linda Restaurant, said energy development is one of the major issues facing the state. While drilling for oil and natural gas is a national issue, "there's a lot we can do in state as well," he said. "We'll do what we can to make energy more affordable for Montanans."

Montana has huge, untapped coal resources, he said. He also supports expanding alternative energy sources, particularly biomass, which Blasdel says is the state's "greatest opportunity" for alternative energy.

Montana has acres of forests damaged by wildfires and beetle kill - forests that the logging industry can't use, he said. Blasdel proposes using those trees to develop the state's biomass resources.

Blasdel also promises to help reduce central government. Over the last two Legislative sessions, state government has grown 40 percent, he said.

"That's unacceptable," he said.

Blasdel said he will fight for accountability and reductions in spending. He also will continue to work to reduce property taxes and eliminate business property taxes. "Unfortunately, neither was a reality in the last session," he said.

One of the last session's major accomplishments, he said, was passing a stronger version of Jessica's Law, which established a 25-year minimum sentence for adults convicted of sex crimes against children younger than 13.

Blasdel said his stance on family values earned him a score of 100 percent from the Montana Family Foundation. He also received a 100 percent score from the Montana Chamber of Commerce.

Augustad said she, like her opponent, supports safe and healthy families. She said she is particularly interested in reducing poverty and increasing health insurance coverage.

"Politicians and pharmacies shouldn't get to make decisions," she said. "They aren't there when [the kids are] awake in the middle of the night or when they come home with their first broken heart."

Augustad helped gather signatures to get Initiative 155 on the ballot. The initiative would provide insurance for about 30,000 children in Montana.

"I believe everyone should have health care," she said. "We're just one state, but we're doing what we can."

Augustad said she also supports working toward a clean environment while simultaneously working for alternative energy sources. Drilling for oil isn't a permanent solution, she said, and developing alternative energy sources would create new, high-paying jobs for Montanans.

There are some problems with many current alternative energy programs, Augustad said, but once those problems are identified, the Legislature can take steps to help fix them.

"We need to do better," she said. "I'm all for solving problems versus just pretending they don't exist."

Fair taxation is another of Augustad's priorities. There are several multimillion-dollar companies in the state that pay $50 a year in taxes, she said. At the other end of the spectrum are senior citizens living on fixed incomes wondering why they're being taxed more.

She also advocates fair lending practices and setting lower caps on interest rates to deter predatory lenders who take advantage of vulnerable people.

"We need to remember that we are people and not prey," she said. "The state can't fix everything, but we can do what we can," she said.

Reporter Kristi Albertson may be reached at 758-4438 or by e-mail at kalbertson@dailyinterlake.com.