Politics & Government

First District Candidate Profile: Steve Whisler

Get to know the Republican candidate for the first district of the Baltimore County Council

Name: Steve Whisler

Age: 42

Residence: Catonsville's Westview Park

Find out what's happening in Catonsvillewith free, real-time updates from Patch.

Party affiliation: Republican

Occupation: Defense Contractor/Public School Substitute Teacher

Find out what's happening in Catonsvillewith free, real-time updates from Patch.

What are the three biggest issues facing the residents of Catonsville and the first district?

1.  Baltimore County must stop unprecendented government growth, reckless spending our surpluses, and record borrowing. Despite a 48 percent growth in county government over the past 10 years and a cumulative surplus (over-taxation) of $2.2 billion dollars, the county still borrowed over $1 billion dollars. Our municipal debt, just $540 million seven years ago, is on track to reach $1.4 billion by 2014. We must stop the spending and borrowing spree, shrink the size of government responsibly, and lower taxes to jumpstart home sales and small business growth.

2. Our region has been over-developed extensively with little attention paid to creating the necessary infrastructure to accommodate the growth. I will ensure we focus on improving traffic flow, enhancing public safety, and reforming county government to become more efficient and focused on core, constituent services. I will ensure community-based development and demand that developers meet and collaborate with those most affected by a development project. I will not be controlled by the development industry; instead, I will partner with them and the community to help create jobs and high quality development projects.

3. We must achieve cost savings through responsible spending reductions, reforms in our county contracting processes, and restructuring our bloated county government bureaucracy. I will ensure county government focuses on core functions to include public education, safety, and technology enhancements for better constituent service. I want to see vocational and technical training return to our high schools so graduating seniors can find meaningful jobs. I want to increase the number of officers who track registered sex offenders and detect cyber criminals. I'll work with the [Baltimore County Board of Education] to increase the number of languages taught in our schools to help prepare seniors for area government agencies that keep our nation safe.

What do you feel the state of Baltimore County government is?

It is unfortunate that Baltimore County's largest employer is Baltimore County government. Even worse, county government is the second fastest growing industry in Baltimore County, right behind the high-tech industry. We are the highest taxed county in the state. Our property and income tax burden is too great on seniors and young families. A recent Baltimore Sun article mentioned that our region is the fifth worst place to retire. Our irresponsible tax policies make our county unattractive to small business entreprenuers. Unfortunately, our county's August 2010 unemployment rate (according to the State Department of Assessments and Taxation) was 8.2 percent -- well above the state's unemployment rate of 7.6 percent. Every single county that borders Baltimore County has a lower unemployment rate because their tax rates are much lower.

Why should people vote for you instead of for your opponent?

In contrast to my opponent who has lived here just eight years, I've lived in the district 21 years and worked alongside many community and business leaders to help preserve our quality of life. I led the area's largest community group of 1,800 homes for seven years. I served as president of the Coalition for the Preservation of Southwest Baltimore County for nearly three years, protecting our environment and advocating community-based development in and around our neighborhoods. I graduated from Catonsville Community College in 1994 and recently completed all coursework for a Doctorate in Management. I'm a retired Navy combat veteran with over 200 combat flight hours. I'm a substitute teacher in our southwest area schools. I've owned a small business, managed multi-million dollar budgets, and created 13 jobs in our region. I currently serve on the board of directors for Maryland's largest credit union, which did not require a single penny of bank bailouts. I will stop the excessive county borrowing and spending, which has created record unemployment and unreasonable pay and pensions for elected officials.


Get more local news delivered straight to your inbox. Sign up for free Patch newsletters and alerts.

We’ve removed the ability to reply as we work to make improvements. Learn more here