Tony Exum
How does your experience make you qualified to represent the people?
I’ve lived in southeast Colorado Springs for more than 60 years. After serving more than 35 years as a firefighter with the CSFD, rising to the rank of Battalion Chief, I retired in 2010. I then won election in 2012 to serve in the Colorado House of Representatives, as the representative from District 17 – covering Southeast Colorado Springs. I won election again in 2016, 2018, and 2020. In 2022, I won election to serve in the Colorado State Senate, as the senator from District 11 – covering downtown, the Old North End, and Southeast Colorado Springs.
I currently sit on the Senate’s Transportation & Energy committee and serve as Chair of the Senate’s Local Government & Housing committee.
What are your top policy priorities?
One thing I’ve learned from being an elected state legislator is that different people have different urgent needs. Some people are unemployed and need immediate assistance, which is why I’ve supported bills to expand unemployment benefits. Other people are being poisoned by toxic chemicals and need clean drinking water, which is why I’ve run bills to ban toxic PFAS firefighting foams. There isn’t just one or two pressing issues facing people in Senate District 11, there are many, and they all need immediate attention.
Which is why my top priorities as a state legislator have always been and continue to be these three things: supporting public education, protecting the environment, and helping low-income families, people of color, and the elderly live better lives.
I served for years on the House’s Education Committee because supporting public education is a high priority of mine: making sure our schools are well funded, our teachers are well-paid, our breakfast and lunch services for students are healthy, affordable, and filling, and our school buildings are well-maintained, safe and secure.
Just as importantly, I run legislation protecting Colorado’s beautiful environment from exploitation and destruction: giving local governments more power to regulate oil and gas drilling within their jurisdictions, and prohibiting the use during training of certain toxic PFAS firefighting foams.
Now I’m running for re-election in the State Senate to continue representing and helping my constituents: students, low-income families, people of color, the elderly, military personnel, first responders, and everyone in Senate District 11. I listen when people tell me they want safer schools, better education, environmental protections, police accountability, and improved elder care, among other things; and I work hard to support legislation addressing those issues. I believe my legislative record proves that. I’m running again to continue doing this good work.
What is one issue you think is being overlooked in this race, and how would you address it?
Water.
If we listen to the experts, Colorado is only a few years from facing a water crisis, unless we act diligently to prevent it. We must educate the general public about the 2023 Colorado Water Plan, and the legislature must continue supporting actions which ensure the plan’s full implementation.
With this looming water crisis, we need to implement smart growth policies, such as new development conservation standards and demand management programs, to protect our scarce water resources. Other states in the west have done more, with less resources, to address their own water crises, and we can learn from them – not just when it comes to educating the public about the problem, but also about implementing nontraditional policies for facing unprecedented times and ensuring water for the future. Colorado also needs to bolster the use of water markets and alternative transfer mechanisms to improve water allocation while reducing the “buy and dry” problem in agriculture, of course.
Stay up to date with the latest local news, sports, and investigations by downloading the KRDO13 app. Click here to download it from the Apple App Store. Android users can download it from Google Play here.
