Candidate name: Tom Dernoga

Party affiliation: Democrat

Place of residence: Laurel, MD

Date of birth: Feb. 16, 1959

Place of birth: Baltimore,

Occupation: Attorney

Education: B.A., University of Maryland; J.D., University of Maryland School of Law; M.L., Georgetown University Law Center

Community associations, involvement: West Laurel Civic Association (Board Member 1988- 2002, President for 2 Terms)

Professional associations: Maryland Bar Association; Prince George’s County Bar Association

Family: Wife, Lenora; Two children, Matthew, Danielle

Campaign office address and telephone: 150 Washington Blvd. South, Suite 100, Laurel, MD 20707; (301) 776-6775

Link to candidate’s website, where one exists: www.tomdernoga.org

Link to state Board of Elections campaign finance database

How would you rate the performance of the current council: excellent, good, fair or poor? Why? Excellent. The County has seen unparalleled economic growth the past four years. This has translated into funding increases for school operating funds, school renovation funds and the largest police force in County history.

Is the rate of growth in District 1 too fast, too slow or just right? Just right. There is a little school overcrowding, but we are building new schools to handle it. Local road intersections operate at an acceptable level of service, with few exceptions. We are balancing job growth and housing growth, which is critical to tax base expansion. There is a lot of development planned but we are trying to keep it at a reasonable level and we are in the process of updating the local Master Plan after 16 years so that we are better able to plan for this growth.

What programs would you add to the budget and how would you pay for them? I would fund further expansion of the police force. I would also fund signature programs for each of the County High Schools, and seek to fund regional trade schools to provide additional opportunities for students. These programs can be funded out of the increase in the County tax base.

As revitalization options are discussed, what do you envision for the future of the Route 1 corridor? A mixture of uses, particularly more restaurants and small offices to mimic what one sees on Connecticut or Wisconsin Avenue.

Does the council have too much, not enough or the right amount of oversight of the school system? Insufficient oversight. The current system really permits no meaningful oversight of school system finances; however, the County is expected to fund the school system to the greatest extent possible. Without true oversight of finances, there is no real accountability.

Are there any programs, taxes or fees that should be cut? What would you do with the money from the savings? I wouldn’t say that there are programs to cut; however, I do think we may be able to cut some bureaucracy in the form of middle and upper management. Any savings should go into rebuilding County infrastructure. For too many years, the County failed to maintain streets, sidewalks, school buildings, etc. The backlog of maintenance projects is intimidating and the County must focus ‘‘surplus” funds to arrest this maintenance backlog.

Do you support day labor centers in Prince George’s County? Yes, but with reservations. Such centers can minimize community impacts; however, there needs to be equal treatment of communities. Many residents question whether some people are allowed to ignore State and local laws. These questions need to be addressed as a community.

What qualifications do you possess that make you a worthy candidate? I have hired an excellent and dedicated staff, and together we work very hard on the key functions of a Council office: constituent services, land use planning and implementation and legislation. We are all civic activists and approach our role as community driven leaders. In terms of my role, I have strong background in land use and environmental matters and I use this background to ensure reasonable development policies. Also, I have developed a lot of experience in the County budget, especially the school system budget; therefore, I work very hard to provide as much oversight as possible.

What would you do to ensure the success of the county’s key economic development projects? (1) Concentrate on development of key Metro stations, including the use of tax incentives. (2) Protect substantial Federal installations from relocation (e.g., Beltsville Agricultural Research Center, Goddard Space Flight Center, Army Research Lab, etc.). (3) Support the Purple Line construction.

What must be done to ensure the long-term success of Prince George’s Hospital Center? It has to be merged with a teaching hospital, and the State rules on uncompensated care need to be revised to recognize the larger proportion of uncompensated care provided by Prince George’s County Hospitals.

What are the biggest challenges to significantly reducing crime in Prince George’s County? Its proximity to the District of Columbia, low educational success rates in our established communities, an inadequate job base, and a seeming unwillingness of the various components of government to get serious in addressing crime comprehensively.

How would you address the population shift from Washington, D.C., and the problems it poses for Prince George’s County? There needs to be a true Regional recognition of the need to provide affordable housing. Over the past 30 years, eastern D.C., and Prince George’s County have become the affordable housing base of the Region, creating a concentration of social issues in this part of the Region. With D.C. pushing some of its population into Prince George’s County, our leaders need to assert ourselves and demand that discussions of Regional growth address affordable housing in a serious way. In terms of our internal handling of the issue, the County needs to invest in redevelopment of established communities to break up the concentration of low-income communities.

Do you support allowing slots in Prince George’s? If so, where? No. Slots would be a major negative for Prince George’s County under any circumstances.

Do you support an east-west metro link and where should it go? I support the ‘‘Purple Line”, generally in the alignment that has been discussed from New Carrollton to the University of Maryland to Silver Spring.

Should municipalities have more control over local zoning? No. This would only create more confusion and it would create a bidding war for increased density. The municipalities do not have address the impacts of increased density on traffic outside their jurisdiction, nor on the impact on school overcrowding.