Incumbent Shayne Young faces Brian Farnsworth for Jefferson County Commissioner seat
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RIGBY — In a closely watched race, former county commissioner Brian Farnsworth is challenging current commissioner Shayne Young for the Jefferson County Commissioner District 1 seat.
The race is for a two-year term. Both candidates are Republican.
EastIdahoNews.com sent the same eight questions to each county candidate. Their responses, listed below, were required to be 250 words or less. EastIdahoNews.com is publishing the answers in their entirety, and without any grammatical or style editing.
The primary election is May 21.
Tell us about yourself — include information about your family, career, education, volunteer work and any prior experience in public office.
Young: I’ve been a lifelong resident of Jefferson County. I grew up in Rigby then raised my family in Lewisville. I now reside in the Labelle area. I married my lovely wife in 1977 and we raised 5 children and 3 grandchildren. We have now been married for 46 years. I studied Electronic Engineering at Ricks College and continued my education at the University of Idaho in Electrical Engineering. I have served my church in various callings including a mission to the Paris France mission. It has been my honor and privilege to now have served as a Jefferson County Commissioner for the past 6 years. In my career I have helped pioneer the current satellite communications in the Pacific Northwest for real-time data with water sheds and flows with federal and state agencies. As a successful business owner, I have continued these relationships as well as developing Automation Engineering on canals in Eastern Idaho and surrounding states.
Farnsworth: I was born in Rigby in 1960 to Darrell and MaryJane Farnsworth. I grew up in Ucon, Idaho, attended Ucon Elementary and graduated from Bonneville High School. I served a 2-year LDS Mission in Jackson, Mississippi. I married Tammy May in 1982. We have 5 children, two boys and three girls, and 14 grandchildren. While living in Ucon I served as the volunteer fire chief for 4+ years. We moved to Rigby in 1995 and that is where we raised our family. I am self-employed and own two businesses. Mountain Top Glass & Vinyl and Mountain Top Transport Inc. From 2013-2019, I served as Jefferson County Commissioner.
Why are you seeking political office? Briefly explain your political platform.
Farnsworth: Jefferson County has been a great place to raise my family. I am seeking office because I know I have a lot I can offer, to keep Jefferson County a great place to live. I want to make the following a priority: property rights, county budgets, infrastructure, taxes, and oversight and accountability.
Young: I think I have a lot to offer Jefferson County in vision and in creating solutions for our County. We are at a critical time in the County with its accelerated growth and we must meet these challenges for a better future.
What areas in your county need immediate improvement? What actions will
you take to address those needs?
Young: Roads always need improvements. We need to continue our progress and being efficient with our road budgets. We also need to continue to seek out more funding through alternative sources.
Farnsworth: One of the areas in Jefferson County that need immediate improvement is our infrastructure. We need proper roads and utilities to attract businesses to grow our economy. The actions that I would take would be proper budgeting, and controlled spending to get the most out of our tax dollars.
What are the greatest long-term challenges facing people in your county? What is your plan to meet those challenges?
Farnsworth: The greatest long term challenges facing people in Jefferson County would have to be growth. My plan to meet those challenges would be working with planning and zoning and the city of Rigby to allow for organized growth so as to not mix commercial with residential.
Young: Dealing effectively with growth. We must continue to work with our communities, P & Z board and our P & Z department to meet the challenges with our ordinances and zoning restrictions. This will foster organized growth.
How will you best represent the views of your constituents – even those with differing political views? How will you communicate directly with constituents?
Young: I find on a county level; political differences are not much of an issue. We all have a different point of view on problems. We must all work together to find solutions, not divisions. It is always a pleasure when people approach me or contact me to
discuss the issues we face. I am always open for communications by phone, email or want to meet up. I always appreciate it when residents can attend our meetings held on Mondays.
Farnsworth: I will best represent the views of my constituents by having an open-door policy. The views of all county residents are important and deserve to be heard. I will have, and always have been available by phone or by email and am willing to discuss policies or problems with anyone.
What parts of the county budget could use more funding? Where are places in the budget where cuts could be made?
Farnsworth: I’m sure all could use more funding but the two that stand out to me are: Road and Bridge and Sherriff’s Department. I will work with the other two commissioners to determine if there are any parts of the budget that could be cut.
Young: Our roads always need more funding. It is my aim to obtain these funds through grants and other sources.
We are probably already in the top 3 most efficient running counties in the state of Idaho. We have had to be very frugal with our budget as inflation has been higher than our increase to our county budget. In essence we are cutting the budget already.
What is the role of local media in your community? How can county officials
work to have a better relationship with the media?
Young: Media should always be reporting the news which affects the residents of our county, good and bad. Officials should always be open to questions from the media. I have tried to quickly respond whenever they have called me.
Farnsworth: The role of local media in our community is to keep the residents informed. County officials can work to have a better relationship with the media by being accessible and available with open and honest communication.
Voter turnout and participation continues to be low in Idaho. What efforts can be made to stimulate greater voter involvement in elections and government?
Farnsworth: Voter turnout and participation has been an ongoing issue. Helping voters understand that every vote counts in small county elections and making polling places more accessible and inviting.
Young: Education and accurate knowledge are always the key to motivation. When people clearly understand the issues then they tend to become more involved. I think we all could do a better job of informing the public.