Elections - Lovell Mayor

Tom Newman

Bio:

I was born, raised and educated in Salt Lake City, Utah. My wife and I moved to Star Valley Wyoming in 1999, and we moved to Lovell in 2012. My wife (Suzie) and I have been married for 32 years we have five children, two grandchildren and two more on the way. I am the State Farm agent in Big Horn County and have offices in Basin and Lovell.

What do you believe are the top issues facing your town? 

We live in an area where we raise good children, then we send them off around the country. While it is important to share, I would like to see more of them come home to raise their families in Lovell.

I have many reasons for having an interest in this community. My wife and I are very passionate about the education and activities and experiences that our children receive. We want them to have the very best opportunities for education and activities to prepare them to be tomorrow’s leaders in the communities they will choose to live in. We hope they will be able to return to our community to raise their families, but without growth and future planning this may not be an option for them.

With the changes in property taxes, the monies coming into the towns is making for tighter budgets. What would be your priorities with a potentially limited budget? 

We all face times in our lives when our personal budgets need to be adjusted to ensure that we live within our means. It is not only prudent to live within our means, but living beyond our means in a household can lead to financial bondage that can cause tremendous harm to us and our families. A community is no different. Sometimes we need to make things stretch as we look forward to better times. I am interested in preserving what we have now as well as preparing for the future of Lovell.

I have been serving as mayor for nearly six years. We have been able to balance fiscally sound principles required by law while investing in the future of our community and saving for a rainy day. We were able to balance the budget this fiscal year through these principles.

 What is your stance on government transparency including public notices, open meetings, public records and communication with the press? How do you hope to keep the public in the loop? 

Anyone is welcome at any time to attend council meetings. They are open to the public, and that has never changed. We have a great relationship with the Lovell Chronicle; David Peck and his team are a tremendous asset to the community.

For State Candidates, see: https://lovellchronicle-wy.newsmemory.com/?special=BHC+Election+Edition