An Update on the 146th State House Race

Last March I posted a brief note on the 146th state house race, between incumbent Republican Tom Quigley and Democratic challenger Mark Painter. At that time Painter didn't have a campaign website -- now he does: www.markpainterstaterep.com/ The campaign also has a facebook page.

He has interesting biography on the site:

Mark is an eighth-generation Pennsylvania German. He grew up in Stowe, where his father worked at the Stanley G. Flagg Co. plant. His mother is the daughter of Polish immigrant coal miners.

He graduated from Pottsgrove High School, class of 1975, and went on to the University of Pennsylvania on a full scholarship, where he earned degrees in electrical engineering and law. There he met his wife, Coleen, a United Methodist minister and retired Army Reserve chaplain. They married in 1981.

Mark and Coleen raised two refugee foster children from Southeast Asia and two biological sons, who have autism. The experience of having disabled children led Mark into the field of special education law, where he represented parents advocating for better services from their school districts.

In 1997, Mark was elected tax collector in Limerick, where he became known for giving back tens of thousands of dollars of his salary to Limerick's parks and fire companies.

He attends St. James Lutheran Church in Limerick, where he also teaches Sunday School, and is on the Board of Directors of the Royersford Free Public Library and Royersford Community Chest.

I haven't fact checked any of it, but, wow, that's an interested life story.

He lists the standard topics on his issues page -- education, job creation, etc. However, one thing that jumped out at me is one of his stands on taxes. Painter is a former tax collector. He recommends that the state collect local earned income tax where applicable instead of paying outside vendors like Berkheimer Associates. He also advocates for taxing unearned income as well.