Received: September 12,2022
Published: September 12, 2022

My name is Joshua Titus. I’m a candidate for Borough Assembly. I live 15 miles north of town with my lovely wife, Rebecca, and three wonderful children, Aurora (5), Dakota (3), and Mckinley (9 months). I’ve called Ketchikan home for almost 10 years. I’ve never sought elected office before. I’m foremost a born again Christian. I attend Calvary Bible Church on Carlanna Lake Rd as often as possible. Secondly, I’m a conservative. To me when I think of a conservative I think about someone that supports small government, less regulation, controlled spending, low taxes, and individual freedoms and rights (including a parent’s right to decide what their child it taught in school). I think it’s important for me to identify those characteristics because they are the basis of my principles and will guide any decision I make on the Assembly. I want to serve my community with integrity and selflessness. I would appreciate your vote on October 4th.

1. Why you are running for office?

I’m running for Borough Assembly because I want to see our community thrive. Progressive and leftist influence at the federal and state levels have created challenges to the well-being of our community. skyrocketing inflation, a slowing economy, and burdensome overregulation are a few of the challenges facing our community in the next few years. Can I fix these as a member of the Borough Assembly? No, but I can work to push back against the same progressive and leftist influence in our local government and work to keep the Borough from adding to the tax payer’s burden. Our government needs to be community centered and sustainable. I think that the majority of people on this island want low taxes and a small, unintrusive, representative government. That’s the majority I’m running to represent.

2. Experience and education.

I have a Bachelor of Science in Nursing.
I am one of the managers of the Guardian Flight Ketchikan base.
I lead Guardian Flight’s safety program for the State of Alaska.

3. Community involvement

I moved to this community in 2011 to work for Guardian Flight as a flight nurse. I’ve contributed to this community by caring for my neighbors when they become too sick or injured to be cared for on this island. It has been my honor and joy to serve my community in this way.

I married the love of my life shortly after moving to Ketchikan and we now have 3 children. We participate in many community and church related activities, support local business, and recreate outside whenever possible. We have been renters in town and are now homeowners out north.

I volunteer frequently at community health events, fundraisers, and prior to COVID-19, I spent a lot of time helping out in the Kayhi auto shop teaching kids how to work on diesels.

I also volunteer as treasure of my neighborhood homeowner's association.

4. Identify at least two significant issues and challenges facing our community and your ideas on addressing these issues. (Please do not just say you will be open to public input. Be specific about the issues and challenges and your specific ideas to bring to the table.)

Cost of living

Like everyone else I feel the burden of increasing cost of living. Our local government can do a good amount to help this.

By controlling spending we can create a sustainable budget that will require minimal, if any tax increases. I’d like to be able to cut cost without cutting services. We need to prioritize efficient operations while trimming unnecessary programs and positions. The taxpayers are tightening the belt at home, there is no reason the local government can’t do the same.

I would also like to look for ways to promote more goods and services being provided on the island. We are surrounded by food and building materials but we get it all shipped in on a barge. I’d like to find a way the Borough can help access the resources around us.

I’d like to see more land available for building housing. I’d also be interested in tastefully changing the building code to allow more affordable building. I say “tastefully” because we want our community to be affordable, safe, and attractive. I’ve seen tiny homes that were both safe and attractive and I’ve seen some that were neither.

Homelessness

The people of Ketchikan are some of the most kind and generous people I have ever lived around. I don’t think anyone wants to see the homeless suffer. In general, I believe the government does a poor job of administering resources to those in need. Government is usually sluggish, wasteful, and inefficient.

Not-for-profits, religious organizations, and private citizens do a better job of caring for the poor. I believe the role of our local government is to equip the good people and groups in the community to help the needy by providing legal and regulatory guidance along with some quality assurance. After that the government really just needs to stay out of the way and let people follow their convictions without a lot of red tape. Once the government is taking less of your money, you are free to give in the ways that you feel are most effective.