Station:   KLZ, 560AM

Show:      Grassroots Radio Colorado

Guests:    Kochevar

Link:        http://grrc.podomatic.com/profile?p=1

Date:       July 8, 2014

Topics:     Drive-in 88, GOP Vacancy Committee Appointment, Appointed, Robert Ramirez, IRS Scandal, Shower Heads , Toilet, Education, Theater, Testing, Standards, Teachers, Repeal,  Common Core, School Choice, Health Department, Waiver, Employment Laws, Anti-discrimination Laws for Small Businesses, Jobs , Litigious Society, Court System, Regulations, Compliance Costs, Small Business, Laura Woods

Click Here for Audio

 

[The following represents notes taken during this interview.  All portions, except where identified as transcribed sections, are paraphrased from the questions and responses between the host and the guest.]

HOST KRIS COOK:

• Welcome

GOP CANDIDATE FOR COLORADO HOUSE DISTRICT 29 and EXECUTIVE PRODUCER OF GRASSROOTS RADIO COLORADO RADIO SHOW, SUSAN KOCHEVAR:

• I wear a lot of hats
  • Owner of Drive-in 88
  • Appointed replacement for Robert Ramirez candidate in HD29
  • Head up “Colorado Small business Rising

COOK:

• You actually just got appointed by the vacancy committee to be this candidate

KOCHEVAR:

• I did
• As of last Tuesday
• I am the official candidate of HD-29
  • This is the seat previously held by Robert Ramirez in 2010
  • And then he lost that seat to my opponent
  • He was making another run for it this year
    • But lots of things caught up with him
    • In terms of workload and things
    • He had to step out
    • I had to step in
• We can’t let this seat go unchallenged
  • We need every single seat
  • When you’re in a serious battle for individual liberties and rights at this point
  • You can’t let anything go unchallenged

COOK:

• We have to present some push back to the every step of the way. And that’s what you’re doing.  Tell us about your opponent

KOCHEVAR:

• She is a liberal big government Democrat
• Funded by the unions

COOK:

• Ok

KOCHEVAR:

• And she is absolutely no friend of small biz
• Her first week or two in office, she said that small biz was overrepresented at the Capitol
• NFIB is there, and most of their members tend to be a little bit larger biz… still classified as small biz… we can’t afford to join these organizations so they don’t represent us
  • When we go to capitol to testify, it’s out of our pocket…. A whole day
  • It’s difficult to get to the capitol to testify
  • We have no representation

COOK:

• A complete ignorance of reality

KOCHEVAR:

• A point in a committee meeting she said that she didn’t think they needed to hear from any more businesses because they’re not credible
• I’m not sure what that even means
• we’re ordinary people, taking a day to testify, we’re experiencing the pressure from taxation and regulation—I think we know what we’re talking about

COOK:

• I manage a small business, and have seen the regulations piling up… heaped on small biz owners

KOCHEVAR:

•  I know you have some experience
• It’s not just state regulations
  • City
  • Federal government
  • Most of your time is spend collecting data and trying to comply
  • Regulations stacked in a pile as tall as me!!

COOK:

• How could you possibly keep up with all of it—if they want to target a small biz, they are going to find something

KOCHEVAR:

• Absolutely
• And they tend to be vindictive
  • As witnessed by the IRS scandal
  • It seems to be the nature of government
• It’s a very serious time we’re in right now

COOK:

• What’s your focus as a legislator?

KOCHEVAR:

• The most important thing is the individual
  • In last session, all of our individual decisions and rights are being destroyed
    • For individuals
    • For small biz
  • Regulations like
    • Your shower heads
    • What kind of toilet
    • The standards which your local school will meet
    • It’s all being forced down our throats.
• That’s going to be my focus—giving individuals back their right to choose

COOK:

• I like that…. Our children’s education, what we want our houses/lives/protection to look like

KOCHEVAR:

• Yes, education is very important to me
• We have this Common Core which they’re trying to shove down our throats
• I can tell you, I’ve had to teach employees the multiples of 8 because that’s how we charge at the Drive in
• So we’re getting more testing and “standards”
  • Yet I’m having to do the basic education
• I‘m for putting the actual teachers back in charge
  • Professionals
  • They’re in the trenches
  • They know what to do.

COOK:

• What do you want?  Repeal delay?

KOCHEVAR:

• I want to repeal it
• I want local control
• I want to empower parents
  • Choose the school
  • Choose how to educate their child

COOK:

 

• Taxes, size of gov. regulations, we’re trying to roll back all of that… it gets overwhelming.  You know what my challenges are… how to you plan to filter and prioritize

KOCHEVAR:

• One of the first bills should be to reduce the number of bill that legislators can run
  • So we can get a handle on this stuff
  • So we can see what’s coming through the House and the Senate
  • It’s overwhelming to keep up with all this stuff – that’s why we’re in this regulatory mess
    • Someone can catch you violating at every turn
    • If we limit, it would help tremendously
  • We weren’t supposed to be passing this much legislation

COOK:

• On the board of CRBC—I don’t know how you do it!  I only have 3 jobs.  I’ve watched the harassment you’ve had at your business.  What have you experienced as a small biz owner

KOCHEVAR:

• Things just kept happening
• Drove me to run
• Someone needs to step up to represent, sit in the committees, and speak for the unintended consequences
• The Health Department regulations around sinks almost put me out of business 2 years ago
  • It cost me $10,000
  • I hadn’t made anyone sick
  • There was a waiver that even the regulatory board didn’t realize
  • These things just really destroy businesses
  • The city didn’t plan the road very well..
    • Traffic is busier on the weekends
    • My theater can’t accommodate the cars
    • Some things need to be handled better there
    • But the pressure is tremendous
  • Employment laws:
    • Small biz wasn’t liable for discrimination claims, but now they removed all the barriers, even for tiny businesses
      • Hiring an  attorney can put you out of business
      • I think discrimination is WRONG and horrible.
      • All this hurts jobs and the people of Colorado

COOK:

• We have such a litigious society.  Our court system is abused all the time for the purpose of punishing someone with whom you disagree, like maybe a boss, when you didn’t like the way you were let go, because you weren’t doing your job.—that’s a problem

KOCHEVAR:

• These are the things that got me fired up and wanting to run
• Barriers to entry in starting your own business because of all these regulations
  • Next to impossible
  • I would like to see everybody who has a dream be able to make it happen without all these barriers.
  • It’s about individuals – not just about business

COOK:

• Regulations assume you were wrong… no due process, no presumption of innocence. You have to comply – otherwise you’re going to kill everyone.  Do I have that right?

KOCHEVAR:

• Oh, absolutely
• It takes a massive amount of time to prove your innocence
• And hurts your business that way too

COOK:

• Those compliance costs – it’s insane
• Where can people find you?

KOCHEVAR:

• FacebooK;  Susan for Colorado
• Website: susanforcolorado.com
• Donating to campaign
• ‘Liking’ my FB page
• Sharing it
• Talking about me
• Yard signs
• Volunteering to walk
• Make a “I stand with Susan” video to post on our FB page

COOK:

• We’ll put a link up on our FB page.  For your opponent to say that small businesses are over represented – I mean, come on!  That is a complete disconnect from reality
• You are an activist extraordinaire
• What is your district?

KOCHEVAR:

• HD 29
• Sheridan to Wadsworth
• Southern edge at I70
• North to Standley lake

COOK:

• Overlaps Laura Woods’ senate district

KOCHEVAR:

• Yes, it does.