CT Patch Candidate Profile: Bradley Koltz For State Rep

BETHEL, CT — Election Day on Nov. 5 is fast approaching, and there are a number of key races on the ballot in Bethel and Danbury.

Patch reached out to candidates for office to get more information on their campaigns and the issues that are facing the city and state.

Candidate’s Name: Bradley Koltz

What office are you seeking? State Representative

District: CT State House District 2

Campaign website

What city or town do you live in? Bethel, CT

Party affiliation: Republican

Education: I attended Southampton College on a full scholarship with a dual major in History and Philosophy

Occupation: Editor and Publisher with my first professional byline 46 years ago

Family: I have 2 adult sons and live with my fiancé Alicia.

Does anyone in your family work in politics or government? No

Previous public office, appointive or elective: No

Age: 61

Why are you seeking this office?

I live and work and shop and dine and pay taxes in my district. I own a business in my district. I know the crushing burden our taxes have become and how our community feels less safe. I see the consequences of state policies that undermine local zoning control. I know parents worried about loss of their voice in how their children are educated and who worry about the lower graduation rates and lower proficiency rates in our schools. I know the gut punch the expanded public benefits fees on our electric bills have been and how unnecessary they are and I have a simple plan to reduce our electric bills by 43%. I'm running because we need new ideas to fix these things and we need to have more voices outside the dominant 13 year long Democratic one party rule to accomplish this.

What do you believe is the No. 1 issue facing Connecticut, and how do you plan to address it?

The decreasing affordability of living in CT is the top issue facing everyone in our state.

There have been an alarming number of deaths on Connecticut's roadways. Is there anything from a legislative standpoint that can be done to address that?

Properly funding a larger police presence on our roads combined with re-empowering police to keep us safer will make our roads significantly safer.

What are the major differences between you and the other candidates seeking this post?

My opponent has been in office for 3 terms now, and his voting record has been one of approving 35% increases in our state budget, authorizing added public benefit fees on our electric bills, voting to reduce local control over zoning, voting to change our car taxes in ways that will add more taxes for about 40% of our car owners while at the same time reducing car tax revenue substantially for our communities, sponsoring and voting for the police acountability act that has driven countless officers from law enforcement and made our police and our communities less safe, and voting for numerous unfunded mandates that are crushing our schools, burdening taxpayers and absolutely unfair to our school children.

I oppose all of this. I support encouraging our schools to focus on core subjects like math and English and science and history. I support balanced budgets that start from a zero budget method, ensuring only necessary funds are included. I support eliminating the public benefits fee from our electric bill and would never sit by and ignore calls to call a special session to address those increased fees. I support repealing the police accountability act and replacing it with a bill that supports our police while also making sure that they have proper oversight. I oppose the state mandating anything that adds cost to local municipalities without also securing ways to fund those mandates. And I would never have voted for a bill, HB5437, as my opponent has, that claims to report on the effects of school mandates while layering more than 40 new and unfunded mandates on our schools in the same bill.

My opponent has a narrow agenda driven voting record that is not aligned with our community's needs. I will listen to and represent all of the citizens of District 2.

What accomplishments in your past would you cite as evidence you can handle this job?

I have run multimillion dollar business, including turning around businesses losing millions and saving hundreds of jobs. I hold a patent on publishing technology improvements that demonstrates I can logically problem solve complex issues. I have volunteered with non-profits and built a local networking group from zero members to just under 1,100 in 5 years, working to help local businesses. I have built a publishing business from nothing in 2015 to 14 weekly newspapers and a monthly magazine and growing in 2024. I have a track record of listening and then working to achieve aligned results for key stakeholders and negotiating hard for the best interests of diverse groups.

Is there anything else you would like voters to know about yourself and your positions?

I’m not a career politician, just a local guy working to make our community a better, safer and more prosperous place to live and work and shop and retire.

I try very hard to leave wherever I've been a little better for it, to do my best and encourage others to do so too, to call out injustice whenever I see it and to work hard to help others have the same opportunities I and others have. I respect seniors, believe that our police and first responders are true heroes, as are our veterans and try to help my neighbors whenever and however I can. It's long past time that we send representatives to Hartford who will represent everyone in our community and I firmly believe that if we come together and work hard our best days are absolutely before us.