Kyc: District 67 State House

The race for the District 67 seat in the Florida House of Representatives pits Ron Reagan, who trounced his opponents in the GOP primary, against Ron Stringfield, a Libertarian who expects to spend no money in his campaign, and William Dolinski Jr., a write-in candidate.

In the September primary, Reagan easily outpolled attorney Steele T. Williams and computer consultant Chester Flake. Reagan captured 69.3 percent of the vote and carried every precinct in the three-county district.

Reagan is a conservative who lists education and growth planning as his top concerns. In both areas, he favors ceding authority to local governments.

"I believe in local control rather than dictating from Tallahassee," Reagan said. "What is good for Miami is not necessarily good for Hillsborough or Manatee."

In the area of education, Reagan supports Gov. Jeb Bush 's increased spending for education, the use of the FCAT to assess schools and the allocation of vouchers for students in failing schools. Reagan also favors the expansion of technical training and an improvement in teacher-student ratios but without a constitutional amendment.

Reagan believes Florida's intangibles tax ought to be eliminated, and he would push for more stringent monitoring of state agencies to eliminate waste.

Stringfield, a Tampa man making his first run for office, follows the Libertarian Party philosophy and said, "The main things for me are reducing taxes, spending and regulation."

His top issues include legalizing marijuana for medical use and electoral reform via proportional representation, where a party wins legislative seats based on the percentage of popular vote received.

Stringfield was charged with misdemeanor marijuana possession in 1991 and was placed on probation. He said he no longer uses marijuana.

To reduce taxes, Stringfield said, he would curtail spending on "the drug war" by seeking reforms to decriminalize drug use.

Stringfield said the GOP-controlled Legislature always promises to slash spending and reduce taxes but often fails to follow through. He said Florida voters can expect Libertarians to fulfill those kinds of promises.

"We are giving people a choice," Stringfield said. "We're for real."

THE JOB

District 67 in the Florida House of Representatives takes in parts of southeastern Hillsborough County, including Sun City and Ruskin, as well as parts of eastern Manatee and Sarasota counties. Representatives consider state legislative matters, serve two-year terms and are paid $29,328 annually.

REPUBLICAN

Reagan

RON REAGAN, 48, is an insurance agent at RTI Insurance Services who lives in Bradenton. He is married and has three children. He attended Manatee Community College and earned an undergraduate degree at the University of South Florida before starting his insurance business. He has volunteered his time for youth recreation programs and the Employee Support for the Guard and Reserves military transition program. He also has worked as a fundraiser for Lakewood Ranch High School and has served with the Salvation Army and the local Republican Party. ASSETS: home, commercial building, stocks, motor home, boat, personal property LIABILITIES: home mortgage, commercial mortgage, personal loan SOURCE OF INCOME: insurance business E-MAIL: RREAGAN100@aol.com

LIBERTARIAN

Stringfield

RON STRINGFIELD, 30, is a computer programmer at Conservation Billing Services Inc. He is single and lives in Tampa. Stringfield says he would move into District 67 if elected. He has degrees in accounting and computer information science from Tampa College and has earned certification in Microsoft training. Stringfield worked previously for Newtelligent.com, Citibank and a Tampa shipbuilder. ASSETS: truck, personal property, bank account LIABILITIES: student loans, auto loan, consumer debt SOURCE OF INCOME: computer programming and contract work E-MAIL: RStringfield@city-guide.com