Optometrist Runs As Demo For State House

A Spokane Valley optometrist announced Monday he will run for the state House of Representatives as a “fiscally conservative Democrat.”

Frank Galizia, 35, said he wants lower taxes to attract more business and strong schools that could prepare children for changes in technology.

“I would revisit the whole tax structure,” Galizia said in an interview after announcing his candidacy at the Warren Magnuson Democratic Club luncheon.

He believes the state should roll back increases in the business and occupation tax approved by a Democratic Legislature and signed by Democratic Gov. Mike Lowry in 1993. He also wants to study possible changes to property taxes.

Galizia said he would look for ways to improve schools and the juvenile justice system without raising taxes.

Rather than “bullying the schools,” legislators should spend time in the classroom and ask “where can I help?” he said.

First-time offenders need swift justice to understand the consequences for breaking the law. That’s the best time to try to turn their lives around, he said.

“I want to study the budget to find ways to divert money into juvenile justice,” he said.

Galizia, a Valley resident for more than eight years, is married with a daughter, 7, and a son, 4. He is an optometrist at Empire Eye Physicians.

He is running for the seat currently occupied by freshman Republican Larry Crouse, who is expected to seek re-election.

, DataTimes