Candidate

Name: Scott Griggs

Council District: 1

Please complete questionnaire below.
You must send a completed electronic copy to Political@StonewallDemocratsOfDallas.org or mail a completed copy to
P.O. Box 192305 Dallas, TX 75219 by Monday, March 6th, 2017.


1. Your background and the LGBTQ community
Please share any experience that illustrates your understanding and interest of the needs of LGBTQ Dallas residents.

As a district representative for a large number of LGBT citizens in Dallas, I have expended significant time and energy
to learn about LGBT needs and to advocate effectively to meet them. Once re-elected to Council in 2013, I continued
to work to advance the LGBT resolution to ultimate adoption by council. I also actively campaigned for the inclusion
of equality language in our city charter and was extremely encouraged by the huge margin of approval. Our council
resolution also directed our board members on the Citys two pension systems to advocate for equal benefits. Once
re-elected to Council in 2015, I used my seat on the Dallas Police and Fire Pension (DPFP) board and DPFP LGBT
Committee to support plan amendments for the approval of equal benefits.

My record of accomplishments and leadership as a City Councilmember has been recognized, including:

-Dallas Observer's 2015 Best City Council Member
-D Magazine's 2016 Best Public Official
-Oak Cliff Chamber of Commerce's 2015 Community Advocate of the Year
-Old Oak Cliff Conservation League 2015 Oak Cliff Warrior Award
-1st Annual Spirit of Equality Ally Award June 11, 2014
In recognition for your advocacy and continued support for the LGBT community
Adam Medrano, LGBT Taskforce Chair
-Best Local Straight Ally Dallas Voice Awards 2014
Dallas Voice, The Premier Media Source for LGBT Texas
-Thank You September 2014
For your generous support of the NAGAAA Dallas World Series
North American Gay Amateur Athletic Alliance
Matt Miller, President Dallas Series & Ryan Holdhusen, Vice President Dallas Series
-3rd Annual Spirit of Equality Ally Award June 15, 2016
In recognition for your advocacy and continued support for the LGBT community
Adam Medrano, LGBT Taskforce Chair


Stonewall Democrats of Dallas seek to inform members of the LGBTQ and Democratic Party community of candidate's
political background. Our organizations by-laws require us only to consider candidates with Democratic Primary
voter history or, in the case of someone having some history of voting in Republican Primaries, affirms their party
affiliation via an oath of allegiance to the Democratic Party. Do you qualify or would you be prepared to sign an oath
of allegiance form from the Dallas County Democratic Party?

Yes, I qualify.

2. Creating an inclusive community
Cities compete for residents, tax payers, conventions and new businesses/economic development. As a member of
the Dallas City Council, how would you insure that Dallas can compete effectively with other cities in the area of
LGBTQ inclusion?

We should actively tout our inclusive polices to any and every convention, visitor, and business so that they want
Dallas to be the place they visit and more so the place they want to live because our quality of life is better than any
other city.

Would you recruit and consider qualified LGBTQ constituents for your commission and board appointments?

I have a large number of LGBT constituents on boards and commissions, including important boards and commissions
such as City Plan Commission and Landmark Commission, and plan on continuing to have a large number of LGBT
constituents on boards and commissions.

Will you support a Dallas City Council's resolution for a statewide ban on LGBTQ employment discrimination?
Yes

3. The City of Dallas as a LGBTQ inclusive employer

The private sector has seen a large increase in policies and benefits for LGBTQ employees, how should the City of
Dallas remain competitive to attract and retain top LGBTQ talent?

We should advertise our job openings in LGBT targeted publications, blogs etc. We should attend job fairs put on by
LGBT organizations and join the LGBT Chamber as a partner organization. Our LGBT inclusive policies and ordinances
are a model for many other cities, and our 100 Score on the HRC index also attracts many LGBT people to our great
city.


Do you support comprehensive transgender inclusive health benefits and as a council member work with the City
Manager to implement such benefits?

I have for the past six years been working to achieve this goal, and very optimistic that it will come to fruition in the
next budget cycle. Thanks to the members of the LGBT Task Force and Councilmember Adam Medrano for all their
support to keep working on this issue, and for completing this important goal.



4. Current Events

The Governor and many state legislators continue to push legislation to curtail the current scope of
governance for home rule cities like Dallas. This could remove local control over matters such as drilling within city
limits, LGBT protections, etc. Do you favor or oppose this, and what do you plan to do in response?

I support local control and oppose the curtailment of home rule, and will continue to lobby legislators. I worked
hard to ensure our citizens are protected from dangerous gas drilling and have worked hard to increase LGBT
protections in the City of Dallas. I do not want to see our progress undone.

What are your thoughts on the current campaign finance rules for Dallas elections which set donation amount limits
on people newly seeking office but essentially place no donation amount limits on incumbents via unrestricted
officeholder accounts which may be used for campaign purposes?

I opposed the pre-2015 campaign finance rules for Dallas elections that set donation limits on people seeking office
and placed no restrictions on officeholder accounts. I am proud that in February 2015 the Dallas City Council set a
$100 cap on the amount incumbents can take from their officeholder accounts to spend for campaigning. I am proud
that I worked on this measure with Councilmember Philip Kingston.

Unrestricted campaign contributions now flow to councilmembers supported by the business elite through
SuperPACs. Wrongly, SuperPAC managers are also lobbyists. I am now working to change this unethical practice and
my amendment to the Dallas Code of Ethics preventing lobbyists from being campaign managers or SuperPAC
managers will come to Council for a vote on Wednesday, March 22.

How do you plan to address the Police and Fire Pension crisis? How would you support a tax increase to address the
ongoing funding deficits for the Police and Fire Pension System's benefits?

I plan on addressing the Police and Fire Pension crisis, which is now a public safety crisis, with the Flynn Compromise
Plan and a 1/8 of a cent reallocation of the DART local option sales tax. I do NOT support a tax rate increase to
address the crisis.

Presently, our uniform strength for police officers is down to 2.5:1,000, which is under our goal of 3:1,000, and 600
fewer officers than we need. Simply put, the pension crisis is becoming a public safety crisis that we must solve.

After increasing contributions from uniform officers and the City of Dallas and decreasing benefits, current options to
address the Pension Systems unfunded liability, which is conservatively $3.5B, include: (1) for the City to do nothing
and maintain its current contribution rate into the Pension System, which would leave retirees without a pension in
as few as ten years and is therefore unacceptable to the City; (2) paying all of the Citys bonding capacity into the
Pension System, which will leave no money for streets, libraries, and other essential City services, and as such, is also
unacceptable to the City; (3) raising property taxes, which are already a substantial burden on many Dallas residents,
and which have already helped pay the Citys contribution to the Pension System every year, without fail; (4) raising
sales tax, but the City is already at its maximum rate; (5) recouping or prospectively adjusting payments that are not
constitutionally protected; (6) placing the burden of the Pension Systems liabilities on the backs of new hires through
reduced benefits and higher employee contribution rates; (7) annuitizing current DROP participants accounts over
their lifetimes; and (8) redirecting a fraction of the one-penny in sales tax revenue currently sent to DART back to the
City, for the City to spend on public safety.

The Flynn Compromise Plan utilizes (6) and (7) to conservatively leave a $500M gap. I support utilizing (8) to close the
$500M gap.

What is your position regarding current state legislation to regulate public facility access and keep transgender Texans
from using restrooms that align with their gender identity? Will you defend the existing non-discrimination city
ordinance for LGBTQ individuals, including public accommodations?

Current state legislation to regulate public facility access and keep transgender Texans from using restrooms is wrong.
I will defend the existing non-discrimination city ordinance.

Homelessness affects marginalized communities, such as the LGBTQ community, at a disproportional rate. Given the
increasing problem of homelessness in Dallas and efforts to minimize it, what would your approach be to address this
crisis? Do you support a Housing First initiative for Dallas?

On the issue of homelessness and as Chair of the Dallas City Council Housing Committee, I support a Citizen-based
Council Committee to oversee (1) metrics related to homelessness; (2) policies regarding tent cities; (3) policies
regarding housing and the use housing choice vouchers for homeless individuals; and (4) the expenditure of City funds
regarding homelessness. As part of the creation of policies regarding housing, I support both housing first and
traditional permanent supportive housing. The more tools we have, the better.

What are your Ideas to address income inequality in the City of Dallas? Do you support implementing living wage
rules for city employees, city contracts, and subcontractor workers? How will you support the use of city subsidies or
tax abatements for housing development that substantially benefit the growing number of working poor and
struggling middle class residents in the City of Dallas?

Income inequality and poverty are huge problems facing the City of Dallas. I am proud that the lowest wage for City
of Dallas employees is $10.62/hour and I am proud that on November 10, 2015, Ordinance No. 152141, was passed to
raise the lowest wage for City of Dallas contractors to $10.37/hour per the MIT Minimum Wage Indicator. Of course, I
support higher lowest wages for both Dallas employees and City of Dallas contractors and I will work toward this goal
in my next term. Also, upon re-election, I will work to increase the hourly rate of temporary/part-time City of Dallas
workers from $8.49/hour to at least $10.37/hour.

As Chair of Housing, I am leading the effort to develop the first City of Dallas Housing Policy to support the use of City
subsidies for housing development that substantially benefits the growing number of working poor and struggling
middle class. The City of Dallas believes that every resident has the right to safe, decent, affordable, and fair housing,
regardless of their race, color, national origin, religion, sex, sexual orientation, disability, familial status, or source of
income. The City also recognizes that minority and disabled citizens make up a disproportionate number of the Citys
residents living in poverty, and that racially and ethnically concentrated areas of poverty are harmful to the City of
Dallas as a whole.

In support of its citizens, and in compliance with HUDs recently issued Affirmatively Furthering Fair Housing Final
Rule, the City supports the following policies. This document is not intended as a comprehensive housing policy.
Rather, this document will serve as a framework for the creation of a comprehensive housing policy that will include
the foundational elements enumerated below along with a number of additional components also described in this
document. Many of the foundational elements and components require further consideration by the Housing
Committee and City Council. A comprehensive housing policy will be finalized and adopted by December 31, 2016,
after consideration and action on all individual elements and after all components have been incorporated within the
comprehensive framework. The goal of a comprehensive policy will be to: (1) create and maintain available and
affordable housing throughout Dallas, (2) promote greater fair housing choices, and (3) overcome patterns of
segregation and concentrations of poverty.

Further, gentrification needs to be controlled such that hard working families are not displaced. As gentrification is
an issue in Dallas near Tax Increment Financing (TIF) Districts, I have worked with Representative Eric Johnson (D-
Dallas) on House Bill 2480, a bill to combat the involuntary displacement of residents in rapidly gentrifying areas of
West Dallas and other places. HB 2480 utilizes revenue from TIF zones, which are tools used to encourage economic
development in certain areas. This bill sets aside twenty percent of TIF funds for affordable housing, property tax
relief, and proportional infrastructure spending to ensure long-term affordability and equitable redevelopment.

What do you think the role of local law enforcement should be in the enforcing of federal immigration law?

The City of Dallas should have no role in having to enforce federal immigration law.

What are your thoughts about the Dallas County Commissioners' recent resolution declaring Dallas County a
Welcoming County, particularly as it pertains to the City of Dallas? Do you support this resolution?

I support a welcoming Community stand in my City and this issue will come up for a vote on Wednesday, March 22.
By way of background, at the February 13 Ad Hoc Judicial Committee meeting, Chair Lee Kleinman brought forward a
Resolution on Immigration that ensures Dallas "cooperates with the Federal government on immigration related
matters" and "the City also urges Congress to increase funding for Immigration and Customs Enforcement so that
their officers can respond to local requests for assistance in a timely manner." Councilmember Kleinman fears the
City of Dallas being labeled a "sanctuary city." Councilmember Adam Medrano and I OPPOSED Councilmember
Kleinmans resolution. Couniclmember Medrano and I are presenting a welcoming Community resolution that will
be up for vote on Wednesday, March 22.

Do you support ensuring that all residents of the City of Dallas have access to city services, regardless of immigration
status? Why, or why not?

Yes, all people deserve access to all City services. When our residents thrive our City thrives. Immigration status has
nothing to do with the services we provide as a City.


Last fiscal year, the Dallas City Council approved an ongoing $15 million dollar bailout for ATTPAC with little support
for small arts organizations in return. Critics argue that the real need is for support in local neighborhoods outside the
Arts District that are cultural deserts. What are your thoughts on revising or canceling the annual $1.5 million bailout
and use those funds to support small to mid-size arts groups in underserved neighborhoods as well as the downtown
area?

I opposed the ATTPAC bailout and I strongly objected to lack of transparency and accountability about the failed
financing at ATTPAC and the secrecy associated with the bailout agreement. I will continue to advocate for funding
for our small to mid-sized arts groups in underserved neighborhoods. I am proud of my work with Councilmember
Philip Kingston for the Dallas Convention and Visitors Bureau to share Hotel Occupancy Tax with small to mid-sized
arts groups. In this last budget, I am proud of the $400,000 capital improvement and maintenance fund I helped
establish for small to mid-sized non-city owned arts facilities.



I, Scott Griggs, am seeking an endorsement from the Stonewall Democrats of Dallas for the 2017 Dallas City Council
elections.

Signed Date March 5, 2017