We asked the candidates for the 122nd district to answer questions of interest to our readers. Here are the candidates and their replies:

Background:Doyle Heffley, R, Incumbent, was elected to represent the 122nd District in the Pennsylvania House of Representatives in 2010. As a lifelong resident of Carbon County a 1989 graduate of Lehighton Area High School, and a 1991 graduate of Lincoln Technical Institute Doyle understands the concerns and priorities of the residents of the 122nd District.From 1996-2010, Heffley worked in the trucking industry,overseeing more than 100 employees.In addition to attending Jerusalem Evangelical Lutheran Church in Trachsville, Heffley is an active member of the community. He is a member of the Sons of the American Legion Post No. 314 and the Indian Mountain Rod and Gun Club.The son of Larry and Roberta Heffley of Lehighton, he lives in Palmerton with his wife, Kellie, and their two daughters, Elizabeth and Angela.Neil Makhija, Democrat, is running to shake up politics in Harrisburg. He says he’s not a politician, and he’ll refuse his pay if they don’t pass a budget next year. Neil was born and raised in Lehighton. Makhija attended Lehighton schools, including SS. Peter and Paul and Franklin Elementary. He helped seniors and veterans cut through red tape at the VA before he graduated from Harvard Law School, where he discovered a 100-year-old scholarship from a Carbon County coal magnate. Makhija is an attorney for small businesses, and he’s active with charitable groups like Family Promise, and he wants to give back to Carbon County by bringing fresh ideas to Harrisburg.Matt Schutter, a Libertarian, is auditor in Penn Forest Township.1: What do you consider to be the most pressing issue of this election?Heffley: Jobs and the economy, property taxes and the opioid abuse crisis are the most pressing issues this election. Carbon county residents have a tremendous work ethic and industrial talent refined over generations. We need to entice businesses to invest in our communities while at the same time supporting local businesses and the entrepreneurial spirit. Eliminate property taxes to ensure working families can own a home and provide safe drug free communities to raise a family.Makhija: Politicians are looking out for themselves, not us.It’s sad. Keith McCall brought $70-plus million back to Carbon County; we haven’t seen any of that in years. Carbon County lost its voice in Harrisburg, and I’m fighting to take that back.Schutter: I would say the heroin epidemic. As Carbon County’s next state representative, I would introduce legislation that communities can create a community centers that can test heroin to see if it is lethal or not. Also, give addicts clean needle for old ones.2. What is the answer to lowering or eliminating property taxes?Heffley: I support House Bill 76. We need to shift the property tax burden away from families and senior citizens by eliminating property taxes and instead use a small sales tax increase to more fairly and adequately fund our schools. In Carbon County and across the state, people are being taxed out of their homes and that is not right.Makhija: We must hold politicians accountable for empty promises.I’m not a partisan, and I’ll always do what’s best for Carbon County. That’s why I’m one of the only Democratic candidates to support property tax elimination. I’ll build a new coalition to get this done for our seniors and we will save their homes.Schutter: Property tax is the worst kind of tax government can put on the taxpayer. No one should become homeless, and lose their home because they cannot afford the taxes on it! If we cut government waste in all departments from the top down we would not have to include income tax in HB 76. HB 76 is the elimination of property tax bill that legislature for the last couple of years. I would add an amendment to HB76 not to raise the income tax when HB 76 comes to the House floor.3. How can you help the senior citizens of the county?Heffley: Eliminating property taxes in one of the biggest ways we can help our senior citizens and most vulnerable. My district offices provide constituent services, including veterans outreach and assistance from federal offices. I hold a senior expo each year, which brings together dozens of local resources to help seniors improve their quality of life. In our district offices, we also help seniors apply for property tax/rent rebates, veterans’ benefits, LIHEAP and other assistance.Makhija: I will be a fighter for seniors, not the special interests who currently get the best deal in Harrisburg. We will pass laws that lower the cost of prescription drugs, reduce the property tax burden, and make long-term care more affordable. I’ve helped hundreds of seniors navigate the bureaucracy of the VA and the Social Security administration. As a lawmaker, I’d close the corporate loopholes and special giveaways that Harrisburg has handed out to the special interests.Schutter: When I am your next state representative, I will work hard to end the income tax. This will on average put $2,500 back in the taxpayer’s pockets. Seniors can spend that money how they want.4. How can you draw jobs to the area while keeping the environment in balance?Heffley: We can bring jobs to Carbon County by reducing burdensome regulations. We need policies that provide for economic activities while protecting communities from foreign corporations that will destroy our environment. The proposed windmill project in Penn Forest will endanger our forests and wildlife and harm our tourism industry. We need to use tax credits to enable our Pennsylvania-owned waste coal to power plants to clean our environment, creating quality jobs and producing electricity for local residents.Makhija:Cutting taxes would be a boon to the economy, and we also need to invest in STEM education. To save our young talent, we must tackle the drug epidemic by creating drug courts and getting support for law enforcement. With regard to environment, I would support local rights in regard to turbines and pipelines — we must protect Carbon County’s beauty.Schutter: What government can and should do, is lower taxes, regulations on business, and end corporate welfare where government picks and chooses who is going to win in the economy, according what lobbyist gave the biggest campaign check. On the issue of the environment, it is in the best interest of a company to be green friendly. If a company is polluting the environment they should be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law.5. What is Carbon County’s best asset and how can we best market our county to compete with the rest of the state?Heffley: The people of Carbon County are the hardest working people I have ever met and they are our greatest resource. We must continue to reclaim our once blighted industrial properties and build 21st century manufacturing facilities allowing our workers to compete in the global economy. We need to continue to market our area as a tourism destination and ensure that we have the policies in place to protect our natural resources while allowing the tourism industry to grow.Makhija: Our best asset is our people. We built America. Our coal fired the furnaces at Bethlehem Steel, our workers forged the beams in the Empire State Building. We must revitalize the infrastructure that made it possible: highways, rail, industrial sites. I’ll fight to bring advanced manufacturing jobs. We also have to support small business.Schutter: Carbon County’s best asset is the people who live here. The rest of your question is not in the job my description as a state legislator, so I will not answer it. I am running for State Representative not to be a business adviser for our County commissioners!6. What’s broken in Harrisburg and how will you fix it?Heffley: The partisan gridlock in Harrisburg is unacceptable. The politicians who tried to hold our schools hostage as leverage to pass one of the largest tax increases in state history should be ashamed of themselves. I am focused on making sure that government protects taxpayers and operates as efficiently and effectively as possible. I will always stand up for the residents of Carbon County against the special interests in Harrisburg.Makhija: Politicians pay themselves when they can’t pass a budget.It’s a disaster. I will support serious reform and transparency. We need this now.Schutter: What is not broken with government? Here are problems I see with Harrisburg:1. Elected leaders not honoring their oath to the U.S. Constitution and this Commonwealth’s Constitution.2. Politicians representing their parties and not the people who elected them.3. Not coming up with a 2015 budget for over eight months but lawmakers can collect their pay.4. Selling government to the highest bidder, representing the lobbyist not the people who elected them.7. Anything else you’d like to add?Heffley: It has been a privilege serving the people of Carbon County for the last 6 years. I believe the job of a State Representative is to listen to the people and represent their values in Harrisburg that is why my door is always open and why I continue to go door to door to personally hear people’s concerns so that I can better do my job. It would be an honor to continue serving the people of the 122nd District.Makhija: I’m not the typical politician, and I’m not doing this for a paycheck or a pension — I won’t even take that. I want to make a meaningful difference. I’m a proud Carbon County native and I love our community. My father served this area for 36 years, delivering 8,000 babies. Now I’m fighting to make sure every child has the chance to live up to their God-given potential, by supporting education, and building a new economy.Schutter: I will be the first elected Libertarian to our state Legislature, so I will work with all parties to get things done. I will work hard to end property tax and end the income tax, putting $2,500 back in the taxpayer’s pockets. I will cut government from the top down. Can I fix Harrisburg? No, but I can be responsible for my actions and answer to you the voter, not just the 1 percent.