On May 20, the Ledger Dispatch e-mailed each candidate for Amador County supervisor a list of six questions. They were asked to choose five:

Name: David Pincus

Age: 56

City: Between Sutter Creek and Pine Grove

Profession: Financial planner

Running for: District 4 supervisor

Q: According to school district records, the county sent 53 percent of its students to public California universities or community colleges in 2006-07. What other educational options need to be pursued and will the county ever have a community college?

A: Both community colleges and private colleges generate a wide array of benefits. Benefits include higher earnings of students, growth in government income, improved health and lifestyle habits, lower crime, and lower incidences of welfare and unemployment.

A college contributes to economic development by increasing consumer spending and raising the skill level of the labor force. This in turn leads to more jobs, increased business efficiency, greater availability of investment funds, and eased tax burdens. College-linked economic development is generated by college operating expenditures, the spending of college students and staff, and by college skills embodied in the workforce.

In the final analysis, it would have been a better economic decision for Amador County to have invested in bringing a college to Amador County than investing in various large-scale county building projects.

Q: According to 2005 statistics from the California Employment Development Department, 75 percent of the county's job opportunities paid below the self-sufficiency wage for a single parent with two children, while 41 percent paid below that level for adults in a two-parent household. The U.S. Census Bureau estimated 9.2 percent of the county's population was living in poverty in 2003. Is Amador doing enough on the economic development front? If so, cite examples. If not, what would you do to bring in better-paying jobs?

A: More than anything else, Amador County needs a serious strategy for economic and community development that produces housing and jobs for everyone in the county. Currently, the business community has difficulty attracting competitive labor due to the lack of housing within the county for wage-earners. Clusters of housing near retail and other service industries can be profitably developed alongside or in conjunction with commercial developments.

Good paying jobs follow well-planned housing since employers are looking for communities where their employees can afford to live. Both require planning, which has been absent from the county's agenda.

Q: According to U.S. Census data, Amador County ranked 18th in population growth among California counties between 2000 and 2003, with most of that growth in the unincorporated upcountry area. What should be done to make sure infrastructure (schools, roads, public protection, wastewater capacity) keeps up? What part, if any, should regional planning or revenue sharing play?

A: As a mortgage and financial planner, I would like to see more of the young people who come into my office qualify for home loans in houses that they could afford to own and have the income to support. I am the president of the Gold Country Chapter of Business Network International and I would like to see small business owners thrive in a growing local economy. I am a vocal advocate of a paid fire force, expanded public safety and better roads. In addition, I recognize the need for better investments in schools and wastewater capacity. However, the county cannot afford these without a stronger local economy to support them.

Q: A Capital Region Healthy Futures Project study projects that the 55 and older group will make up 40 percent of the county's population in 2020, up from more than one-third in 2005. Is Amador becoming a bedroom community for retirees and can it survive as one?

A: The Capital Region Healthy Futures Project study does not tell the whole story of Amador County. We are a county of two distinct economic demographics. The bulk of the retired population that has moved to, and is moving to, Amador County has been east of Highway 49, where the immigration of wage earning families has been west of Highway 49. As a county, we cannot support ourselves solely on the tax revenues as a retirement bedroom community. Amador County needs a strong economic development plan to encourage development of housing and jobs for wage-earning families west of Highway 49, while it continues to support the needs of the retired population that is attracted to the region.

Q: According to a Capital Region Healthy Futures Project survey of seventh-, ninth- and 11th-graders, the county far outpaces the state when it comes to students experimenting with drugs and alcohol. Do you think these numbers are accurate? If so, what should be done about this?

A: Amador County is not alone among rural counties struggling with students experimenting with unhealthy lifestyle choices at increasingly younger ages. As a former police officer, I can attest to the impact drugs can have on young lives, which can be significant. It has always been true of rural communities that experimentation with alcohol and drugs is an alternative of choice where there are not as many healthy distractions as are available in suburban environments. I would like to see the development of a roller rink, miniature golf, and other appropriate opportunities for our young people, families, seniors and tourists alike.

Check back tomorrow for a Q&A with District 1 candidate John Gonsalves.