[CREDIT: Scott Copley for Dist. 5] Scott Copley, is running in the Coventry Dist. 5 Council Race.COVENTRY, RI — Scott Copley, Coventry resident for 13 years, tells readers of his Facebook page his Coventry Dist. 5 Council race run was prompted by a desire to challenge politicians who don’t listen to the people.
Copley ran for Senate in Dist. 33 against Sen. Lou Raptakis as an independent in 2016 and a Republican in 2018, losing with 5,554 to the incumbent’s 5,872 votes in 2018, then with 4,293 to the incumbent’s 5,276 votes in 2018.
According to his Facebook page, Copley holds a B.S. in Criminal Justice from Johnson & Wales. According to the VoteSmart.com profile on him, he has been a Territory Manager for RJ Reynolds since 2014.
Copley has also received the endorsement of Councilman Jamie LeBlanc.
Warwickpost.com invited all Coventry Town Council candidates to answer the same six questions, giving them all four days to respond. Candidates were urged to answer the questions directly, and invited to elaborate on each topic after answering the initial question. The answers have been edited for style and spelling, to ensure responses remain on-topic, and to avoid introducing misinformation into the debate.
All the candidates’ answers to the questionnaire have been posted within the same 10-minute window, with a digital dice roll assigning the order each set of answers run on the site, and thus, their order in the daily newsletter.
Here are Warwick Post’s questions, and Copley’s answers:
Coventry Dist. 5 Council race Q&A
1) The state auditor’s assessment of the Coventry Schools to-date $5M deficit lays partial blame on turnover of poor performing prior executive leadership, and prior finance directors on the school and town side, coinciding with ill-timed Financial Town Meeting votes for level funding. The result was inadequate budgets that didn’t catch deficits early.
Copley declined to answer this Coventry Dist. 5 race question when reached by phone.
Coventry Dist. 5 Council race Q&A – 1A) What is your position on level-funded budgets?
Copley declined to answer this Coventry Dist. 5 race question when reached by phone.
Coventry Dist. 5 Council race Q&A – 1B) How can the Council be more proactive with financial leadership?
Copley declined to answer this Coventry Dist. 5 race question when reached by phone.
Coventry Dist. 5 Council race Q&A – 1C) Please share any other thoughts you have on this.
Copley declined to answer this Coventry Dist. 5 race question when reached by phone.
Coventry Dist. 5 Council race Q&A – 2) How can the town‘s fire districts be better managed?
Copley declined to answer this Coventry Dist. 5 race question when reached by phone.
Coventry Dist. 5 Council race Q&A – 3) What is the most important thing you will do to aid small businesses in town?
Copley declined to answer this Coventry Dist. 5 race question when reached by phone.
Coventry Dist. 5 Council race Q&A – 4) According to the RI Auditor General’s report on the town‘s sewer program, “Only a small portion (approximately 3%) of the Town’s homeowners and businesses are connected to the System,” and, “A longer-term view needs to be part of the overall assessment of the program as there will be a future need in Coventry to expand the sewer program for either health and safety, water contamination, or economic development reasons.”
Copley declined to answer this Coventry Dist. 5 race question when reached by phone.
Coventry Dist. 5 Council race Q&A – 4a) Given the town-wide benefits to building sewers, is supporting the program in part with the General Fund, as suggested in the report, a good idea? What would you suggest?
Copley declined to answer this Coventry Dist. 5 race questionnaire when reached by phone.
Coventry Dist. 5 Council race Q&A – 4b) Please share any other thoughts you have on this.
Copley declined to answer this Coventry Dist. 5 race questionnaire when reached by phone.
Coventry Dist. 5 Council race Q&A – 5) Council President Hillary Lima suggests new Council members proactively study the town‘s finances and budget process with the town‘s finance director. What do you think of that suggestion?
Copley declined to answer this Coventry Dist. 5 race questionnaire when reached by phone.
Coventry Dist. 5 Council race Q&A – 6) State law splits governance of Schools and Municipal finance, and there tends to be a split in town members’ attention to and attendance of the respective meetings.
Copley declined to answer this Coventry Dist. 5 race questionnaire when reached by phone.
Coventry Dist. 5 Council race Q&A – 6a) Should these groups interact more?
Copley declined to answer this Coventry Dist. 5 race questionnaire when reached by phone.
Coventry Dist. 5 Council race Q&A – 6b) If so, how would you approach that?
Copley declined to answer this Coventry Dist. 5 race questionnaire when reached by phone.
Coventry Dist. 5 Council race Q&A – 6c) Please share any other thoughts you have on this.
Copley declined to answer this Coventry Dist. 5 race questionnaire when reached by phone.
Rob has worked as reporter and editor for several publications, including The Kent County Daily Times and Coventry Courier, before working for Gatehouse in MA then moving home with Patch Media. Now he's publisher and editor of WarwickPost.com. Contact him at editor@warwickpost.com with tips, press releases, advertising inquiries, and concerns.
![[CREDIT: Scott Copley for Dist. 5] Scott Copley, is running in the Coventry Dist. 5 Race.](https://northamerica.b-cdn.net/wp-content/uploads/2024/10/Scott-Copley-Coventry-Dist.5-Race.jpg)
![[CREDIT: Scott Copley for Dist. 5] Scott Copley, is running in the Coventry Dist. 5 Council Race.](https://northamerica.b-cdn.net/wp-content/uploads/2024/10/Scott-Copley-Coventry-Dist.5-Race-336x272.jpg)
