Castle Country Radio had the chance to sit down with Robert A. Olson, the Democratic candidate for Carbon County Assessor. Olson took the time to answer questions ranging from what he sees as the difference between a mainstream Democrat and a Carbon County Democrat to explaining his plans for the Assessor’s Office if elected.

In a politically divisive world like the one we currently live in, Olson spoke on the difference between national democrats and the platform he runs on, saying,” I was raised believing in unions and being a democrat, and I’ve always looked at Carbon County Democrats as different. We stand for the common man and represent old values, family values, belief in god and hard work.” Olson also stated that this race is not partisan,” It’s really based on knowledge and skill at estimating property values.”

When asked about his qualifications for the position, he said,” Real estate is not really an easy career field … having done appraisals on commercial properties as well as residential properties gives me an advantage to the background of what an assessor does every day.”

“I think some of the problems facing us are that the office is not managed well, the training is not happening like it should, tax rolls have been produced late … There are quite a few systemic problems just as far as management style and employees knowing what they should do, being trained to do it and doing it properly.” Olson said when asked about the problems he aimed to fix in the assessor’s office.

Asked to speak on his plans if elected Olsen responded,” The assessor has two main responsibilities, managing and training the employees and the second is providing an equitable tax roll. So I believe that my background will allow me to do both of these tasks in a very professional manner.”

To end the interview, Olson shared a last message to the voters, stating,” I feel I’m qualified because I use proper appraisal methods, I have the knowledge, I have a very hard work ethic, I have a law degree and I specialized in real estate courses. I do believe in accountability, I think the tax roll needs to be on time. If it’s not on time it creates issues for the auditor, treasurer and the entire county budget. There’s a lot of problems to tackle, and I feel that my 30 years of experience are perfect for the job.”