PITTSFIELD, Mass. — Candidates hoping to represent the sprawling 2nd District on Beacon Hill met for the second time Monday for a televised debate at Berkshire Community College that covered topics from charter schools to raw milk.

Democrat Paul Mark of Hancock, Republican Michael F. Case of Washington and independent Stefan G. Racz had debated earlier in the day on the local Vox Radio station; Monday night it was in front of the cameras for The Pittsfield Gazette and Pittsfield Community Television, with David Cachat of PCTV's CityLink moderating.

Perhaps the most interesting thing coming out of the night was that the three candidates weren't all that far apart. They said communities should have control and input on major developments within their borders, such as casinos and wind power, and funding for education and infrastructure — as long as the state paid its fair share.

Their differences were more matters of degree with a few exceptions, such as legalizing marijuana: Case, a retired police officer and military veteran, was against; Racz for, and Mark, an attorney and telecom worker, only for medical marijuana.

They stressed the importance of farming and open space for the largely rural, crescent-shaped region that slices through Berkshire County and into Hampshire and Franklin counties.

"We are providing some of the most gorgeous views in the state," said Racz, a Buckland selectman. "We need to preserve that for future generations."

While supporting alternative energy, he was concerned that wind-turbine siting here would mean ridgelines and the destruction of the environmental beauty. The loss of farms and failure to preserve open space could put lands at risk for developers.

Case said he supports wind turbines but only if the community has significant input and agricultural programs for farming. "I've spoken to many farmers who own a lot of land," who may be land wealthy but cash poor, he said. "They're just barely getting by. We need to give them tax breaks."

Mark said he did not support the state's wind siting law, which limits local input, but would back the expansion of raw milk sales to home delivery. He also spoke in favor of agricultural cooperatives such as Denis Guyer, the man they're trying to replace, is setting up in Dalton. 

Racz said he didn't support milk price regulation; Mark and Case said they did, with Case adding only if it was not to the detriment of the farmer.
 
Both Case and Racz said they'd support a single destination casino in the state because, said Case, "it would draw other than just gambling because it would have shows, and other conventions ... it would be good for the economy of Massachusetts." Racz said he believed "one casino would be a testing ground for income to the state," as long as it did not infringe upon current cultural venues.

Mark said he supported the Senate bill that had planned for three casinos. "I don't think gambling is a magic cure-all but I don't see anybody else really proposing anything to make new jobs," he said. "I am against slot parlors and racinos because they don't have the job creation element so you would only get the bad parts of gambling."

All three said the state's health insurance reform had worked well to expand access but didn't think it had done well enough in controlling costs.

"I don't think it was the best solution, I think a single-payer would have been a much better solution," said Mark. "We could serve as a model for the nation."

Racz said the reform was an innovative idea but the state hadn't felt the total negative impact because elements of the federal health insurance reform will begin kicking in in Janury. "There's not enough money right now," he said, in part because insurance companies were raising rates. "We have to focus extremely heavily on insurance companies and the drug companies. ... make sure they're towing the line."

Health insurance has improved greatly, said Case, but "what we don't know yet is what the cost is going to be. I've heard as high as 42 percent of the state budget is going to health care now. ... Single-payer may be a dream down the road but not right now with the economy the way it is."

They said they would advocate for the state to pay its fair share of the regional school transportation. Racz said the state should take on the contracts for busing and let the schools use the money for education. They agreed it was important to the students to ensure so-called circuit breaker special education funding from the state and were leery of charter schools.

"It's a good idea but you don't want them taking money away from the public school system," said Mark. Case said parents should have the option, but "it's a drain on the public schol and they don't take the children who have problems."

Racz said regular public schools should be held to the same standards of review since charter schools can be disbanded if they don't live up to their mission.

Case said more incentives should be offered to attract and retain businesses. "We need to make the business climate in Massachusetts competitive with other states." Mark said the new creative economy should be supported and bringing health care costs under control and broadband to the region will help spur growth. "Local jobs mean local revenue."

Racz said one of his initiatives is the 2nd Berkshire Business Alliance, a conduit for small businesses in the district to ally and bring the issues affecting them to the attention of the representative. "You have to remember, small business carried us  through this recession; they didn't get bailouts."

All three said they would have voted against last year's increase in the sales tax.

Each pledged to do their best to listen to constituents. Case said he would keep an office, likely in Dalton, for constituent services and a staffer to meet with selectmen throughout the district to help keep him apprised. Racz said he would "not favor the town of Buckland over the town of Dalton, Windsor or Peru" and he would get feedback from the towns.

Mark, at 31 the youngest of the candidates, annoyed his opponents with claims that he would keep going to all 22 towns in the district because he was "the only with the energy to keep doing it." The older men said their energy was fine, thank you very much, although Case had a little fun later with Mark by pretending to nod off during his opponent's closing remarks.

The debate will be rebroadcast on PCTV; we should have audio up later Tuesday.

SHELBURNE FALLS, Mass. – Paul Mark, the Democratic nominee for state representative in the 2nd Berkshire District, has received the endorsement of the state's three main environmental groups. Sierra Club Massachusetts, Mass Clean Water Action, and the Massachusetts League of Environmental Voters endorsed Mark this week.

"Paul is committed to reducing our reliance on fossil fuels, promoting renewable energy resources and growing our local economy by doing so," said Phil Sego, political chairman of the Mass Sierra Club. "This district is already leading the way and, with Paul's help, will continue to do so."

"Paul has made the preservation of the natural beauty of the district one of his top priorities, and supports smart investments in the clean-energy jobs which are critical to our recovering economy," said Lora Wondolowski, Massachusetts League of Environmental Voters' executive director. "We look forward to working with Paul in the State House during the next legislative session."

"Clean Water Action was impressed both by Paul's broad support in the district and his commitment to protecting our environment and our health in Massachusetts," said Jeff Knudsen, political director for Massachusetts Clean Water Action. "We believe that Paul Mark is the clear environmental choice in this race."

Clean Water Action boasts 80,000 members in Massachusetts, and Sierra Club has a membership base numbering 26,000. MLEV is not a membership organization, but rather works largely through broad voter contact on important environmental issues.

"These powerful endorsements are a signal of my commitment to environmental stewardship," Mark said upon receiving the endorsements. "I couldn't be happier to have the support of all three groups."

The groups are co-hosting an Environmental Champion dinner for Mark after the election.

Paul Mark has earned 30 endorsements from political groups and elected officials. A full list of his endorsements is available at www.votepaulmark.com.

The 2nd Berkshire District includes part of Pittsfield and 21 towns in Berkshire, Franklin and Hampshire Counties.

DALTON, Mass. — U.S. Rep. John W. Olver has endorsed Paul Mark, Democratic nominee for state representative in the 2nd Berkshire District. Olver, along with state Sen. Benjamin B. Downing and other members of the Democratic ticket, will host an event for Mark on Thursday, Oct. 21, at 5:30 p.m. at the Dalton
American Legion, at 258 North St.

"As our state representative, Paul will work on behalf of our most rural communities to improve the quality of life there and to encourage economic growth in sectors across his district," said Olver in a statement. "I believe Paul will work to ensure that residents of the 2nd Berkshire District have a strong representative at the table, as they have had with Rep. [Denis] Guyer."

Guyer is vacating the seat he's held for four years.

"Candidate Paul Mark has an impressive background, including a doctorate in law and policy. Throughout his campaign he has demonstrated independence and leadership, and he has presented a thoughtful, but multifaceted approach to dealing with our current economic challenges," continued Olver. "I expect Paul will utilize his education, resources and intuition to represent his constituents at the State House with great success."

"I'm proud to have the support of Congressman Olver. From his time as a state rep himself, through his years in Congress, he has been an invaluable voice for Western Mass," Mark said upon receiving the endorsement. "Just like Congressman Olver, I'm dedicated to having a presence throughout my sprawling district."

The 2nd Berkshire District is the largest and most rural in Massachusetts, and stretches from the New York to New Hampshire borders, much like Olver's Congressional district.

Update: According to reports from MassLive.com, Paul Mark has won the 2nd Berkshire District Democratic primary with 2,762 votes (44 percent) and 21 of 23 precincts reporting. Coming in second was Thomas Szczepaniak with 2,310 votes (37 percent) and Noreen Suriner with 1,229 votes (37 percent).

The race  to chose a new representative from the 2nd Berkshire District appears to be going down to the wire, with Democrats Tom Szczepaniak of Dalton and Paul Mark of Hancock running neck and neck.

An update from PCTV at 11 p.m. had Mark in the lead by 6 percent of the vote.

The campaigns were still awaiting official results from the sprawling district, which includes parts of 22 towns spread across three counties.

On the Republican side, Michael Case of Washington appears to be the choice to represent his party in the Nov. 2 general election, which will also include independent Stefan Racz of Buckland, who unsuccessfully ran against Guyer in 2006.

On the Democratic side, Szczepaniak, a Dalton selectman since 2001 and owner of Variety Trucking and Demolition in Pittsfield, said he was confident he would pull through against two other Democrats. In his hometown, he won 788 votes to 413 for Paul Mark of Hancock, and 228 for Noreen Suriner of Middlefield.

At about 10:30 p.m., he said he was confident of a strong performance in Berkshire County, but unsure about other towns that still hadn't reported.

"It's been a long, vigorous campaign," he said from Shamrock Restaurant and Pub in Dalton, where he was awaiting the results with supporters. "Meeting the people has been a blessing. It's a new world for me and I'm excited about it."

For the Republicans, Michael Case, a veteran and longtime Pittsfield police officer, said he had put up a clear lead against Rosanne Frieri of Pittsfield.

"I'm glued to the TV," he said from Jacob's Restaurant in Dalton, where he was gathering with supporters. "I've got a feeling I'm going to win."

The district is geographically the largest in the state and includes the Berkshire towns of Cheshire, Dalton, Hancock, Hinsdale, Lanesborough, New Ashford, Peru, Richmond, Becket, Washington, Windsor, and a part of Pittsfield. It also includes the Franklin County towns of Colrain, Bernardston, Ashfield, Buckland, Leyden, Northfield, and Shelburne, and the Hampshire County towns of Cummington, Middlefield, and Plainfield.

The winner of the race will replace Denis Guyer of Dalton, who was first elected to the seat in 2004, winning that election with 70 percent of the vote. He replaced Republican Shaun Kelly of Dalton, who had represented the district since 1990.

SHELBURNE FALLS, Mass. — State Sen. Stan Rosenberg has endorsed Paul Mark, candidate for state representative in Tuesday's Democratic primary for the 2nd Berkshire district.

"Paul is a hard-working, intelligent person from a working-class background who would make a fine state representative," said Rosenberg. He said Mark has the energy to represent his sprawling district — the largest in the state. Rosenberg also commended Mark for
his understanding of the issues that face his rural district, from regional school district funding to innovation in agriculture and energy.

"As a fellow graduate of UMass-Amherst, Paul shares my dedication for supporting higher education," Rosenberg said, "and it's reflected in his endorsements from various educator groups."

Mark received his master's in labor studies from the university, along with a doctorate in law and policy from Northeastern University. "He's clearly got the right qualifications for the job," Rosenberg added.

"I'm excited to have the support of Senator Rosenberg, and I believe we would be natural allies in crafting policy that will benefit our shared districts," said Mark upon receiving the endorsement. "I especially aspire to mirror his advocacy on behalf of farmers in the State House."

Current Rep. Denis Guyer is vacating the seat for the 2nd Berkshire District, which shares many towns with Rosenberg's Franklin-Hampshire Senate district.