Jason Rogers
RepublicanQ1 Scientific and technical expertise can inform decisions related to healthcare, energy, infrastructure, manufacturing, and emerging technologies. What role, if any, should scientific evidence and expert input play in your policymaking process, and how would you communicate scientific uncertainty or evolving evidence to the public?
“Scientific evidence and technical expertise should inform policy on a wide range of topics, but not replace accountability or practical judgment. I would consult peer-reviewed research, independent experts, state agencies, and affected stakeholders, while examining methods, funding sources, biases, and limitations.
When evidence is incomplete or evolving, I would state clearly what is known, what is uncertain, the range of risks, and the basis for the decision. Policy should be reviewed and adjusted as new data arrive rather than locked in by initial claims. Transparency about trade-offs builds public trust more effectively than assertions of certainty.”
KEYWORDS: Evidence, Transparency, Accountability
Q2 Government research funding supports universities, medical centers, and technology development across Michigan and the nation. What role, if any, should the federal government play in supporting scientific research and innovation, and what outcomes would you prioritize when evaluating those investments?
“The Constitution does not grant the federal government a general power to fund scientific research. The Patent and Copyright Clause authorizes Congress to promote science by securing exclusive rights for inventors and authors, not by appropriating taxpayer dollars for grants. The spending power is limited to the common defence and general welfare within the framework of enumerated powers.
I therefore support a sharply limited federal role. Private industry, philanthropy, universities, and the states are better positioned to fund most research and innovation. Federal outlays should be restricted to clear national needs: defense-related science, responses to public-health emergencies, and infrastructure that is genuinely interstate or national in character.
Any such funding must produce measurable results that strengthen national security, protect public health in genuine emergencies, or maintain essential infrastructure. Open-ended basic-research grants, university earmarks, and programs whose benefits are local or speculative fall outside a proper federal role. Michigan’s research capacity will be stronger when driven by voluntary investment and state priorities rather than federal subsidies.”
KEYWORDS: Limited government, Private funding, Enumerated powers
Q3 Michigan farmers face challenges including shifting weather patterns, localized droughts, fluctuating input costs, and global market pressures. What policies or investments, if any, would you support to help farmers remain productive and economically competitive, and what role could scientific research and innovation play in those efforts?
“Michigan farmers remain productive when they control their own decisions and can adopt tools that lower costs or raise yields. I support state-level agricultural research and extension programs focused on practical needs such as soil health, water efficiency, pest resistance, and precision agriculture. Private companies, land-grant universities, and farmer cooperatives are best positioned to develop and test these innovations.
Federal involvement should stay limited to interstate commerce issues, genuine trade enforcement, and any infrastructure that is clearly national in character. Broad subsidies, open-ended research grants, or mandates that override local conditions fall outside a proper federal role. Farmers, not distant agencies, should decide which technologies fit their operations. The priority is keeping family farms solvent and competitive through voluntary innovation and state-supported practical research.”
KEYWORDS: State research, Farmer control, Practical innovation
Q4 Michigan communities continue to face challenges related to aging water infrastructure, contamination concerns such as PFAS, and long-term protection of the Great Lakes. What policies or investments, if any, would you support to improve drinking water safety and water infrastructure in Michigan?
“Drinking-water systems and local infrastructure are primarily state and municipal responsibilities. I support state and local investment to replace aging pipes, address lead service lines, and modernize treatment, with priority for communities that cannot fund upgrades alone. On PFAS and similar contaminants, the focus should be on accurate testing, transparent data, and requiring responsible parties to cover cleanup costs rather than shifting the burden to taxpayers or ratepayers.
Federal action should be limited to genuinely interstate or national problems, such as Great Lakes boundary waters or contamination that crosses state lines. Routine water-system maintenance and most remediation belong at the state and local level. Clean water is essential; the means of securing it should match constitutional limits and local accountability.
Clean drinking water should not depend on zip code.”
KEYWORDS: State responsibility, Polluter pays, Local infrastructure
Q5 Many communities face shortages in healthcare providers and limited access to specialty care. What policies, if any, do you support to address this daily challenge and do you envision emerging technologies playing a role?
“Rural and underserved areas face real shortages of physicians, nurses, and specialists. I support expanding telehealth and broadband so existing providers can reach more patients, along with loan-repayment incentives targeted at shortage areas and reduced administrative burdens that drive clinicians out of practice.
I also support making proven alternative and complementary approaches more accessible and eligible for coverage when evidence and patient choice support them, while preserving conventional acute and emergency care where it has clear strengths (trauma, surgery, acute infections, etc.). Emerging technologies should assist clinicians and expand options, not replace human judgment or create new centralized controls. Decisions should rest with patients and practitioners rather than distant mandates.”
KEYWORDS: Access, Telehealth, Patient choice
Q9 Rapid expansion of artificial intelligence and large-scale data centers are increasing demand for energy and water infrastructure. What policies, if any, would you support to balance technological growth with infrastructure reliability and environmental sustainability?
“I support private-sector technological growth that improves productivity, provided it does not expand a surveillance state or consume productive farmland.
Data centers should be sited on brownfields and already-developed industrial sites rather than verdant agricultural land. Projects must fully cover their own grid, water, and infrastructure costs, disclose resource demands in advance, and meet state and local environmental standards. Local communities should retain primary authority over siting and conditions.
Federal involvement should stay limited to genuine interstate grid reliability. High-risk AI uses involving mass surveillance or unrestricted data collection should face strict statutory limits.
The goal is reliable infrastructure, environmental protection, and civil liberties alongside responsible private innovation.”
KEYWORDS: Brownfields, Privacy, Local control