1. United States
2. Mich.
3. Letter

I am writing to urge you to explore implementing public options in our community that would compete directly with monopolistic private companies while generating revenue that flows back to local residents rather than to distant shareholders. A public option means government provides a service directly, not through regulation or subsidies to private companies. We already have successful examples: public schools since 1647, public libraries since 1833, and the USPS, which delivers to 170 million addresses and forces private carriers to compete on quality. These work because they generate value for the public who are the actual shareholders. California's CalRx program demonstrates the immediate impact. When the state began manufacturing naloxone at $24 per twin pack, market-wide prices dropped 22% in one quarter, saving $39.6 million directly and $56 million through competitive pressure. California also sells insulin at $11 per pen compared to branded Lantus at $424. The Department of Defense runs over 900 childcare centers serving more than 200,000 children, with 97% meeting national accreditation compared to just 9% of civilian centers, while charging families about 7% of income. Our community could build online shopping platforms to compete with Amazon, keeping revenue local instead of sending it to corporations. We could expand municipal utilities, which already serve millions of Americans through 2,000 existing providers. Vienna's public housing covers 60% of residents, resulting in only 18% being rent-burdened versus 58% in Los Angeles. Sectors without public options see the fastest price increases and worst service deterioration. Airlines consolidated from 10 carriers to 4, internet providers charge more for slower speeds than peer democracies, and most states send deposits to Wall Street instead of keeping them local like North Dakota has done profitably since 1919. I am asking you to champion public options in our community. This does not ban private business but forces companies to compete by adding genuine value rather than extracting rents as middlemen. For more detailed analysis, please review this comprehensive examination of public options: https://cmarmitage.substack.com/p/public-option-everything?publication_id=5818316&post_id=189055726&isFreemail=true&r=5rc2fc&triedRedirect=true&utm_source=substack&utm_medium=email Will you commit to exploring which services could benefit from public competition?