Mark Pody, a Lebanon businessman and currently 46th District state representative, announced his intent to campaign for the 17th State Senate District today in prepared statement.

Pody will seek the seat currently occupied by Mae Beavers, who recently announced her aim to run for governor. Pody currently represents portions of DeKalb and Wilson and all of Cannon County in the 46th. The 17th Senate District covers Wilson, Cannon, DeKalb, Clay, Smith and Macon counties.

Pody said that in looking at the future of Middle Tennessee, he is focused on two priorities. The first is conservative fiscal policies.

“We need to limit the size and scope of government. Not every good idea should be a government idea,” said Pody. “Many good ideas are best done by individuals, church and non-profits, not by state government.” Pody said he believes government has a limited role and taxpayer money needs to be spent effectively on only programs that fit that role of government.

Pody said his second priority is bringing high paying quality jobs to the district. He feels the best way to gain these high paying jobs is to create an environment in the state where businesses want to relocate and expand. This is done by having a highly educated workforce, commonsense regulations, and favorable tax policies for incoming businesses.

As the owner of an insurance agency, Pody said he has more than three decades of experience fighting as a small business owner against the overreaching of our government.

Mark Pody and his high school sweetheart, Barbara, have just celebrated their 44th wedding anniversary. They have two adult children, Kristina and Amy.