Citizens for Limited Taxation 2 1/2 Endorses Craig

Only Craig Pledged Not to Raise Taxes

Upton, MA …Today Shawn Craig, Republican candidate for State Representative and Iraq war veteran, proudly announced that he has received the endorsement of Citizens for Limited Taxation 2 ½ PAC.

“People are sick and tired of Boston politicians reaching into our wallets to pay for their mismanagement. I am the only candidate fully committed to protecting the taxpayers. I am pleased that this commitment has been recognized by Citizens for Limited Taxation. I am honored to have their support in the upcoming Republican primary,” said Craig.

Francis J. Faulkner, executive director of the PAC, said the group endorsed Craig based on his strong support for tax limitation. “We need to put people like Shawn Craig in the State Legislature to continue the fight for the income tax rollback and to block any attempt to impose new taxes. Shawn has also taken the taxpayer protection pledge. This pledge asks candidates to ‘oppose and vote against any and all efforts to increase taxes.’ A candidate who signs the pledge is sending a message to legislative leaders that he is serious about not raising taxes and will focus instead on better management of state revenues.”

CLT’S 2 ½ PAC, the political arm of Citizens for Limited Taxation, was originally created to support candidates who would defend Proposition 2 ½ in the State Legislature. It now endorses candidates who support taxpayers on a variety of issues, and uses the CLT Legislative rating to identify pro-taxpayer legislators.

Craig is the only candidate to sign the no new taxes pledge and the only candidate to collect signatures to repeal automatic gas tax hikes.

“We need a State Representative with the determination to hold the line against taxes and spending. I am the only candidate to sign the pledge. I am not looking for a loophole to raise taxes. I will be working for tax relief,” added Craig.

Over the past week Craig campaign has been gaining strong momentum. He has received the endorsements of Steve Aylward, Co-Chairman of Yes on 1 ballot initiative, Representatives Jim Lyons and Marc Lombardo, and the Vice Chairman of the Mendon-Upton Regional School Committee Chris Russo.

Craig is the only candidate in the Republican primary with municipal experience. He a member of the Upton Finance Committee and is the liaison to the Mendon Upton Regional School District. He is also the Vice-Chairman of the Mendon-Upton Multi-Board Task Force.

Professionally, Craig has 16 years of private sector experience with the majority spent within the financial services industry. He worked for the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (“FINRA”) for 8.5 years where he investigated broker-dealers for compliance with federal securities laws and FINRA rules and regulations. This included both routine as well as special investigations involving the review and discovery of money laundering, fraud, embezzlement, insider trading and unsuitable investments. One investigation of which he was the team lead resulted in the discovery of fraud and misrepresentation at a firm located in Braintree, MA. Craig drafted a referral whereby the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission became engaged along with the FBI. The firm’s owner was detained October 2, 2012 and sentenced in April 2013 to 17 years in federal prison plus 3 years supervised probation and $9 million in restitution. Craig left FINRA in 2013 to start a consulting business focused on helping small broker-dealers.

Craig earned his B.A. from Roanoke College, where he double majored in International Relations and Business, and an M.S. in Finance from Suffolk University in Boston.