Nevada State Legislative Election 2016 Political Courage Test

Abortion & Reproductive

1. Do you generally support pro-choice or pro-life legislation?
- Pro-choice

2. Should abortions be illegal after the first trimester of pregnancy?
- No

3. Should abortion be legal when the pregnancy resulted from incest or rape?
- Yes

4. Should abortion be legal when the life of the woman is endangered?
- Yes

5. Do you support requiring parental notification before an abortion is performed on a minor?
- No

6. Do you support requiring parental consent before an abortion is performed on a minor?
- No

7. Do you support the prohibition of public funds for abortion procedures?
- No

8. Do you support the prohibition of public funds for organizations that perform abortions?
- No

9. Other or expanded principles
- No Answer

Budget, Spending, & Tax

1. Tapping into Nevada's "rainy day" fund
- No

2. Decreasing funding for public universities
- No

3. Reducing state employee salaries AND/OR pensions
- No

4. Instituting mandatory furloughs AND/OR layoffs for state employees
- No

5. Reducing benefits for Medicaid recipients
- No

6. Other or expanded principles
- No Answer

1. Education (higher)
- Greatly Increase

2. Education (K-12)
- Greatly Increase

3. Environment
- Greatly Increase

4. Health care
- Greatly Increase

5. Law enforcement/corrections
- Greatly Increase

6. Transportation/infrastructure
- Greatly Increase

7. Welfare
- Greatly Increase

8. Other or expanded categories
- All of these areas could use substantially more resources. The reality, however, is that Nevada's spending will be constrained by the amount of revenue available. Thus, it is not practical to greatly increase funding in all of these areas. As a result, decisions about how best to allocate resources will need to be made once the amount of available revenue is determined. That being said, revenue should be spent in the most efficient way possible.

1. Alcohol taxes
- Maintain Status

2. Cigarette taxes
- Maintain Status

3. Gas/Oil taxes
- Slightly Increase

4. Property taxes
- Slightly Increase

5. Sales taxes
- Slightly Decrease

6. Do you support applying sales taxes to all online purchases?
- Yes

7. Other or expanded principles
- My vote on any piece of legislation would depend upon the particulars, but I am in favor of continuing to index the fuel tax. In addition, Nevada's property tax system is in need of reform because the property tax caps have resulted in unintended consequences. Furthermore, I would like to see our sales tax reduced, but I understand the reality that any lost revenue would need to be made up somewhere else if we are to maintain the same level of spending.

Campaign Finance & Government Reform

1. Individual
- Yes

2. Political Action Committee
- Yes

3. Corporate
- Yes

4. Political Party
- Yes

5. Should candidates for state office be encouraged to meet voluntary spending limits?
- No Answer

6. Do you support requiring full and timely disclosure of campaign finance information?
- Yes

7. Do you support the use of an independent AND/OR bipartisan commission for redistricting?
- Yes

8. Do you support requiring a government-issued photo identification in order to vote at the polls?
- No

1. Other or expanded principles
- I am unsure about encouraging voluntary spending limits. I would need to know more about it and would like to see the impact any similar proposal has had in other states.

Crime & Public Safety

1. Do you support capital punishment for certain crimes?
- No

2. Do you support alternatives to incarceration for certain non-violent offenders, such as mandatory counseling or substance abuse treatment?
- Yes

3. Do you support legalizing the possession of small amounts of marijuana?
- Yes

4. Should a minor accused of a violent crime be prosecuted as an adult?
- No Answer

5. Do you support the enforcement of federal immigration laws by state and local police?
- No

6. Do you support delaying the seizure of assets by law enforcement officials until after a conviction?
- No

7. Other or expanded principles
- I think minors accused of the most serious violent crimes should, in some instances, be prosecuted as adults. But that depends on the particulars of the case and the minor, so I cannot answer that question in a yes/no fashion. It may be appropriate for law enforcement to seize assets before a conviction, but those assets should not be forfeited until a conviction and there should be a mechanism for an accused person to petition the court for the release of seized assets prior to a conviction.

Economic

1. Do you support government spending as a means of promoting economic growth?
- Yes

2. Do you support lowering taxes as a means of promoting economic growth?
- Yes

3. Do you support reducing government regulations on the private sector?
- No

4. Do you support increased state funding for job-training programs that re-train displaced workers?
- Yes

5. Do you support expanding access to unemployment benefits?
- Yes

6. Do you support requiring welfare applicants to pass a drug test in order to receive benefits?
- No

7. Do you support providing financial incentives to the private sector for the purpose of job creation?
- Yes

8. Do you support providing direct financial assistance to homeowners facing foreclosure?
- No Answer

9. Do you support an increase of the minimum wage?
- Yes

10. Should employers be able to ask about applicants' criminal history before interviewing them?
- No

11. Do you support additional regulations on the short-term loan industry such as capping interest rates?
- Yes

12. Do you support the use of public funds for the construction of professional sports stadiums?
- No Answer

13. Other or expanded principles
- I am unsure how I feel about the questions I left unanswered. I would need to know more about the specifics of any proposals before I could commit to a position. For example, what kind of financial assistance to homeowners facing foreclosure? And what would the terms of any such assistance be? Where would we raiser the money to pay for the financial assistance? As for the stadium: How much public funding for a sports stadium and is there a way the public can be protected if the investment doesn't pay off as projected?

Education

1. Do you support the national Common Core State Standards initiative?
- No Answer

2. Do you support a merit pay system for teachers?
- No Answer

3. Is the tenure process for public school teachers producing effective teachers?
- No Answer

4. Should parents be allowed to use vouchers to send their children to any school?
- No

5. Do you support state funding for charter schools?
- No Answer

6. Do you support the state government providing college students with financial aid?
- Yes

7. Should illegal immigrants who graduate from Nevada high schools be eligible for in-state tuition at public universities?
- Yes

8. Other or expanded principles
- I support the concept of having common core standards that are consistent among jurisdictions, but I also appreciate the concerns raised about the current national common core standards. I support a merit pay system for teachers if we can figure out how to accurately and fairly gauge teacher performance/effectiveness among schools and classrooms. I am unsure whether the tenure process is producing effective teachers. I need to learn more about this area. I support state funding for charter schools as long as those schools are held accountable in the same manner traditional public schools are.

Environment & Energy

1. Do you support state funding for the development of renewable energy (e.g. solar, wind, thermal)?
- Yes

2. Do you support state funding for the development of traditional domestic energy sources (e.g. coal, natural gas, oil)?
- No

3. Do you support state funding for improvements to Nevada's energy infrastructure?
- Yes

4. Do you support state funding for open space preservation?
- Yes

5. Do you support government regulations of greenhouse gas emissions?
- Yes

6. Do you support increased regulations of the hydraulic fracturing ("fracking") industry?
- Yes

7. Do you support repealing some of the current restrictions on the use of public lands for cattle grazing?
- No

8. Other or expanded principles
- I favor a move to renewable energy sources to the extent possible.

Gun

1. Do you generally support gun-control legislation?
- No

2. Should background checks be required on gun sales between private citizens at gun shows?
- Yes

3. Should citizens be allowed to carry concealed guns?
- Yes

4. Should a license be required for gun possession?
- No

5. Other or expanded principles
- I support the 2nd Amendment, but I believe we should do all we can to make it more difficult for prohibited persons (felons; terrorists, the seriously mentally ill) to obtain firearms. I only support allowing citizens to carry concealed if the citizen goes through a training class that requires a live fire exercise.

Health

1. Do you support a universally-accessible, publicly-administered health insurance option?
- No Answer

2. Do you support expanding access to health care through commercial health insurance reform?
- Yes

3. Do you support interstate health insurance compacts?
- Yes

4. Do you support Medicaid expansion under the Affordable Care Act ("Obamacare")?
- Yes

5. Do you support requiring individuals to purchase health care insurance?
- No Answer

6. Do you support monetary limits on damages that can be collected in malpractice lawsuits?
- No

7. Do you support allowing doctors to prescribe marijuana to their patients for medicinal purposes?
- Yes

8. Other or expanded principles
- I don't know how I feel about a universally-accessible, publicly administered health insurance option. I need to learn more about how it would function and what impact it would have in Nevada. I don't have any problem with requiring individuals to purchase health care insurance, but my support of that would depend upon the penalty/repercussion for failing to purchase it.

Social

1. Do you support same-sex marriage?
- Yes

2. Do you support the inclusion of sexual orientation in Nevada's anti-discrimination laws?
- Yes

3. Do you support the inclusion of gender identity in Nevada's anti-discrimination laws?
- Yes

4. Other or expanded principles
- No Answer

Legislative Priorities

In the following area, please explain in a total of 100 words or less, your top two or three priorities if elected. If they require additional funding for implementation, please explain how you would obtain this funding.
- 1. Education and workforce development.2. Jumpstarting the solar economy in Nevada.3. Public safety/criminal justice reform.