Brook Curtiss' Issue Positions (Political Courage Test)
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Brook Curtiss has demonstrated Political Courage by telling citizens where he stands on the issues he may face if elected.
Nebraska State Legislative Election 2012 Political Courage Test
| Pro-life | a) Do you generally support pro-choice or pro-life legislation? | ||
| Yes | b) Should abortions be illegal after the first trimester of pregnancy? | ||
| No | c) Should abortion be legal when the pregnancy resulted from incest or rape? | ||
| No | d) Should abortion be legal when the life of the woman is endangered? | ||
| Yes | e) Do you support requiring parental notification before an abortion is performed on a minor? | ||
| Yes | f) Do you support requiring parental consent before an abortion is performed on a minor? | ||
| Yes | g) Do you support the prohibition of public funds for abortion procedures? | ||
| Yes | h) Do you support the prohibition of public funds for organizations that perform abortions? | ||
| With the science we have today, medical procedures requiring abortion are very few and far between. I believe parents have rights over their children, and mothers, regardless of the circumstances, have a responsibility to their children as well. In extremely rare occasions a decision must be made about saving a life, I would not vote to support such legislation, but I realize those decisions must be made and should be made by the immediate family, not by law. I will demand renovation of the adoption rules for parents that cannot have children as well. | |||
1) State Spending:Using the key, indicate what state funding levels (#1-6) you support for the following general categories. Select one level per category; you may use a number more than once.2) State Taxes:Using the key, indicate what state tax levels (#1-6) you support for the following general categories. Select one level per category; you may use a number more than once.3) Budget Stabilization:Indicate which proposals you support (if any) for balancing Nebraska's budget.
| Maintain Status | a) Education (higher) | ||
| Slightly Increase | b) Education (K-12) | ||
| Slightly Decrease | c) Environment | ||
| Slightly Decrease | d) Health care | ||
| Slightly Increase | e) Law enforcement/corrections | ||
| Greatly Increase | f) Transportation/infrastructure | ||
| Maintain Status | g) Welfare | ||
| Maintain Status | a) Alcohol taxes | ||
| Maintain Status | b) Cigarette taxes | ||
| Slightly Decrease | c) Corporate taxes | ||
| Slightly Decrease | d) Gas/Oil taxes | ||
| Greatly Decrease | e) Property taxes | ||
| Slightly Increase | f) Sales taxes | ||
| Maintain Status | g) Income taxes (low-income families) | ||
| Maintain Status | h) Income taxes (mid-income families) | ||
| Maintain Status | i) Income taxes (high-income families) | ||
| Yes | j) Should the state allow municipalities to increase their sales tax to a maximum of 2%? | ||
| No | a) Tapping into Nebraska's "rainy day" fund | ||
| No | b) Increasing tuition rates at public universities | ||
| Yes | c) Reducing or eliminating public worker collective bargaining | ||
| Yes | d) Reducing state employee salaries AND/OR pensions | ||
| Yes | e) Instituting mandatory furloughs AND/OR layoffs for state employees | ||
| No | f) Reducing benefits for Medicaid recipients | ||
| The government should only "do" what the individual cannot do for themselves. Infrastructure, imports and exports and management of the economy being primary functions. America should provide an opportunity for people, not lead them by the hand or provide free anything to the general public. Higher education has become an "entitlement" for the younger age, and it should not be so. Had I known what I would be doing now, I would not have attended a four-year college myself, and I don't think all youth should be pushed to that decision as part of their "regular education." | |||
| I support a larger use of a "Consumption tax" as, I believe, it is the only fair way of levying taxes. Punishing those that have worked hard or, on the flip side, giving handouts to those that do not work hard are both ridiculous ideas. Property taxes are on an uneven, unsustainable keel and the entire system needs to be renovated to allow for, especially in rural areas, one category of taxpayer to not shoulder the burden of all our social programs. | |||
| It is simple mathematics to review salaries, bargaining agreements and pensions. I refuse to remove benefits that workers (private or public) have paid for over the last 35 years. However, a new system is desperately needed to keep the State fluid. Benefits much change, salaries must be adjusted - our tax system cannot sustain the current levels, it is unfair to the private sector to pay maxed out property taxes for 1 in 5 Nebraskans to receive increased salaries and fully-funded benefit packages. | |||
a) Do you support limits on the following types of contributions for state candidates?
| No | 1) Individual | ||
| Yes | 2) Political Action Committee | ||
| Yes | 3) Corporate | ||
| Yes | 4) Political Party | ||
| Yes | b) Should candidates for state office be encouraged to meet voluntary spending limits? | ||
| Yes | c) Do you support requiring full and timely disclosure of campaign finance information? | ||
| Yes | d) Do you support the use of an independent AND/OR bipartisan commission for redistricting? | ||
| Yes | e) Do you support requiring a government-issued photo identification in order to vote at the polls? | ||
| Yes | f) Should the winner of the statewide popular vote receive all of Nebraska's Electoral College votes for President? | ||
| g) Other or expanded principles: | |||
| Yes | a) Do you support capital punishment for certain crimes? | ||
| Yes | b) Do you support alternatives to incarceration for certain non-violent offenders, such as mandatory counseling or substance abuse treatment? | ||
| No | c) Do you support decriminalizing the possession of small amounts of marijuana? | ||
| Yes | d) Should a minor accused of a violent crime be prosecuted as an adult? | ||
| No | e) Should a minor who sends sexually-explicit or nude photos by cell phone face criminal charges? | ||
| Yes | f) Do you support the enforcement of federal immigration laws by state and local police? | ||
| g) Other or expanded principles: | |||
| Yes | a) Do you support reducing government regulations on the private sector? | ||
| No | b) Do you support increased state funding for job-training programs that re-train displaced workers? | ||
| No | c) Do you support expanding access to unemployment benefits? | ||
| No | d) Do you support providing financial incentives to the private sector for the purpose of job creation? | ||
| No | e) Do you support increased spending on infrastructure projects for the purpose of job creation? | ||
| No | f) Do you support providing direct financial assistance to homeowners facing foreclosure? | ||
| Yes | g) Should Nebraska allow wagers on historic horse races? | ||
| I do not support increased spending on infrastructure projects for the sheer purpose of creating jobs, but I do support increased spending on infrastructure projects. | |||
| Yes | a) Do you support the national Common Core State Standards initiative? | ||
| No | b) Do you support a merit pay system for teachers? | ||
| No | c) Is the tenure process for public school teachers producing effective teachers? | ||
| No | d) Should parents be allowed to use vouchers to send their children to any school? | ||
| No | e) Do you support state funding for charter schools? | ||
| Yes | f) Do you support the state government providing college students with financial aid? | ||
| No | g) Should illegal immigrants who graduate from Nebraska high schools be eligible for in-state tuition at public universities? | ||
| Education is a primary concern of mine, having two small children in or entering the system. I support a high level of standards, but also local control for individual teachers to determine the best way to reach that standard with their students. State-Controlled financial aid also allows states to individually choose their limits and financial requirements for applicants. | |||
| Yes | a) Do you support state funding for the development of alternative energy? | ||
| Yes | b) Do you support state funding for the development of traditional domestic energy sources (e.g. coal, natural gas, oil)? | ||
| Yes | c) Do you support state funding for improvements to Nebraska's energy infrastructure? | ||
| Yes | d) Do you support state funding for open space preservation? | ||
| Yes | e) Do you support the Keystone Pipeline's revised route through Nebraska? | ||
| No | f) Do you support enacting environmental regulations aimed at reducing the effects of climate change? | ||
| Nebraska is an agricultural state. We depend on the use of the environment just as much as in its preservation. I do not believe any reasonable producer will destroy the tools he or she uses to make a living. We cannot hinder the use of the environment, and responsible producers also work to preserve its longevity. | |||
| Yes | a) Do you support restrictions on the purchase and possession of guns? | ||
| Yes | b) Should background checks be required on gun sales between private citizens at gun shows? | ||
| Yes | c) Should citizens be allowed to carry concealed guns? | ||
| No | d) Should a license be required for gun possession? | ||
| These are very vague questions about very varied topics. "Guns" is not a blanket statement that I use. There are types of firearms that I believe should be restricted or monitored. Background checks are common sense, but they should not take long to find, or cost next to anything. Most of the opinions about guns are bent on punishing the group for the actions of a few "bad apples" - and I believe that needs to stop. | |||
| No | a) Do you support a universally-accessible, publicly-administered health insurance option? | ||
| Yes | b) Do you support expanding access to health care through commercial health insurance reform? | ||
| Yes | c) Do you support interstate health insurance compacts? | ||
| No | d) Do you support requiring individuals to purchase health care insurance? | ||
| Yes | e) Do you support monetary limits on damages that can be collected in malpractice lawsuits? | ||
| No | f) Do you support allowing doctors to prescribe marijuana to their patients for medicinal purposes? | ||
| No | g) Should the state of Nebraska fund prenatal care for illegal immigrants? | ||
| I agree that reform is needed, but I hesitate to place that reform at the hands of the government who gave us this last round. I do not support anything that makes a purchase "mandatory" as that violates individual freedoms. Lawsuits payouts can be controlled, medical marijuana is the sale of a mind-altering substance that I don't support and only taxpaying citizens should be allowed to take advantage of our limited social programs. | |||
| Yes | a) Should marriage only be between one man and one woman? | ||
| Yes | b) Should same-sex couples be allowed to form civil unions? | ||
| Yes | c) Do you support the inclusion of sexual orientation in Nebraska's anti-discrimination laws? | ||
| Yes | d) Do you support the inclusion of gender identity in Nebraska's anti-discrimination laws? | ||
| I do not support same sex marriage, but I believe citizens should be treated equally under the law in terms of taxes and access to private affairs. I liken this topic to prohibition - obviously I cannot stop anyone from doing what they truly want to do. I do not believe these topics should be public, and I believe hate-crimes and discrimination are moral and ethical issues, not necessarily legal ones. The fact that we have to have anti-discrimination laws in our society is ridiculous, people are either qualified for something or they're not. | |||
| My main goals at the moment are in support of increased public liberty and access to government records for the public through the renovation of the public notices law and freedom of information rules; a removal of the helmet law in Nebraska for tourism, economic development and a will of the motorcycle riders of this state and to increase rural Nebraska's economic abilities, at the moment, through increased usage of ethanol and renewable energy source jobs. I will support a Voter ID system, lowered property taxes and equalization, the creation of a consumption or fair tax and greater personal freedoms. |
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