Teresa Briggs' Issue Positions (Political Courage Test)
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Teresa Briggs has provided voters with clear stances on key issues by responding to the 2016 Political Courage Test.
Kansas State Legislative Election 2016 Political Courage Test
| Pro-choice | a) Do you generally support pro-choice or pro-life legislation? | ||
| No | b) Should abortions be illegal after the first trimester of pregnancy? | ||
| Yes | c) Should abortion be legal when the pregnancy resulted from incest or rape? | ||
| Yes | d) Should abortion be legal when the life of the woman is endangered? | ||
| No | e) Do you support requiring parental notification before an abortion is performed on a minor? | ||
| No | f) Do you support requiring parental consent before an abortion is performed on a minor? | ||
| No | g) Do you support the prohibition of public funds for abortion procedures? | ||
| No | h) Do you support the prohibition of public funds for organizations that perform abortions? | ||
| I struggled most with the questions concerning minors and whether or not their parents should be notified and/or be required to give consent. I can see both sides of those scenarios and would be comfortable if the provider was able to make that call based on the conversation with each individual. Some, whether minors or adults, are capable of making and accepting their decision better than others. Decisions may be triggered by emotions such as fear, regret or embarrassment, decisions that might not otherwise result in ending the pregnancy if those feelings could be expressed with a neutral party. | |||
1) Budget Stabilization:Indicate which proposals you support (if any) for balancing Kansas's budget.2) State Spending: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.3) State Taxes: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.
| No | a) Tapping into Kansas's "rainy day" fund | ||
| No | b) Decreasing funding for public universities | ||
| No | c) Reducing state employee salaries AND/OR pensions | ||
| No | d) Instituting mandatory furloughs AND/OR layoffs for state employees | ||
| No | e) Reducing benefits for Medicaid recipients | ||
| Greatly Increase | a) Education (higher) | ||
| Greatly Increase | b) Education (K-12) | ||
| Greatly Increase | c) Environment | ||
| Greatly Increase | d) Health care | ||
| Greatly Increase | e) Law enforcement/corrections | ||
| Greatly Increase | f) Transportation/infrastructure | ||
| Greatly Increase | g) Welfare | ||
| Slightly Increase | a) Alcohol taxes | ||
| Slightly Increase | b) Cigarette taxes | ||
| Greatly Increase | c) Corporate taxes | ||
| Maintain Status | d) Small business taxes | ||
| Maintain Status | e) Gas/Oil taxes | ||
| Slightly Decrease | f) Property taxes | ||
| Slightly Decrease | g) Sales taxes | ||
| Maintain Status | h) Income taxes (low-income families) | ||
| Maintain Status | i) Income taxes (mid-income families) | ||
| Greatly Increase | j) Income taxes (high-income families) | ||
| Yes | k) Do you support applying sales taxes to all online purchases? | ||
| Yes | l) Do you support reducing the sales tax rate on groceries? | ||
| m) Other or expanded principles: | |||
| We still have a rainy day fund ??? | |||
| My answers reflect the dire situation in which our state finds itself. Each one of the categories mentioned above have had funding reduced whether it be in the budget or through allotments (sweeps) by the Governor. My answers reflect my hope in the best case scenario (sufficient revenue) which does not exist in Kansas at this time. | |||
a) Do you support limits on the following types of contributions for state candidates?
| Yes | 1) Individual | ||
| Yes | 2) Political Action Committee | ||
| Yes | 3) Corporate | ||
| Yes | 4) Political Party | ||
| No | 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? | ||
| No | e) Do you support requiring a government-issued photo identification in order to vote at the polls? | ||
| Campaign finance definitely needs to be reformed. The decisions made by our policy makers should not be driven by what they will receive in benefits from special interest groups, but rather how they can help make their constituents lives better which helps our entire state. | |||
| No | 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? | ||
| Yes | c) Do you support legalizing the possession of small amounts of marijuana? | ||
| No | d) Should a minor accused of a violent crime be prosecuted as an adult? | ||
| No | e) Do you support the enforcement of federal immigration laws by state and local police? | ||
| Yes | f) Do you support delaying the seizure of assets by law enforcement officials until after a conviction? | ||
| Our criminal justice system needs to be overhauled to deal with the ever-changing nature of crimes and the mental and emotional health of the offender. Incarceration does little to help a situation where the individual could benefit more from counseling and treatment. This sometimes comes into play due to the shortage of funding to mental health. | |||
| Yes | a) Do you support government spending as a means of promoting economic growth? | ||
| No | b) Do you support lowering taxes as a means of promoting economic growth? | ||
| Yes | c) Do you support reducing government regulations on the private sector? | ||
| Yes | d) Do you support increased state funding for job-training programs that re-train displaced workers? | ||
| Yes | e) Do you support expanding access to unemployment benefits? | ||
| No | f) Do you support requiring welfare applicants to pass a drug test in order to receive benefits? | ||
| Yes | g) Do you support providing financial incentives to the private sector for the purpose of job creation? | ||
| No | h) Do you support providing direct financial assistance to homeowners facing foreclosure? | ||
| Yes | i) Do you support an increase of the minimum wage? | ||
| No | j) Should employers be able to ask about applicants' criminal history before interviewing them? | ||
| k) Other or expanded principles: | |||
| Yes | a) Do you support the national Common Core State Standards initiative? | ||
| No | b) Do you support a merit pay system for teachers? | ||
| Yes | 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? | ||
| Yes | g) Should illegal immigrants who graduate from Kansas high schools be eligible for in-state tuition at public universities? | ||
| h) Other or expanded principles: | |||
| Yes | a) Do you support state funding for the development of renewable energy (e.g. solar, wind, thermal)? | ||
| No | 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 Kansas's energy infrastructure? | ||
| Yes | d) Do you support state funding for open space preservation? | ||
| Yes | e) Do you support government regulations of greenhouse gas emissions? | ||
| Yes | f) Do you support increased regulations of the hydraulic fracturing ("fracking") industry? | ||
| No one and no business likes or appreciates government oversight or regulations, but government decisions should be led by study and research. Self-regulation may be based more on the bottom line and not as consistent without defined limitations and expectations. | |||
| Yes | a) Do you generally support gun-control legislation? | ||
| Yes | b) Should background checks be required on gun sales between private citizens at gun shows? | ||
| No | c) Should citizens be allowed to carry concealed guns? | ||
| Yes | d) Should a license be required for gun possession? | ||
| No | e) Do you support allowing concealed carry on public college campuses in Kansas? | ||
| I do not want to take people's guns or do away with the 2nd Amendment, but some boundaries make sense. A blanket conceal carry law without training and a license could be a recipe for disaster and a nightmare for law enforcement. | |||
| Yes | 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? | ||
| Yes | d) Do you support Medicaid expansion under the Affordable Care Act ("Obamacare")? | ||
| Yes | e) Do you support requiring individuals to purchase health care insurance? | ||
| Yes | f) Do you support monetary limits on damages that can be collected in malpractice lawsuits? | ||
| No | g) Do you support allowing doctors to prescribe marijuana to their patients for medicinal purposes? | ||
| Requiring individuals to have health care insurance is protection for the individual as well as providers who are not able to fully recover their costs. I am not supportive of crude marijuana being considered medicine, but am supportive of FDA approved medication derived from THC, of which we have several. | |||
| Yes | a) Do you support same-sex marriage? | ||
| Yes | b) Do you support the inclusion of sexual orientation in Kansas's anti-discrimination laws? | ||
| Yes | c) Do you support the inclusion of gender identity in Kansas's anti-discrimination laws? | ||
| No | d) Based on the religious beliefs of the owners, should businesses be allowed to refuse services to their employees and/or customers? | ||
| e) Other or expanded principles: | |||
| 1) A tax plan that more evenly and fairly spreads the burden. 2) An appropriate funding plan for education. Going back to the plan created in 1992 would be beneficial while legislators and educators work together to share ideas and concerns to work toward agreement on needs and availability of revenue which will take awhile to recover. 3) Expand medicaid so that more Kansans have access to affordable health care. |
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