Erik Lofstad's Issue Positions (Political Courage Test)
Key
Official Position: Candidate addressed this issue directly by taking the Political Courage Test.
Inferred Position: Candidate refused to address this issue, but Vote Smart inferred this issue based on the candidate's public record, including statements, voting record, and special interest group endorsements.
Unknown Position: Candidate refused to address this issue, or we could not infer an answer for this candidate despite exhaustive research of their public record.
Additional Information: Click on this icon to reveal more information about this candidate's position, from their answers or Vote Smart's research.
Other or Expanded Principles & Legislative Priorities are entered exactly as candidates submit them. Vote Smart does not edit for misspelled words, punctuation or grammar.
Erik Lofstad has provided voters with clear stances on key issues by responding to the 2014 Political Courage Test.
Maryland State Legislative Election 2014 Political Courage Test
| Pro-life | 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? | ||
| 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? | ||
| A government large enough to ban abortion is large enough to change its mind and mandate it. I'm more interested in preventing unwanted pregnancies than fighting over the legality of ending them. Abortion rates are DOWN- and I feel like that battle is being won mostly on the fronts of education, but also through a change in the culture of its acceptability. | |||
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 Maryland's budget.
| Maintain Status | a) Education (higher) | ||
| Maintain Status | b) Education (K-12) | ||
| Eliminate | c) Environment | ||
| Maintain Status | d) Health care | ||
| Greatly Decrease | e) Law enforcement/corrections | ||
| Greatly Increase | f) Transportation/infrastructure | ||
| Greatly Decrease | g) Welfare | ||
| Slightly Decrease | a) Alcohol taxes | ||
| Slightly Decrease | b) Cigarette taxes | ||
| Eliminate | c) Corporate taxes | ||
| Slightly Decrease | d) Gas/Oil taxes | ||
| Greatly Decrease | e) Property taxes | ||
| Slightly Decrease | f) Sales taxes | ||
| Eliminate | g) Income taxes (low-income families) | ||
| Eliminate | h) Income taxes (mid-income families) | ||
| Eliminate | i) Income taxes (high-income families) | ||
| No | a) Tapping into Maryland's "rainy day" fund | ||
| No | b) Increasing tuition rates at public universities | ||
| Yes | c) Reducing or eliminating public worker collective bargaining | ||
| No | 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 | ||
| I don't believe throwing money at a problem solves it, especially when Government is involved. I'm interested in opening up options in education and giving parents and children more choices. As someone working in higher ed I know huge increases in efficiency can be found rather than spending more money. We can do more with the same amount of funding (or with less). The war on drugs has been a colossal waste of lives and tax payer money. Redirecting law enforcement priorities would reduce the need to fund prisons and lead to happier/safer officers with better priorities. | |||
| There are many states who are more efficient than Maryland and are able to fund their budgets without an income tax. The income tax is unfair and inefficient while punishing work. A Government that limits itself to only the required operations to protect property and enforce contracts while being efficient in doing so can drastically reduce its budget and subsequently its level of taxation. The fairest taxation is one that taxes consumption- because you have a choice in the matter. | |||
| I'm against reducing current salaries or current promised benefits. A promise made should be kept. I am against the size and scope of our current government, and the reduction I'd seek would also by nature reduce the size of the state workforce. I am not against these jobs per se- I am only against these jobs being done by the government. If the functions of an eliminated department and its workers are able to be performed by the private market this would be a win win for everyone. | |||
a) Do you support limits on the following types of contributions for state candidates?
| No | 1) Individual | ||
| No | 2) Political Action Committee | ||
| No | 3) Corporate | ||
| No | 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? | ||
| Yes | e) Do you support requiring a government-issued photo identification in order to vote at the polls? | ||
| Voting is a right and should be protected, however I feel that showing an ID provided to you at no cost would be a very very minimal step to have to take to protect the sanctity of our process. | |||
| 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? | ||
| 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? | ||
| No | f) Do you support the enforcement of federal immigration laws by state and local police? | ||
| Our borders are the job of our Federal Government. The fact that their priorities are totally messed up does not mean that the burden of their job should be forced onto local and state budgets. I believe that what you do with your body or with a consenting adult is your business and that morality cannot be legislated. Minors should be dealt with on an individual basis and with discretion tilted towards rehabilitation. A Government should never have the ability to kill its citizens except under extreme and immediate circumstances. Saving one innocent life on death row is worth it. | |||
| 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 government spending as a means of promoting economic growth? | ||
| No | f) Do you support providing direct financial assistance to homeowners facing foreclosure? | ||
| No | g) Do you support an increase of the minimum wage? | ||
| If it will make a profit an entrepreneur does not need incentives. They need less roadblocks. The minimum wage was initially intended to cause unemployment for people willing to work for less than union workers in the early 1900s. Funny how it is now spun to help people. Which is it? | |||
| No | a) Do you support the national Common Core State Standards initiative? | ||
| Yes | b) Do you support a merit pay system for teachers? | ||
| c) Is the tenure process for public school teachers producing effective teachers? | |||
| Yes | d) Should parents be allowed to use vouchers to send their children to any school? | ||
| e) Do you support state funding for charter schools? | |||
| No | f) Do you support the state government providing college students with financial aid? | ||
| g) Should illegal immigrants who graduate from Maryland high schools be eligible for in-state tuition at public universities? | |||
| I feel like Maryland should have higher standards, more local control, and more local innovation in education than any mediocre national standard would set. | |||
| No | a) Do you support state funding for the development of alternative energy? | ||
| No | b) Do you support state funding for the development of traditional domestic energy sources (e.g. coal, natural gas, oil)? | ||
| No | c) Do you support state funding for improvements to Maryland's energy infrastructure? | ||
| No | d) Do you support state funding for open space preservation? | ||
| No | e) Do you support government regulations of greenhouse gas emissions? | ||
| Let prices and markets decide. I believe reducing our carbon footprint is a good thing. I believe diversifying our energy portfolio is a good thing. I could be wrong- or worse, I could set the bar too low for future innovators to get lazy and miss out on better opportunities. Centralized planning does not work- no matter how good the intentions. | |||
| No | a) Do you support restrictions on the purchase and possession of guns? | ||
| No | 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? | ||
| Too much is focused on the tool, namely the gun. I'm neither for or against guns. The market has decided it is one of the most effective tools for defending your self, your loved ones, and your property. When I say I'm for the second amendment, I'm not saying I'm for particular arms- I'm saying I'm for every individual's rights to defend themselves by any means necessary at any time and any place. This is a fundamental human right and government should never get a say in the matter no matter how well the intentions. | |||
| 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? | ||
| c) Do you support interstate health insurance compacts? | |||
| No | d) Do you support Medicaid expansion under the Affordable Care Act? | ||
| No | e) Do you support requiring individuals to purchase health care insurance? | ||
| f) Do you support monetary limits on damages that can be collected in malpractice lawsuits? | |||
| Yes | g) Do you support allowing doctors to prescribe marijuana to their patients for medicinal purposes? | ||
| I believe the problem lies with a lack of a pricing mechanism in our health care system. The problem is 70 or more years in the making, so I'd be open to innovation outside of our current system rather than trying to fix the behemoth with more legislation. | |||
| Yes | a) Do you support same-sex marriage? | ||
| Yes | b) Do you support the inclusion of sexual orientation in Maryland's anti-discrimination laws? | ||
| Yes | c) Do you support the inclusion of gender identity in Maryland's anti-discrimination laws? | ||
| I think Government should only enforce private contracts.* | |||
Vote Smart does not permit the use of its name or programs in any campaign activity, including advertising, debates, and speeches.