Shanna Henry's Issue Positions (Political Courage Test)
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Shanna Henry has provided voters with clear stances on key issues by responding to the 2024 Political Courage Test.
Kansas State Legislative Election 2024 Political Courage Test
| Pro-choice | a) Do you generally support pro-choice or pro-life legislation? | ||
| Yes | b) Do you support legalizing abortion when the pregnancy resulted from incest or rape? | ||
| No | c) Do you support the prohibition of public funds (e.g. Medicaid) for organizations that perform abortions? | ||
| I believe that such personal and private decisions regarding reproductive choices should be made confidentially by a woman with her family, her doctor and according to her individual faith and/or beliefs. In addition, I know that using public funds for organizations that perform abortions is controversial, but if a woman or girl is subjected to rape and/or incest or the life of the mother is at stake, I strongly believe that there should be public funds available to her if she decides to terminate the pregnancy and has no other means of payment. | |||
| No | a) In order to balance the budget, do you support limiting state government spending on social programs (e.g. SNAP, TANF)? | ||
| No | b) Do you support a decrease in income taxes in order to promote economic growth? | ||
| Yes | c) Do you support a wealth tax in order to pay for public programs in your state? | ||
| I support an income tax increase on the highest income brackets of individuals, LLCs and corporations. These are the entities that can best afford to pay more in taxes to insure a fair and balanced system. In Kansas, after Gov. Brownback's failed tax experiment that practically bankrupted our state, we must return to the 3-legged stool tax strategy of balancing income, sales and property taxes to balance our budget. | |||
| No | a) Do you support capital punishment for violent crimes? | ||
| No | b) Should an individual under 18 accused of a violent crime be prosecuted as an adult? | ||
| No | c) Do you support the enforcement of federal immigration laws by state and local police? | ||
| No | d) Do you support the use of private prisons? | ||
| No | e) Do you support mandatory minimum sentences for nonviolent drug offenders? | ||
| Yes | a) Do you support state government spending as a means of promoting economic growth (e.g. grants, tax incentives)? | ||
| No | b) Do you support reducing state government regulations on the private sector (e.g. for business or the environment)? | ||
| Yes | c) Do you support an increase of the minimum wage of Kansas? | ||
| Yes | d) Do you support government spending on affordable housing projects in Kansas? | ||
| I support lowering state income taxes only for those in the lowest and middle tax brackets. I think those individuals, businesses, LLCs and corporations that are doing well can pay more in taxes to help promote economic growth for all of us! We have to get back to a healthy middle class for true economic prosperity. In addition, affordable housing is a huge issue for many Kansans, especially when compared to housing prices and rents when I ran for this same seat in 2020. We must address this huge problem. | |||
| Yes | a) Do you support adopting federal education standards (e.g. Common Core) in Kansas? | ||
| Yes | b) Do you support state funding for charter schools? | ||
| Yes | c) Do you support increasing teacher salaries AND/OR benefits in Kansas? | ||
| Yes | d) Should immigrants in the United States who graduate from Kansas high schools be eligible for in-state tuition at public universities, regardless of immigration status? | ||
| Yes | a) Do you support state funding for the development of renewable energy (e.g. solar, wind, geo-thermal)? | ||
| No | b) Do you support state governments allowing permits for drilling on public lands? | ||
| Yes | c) Do you support increasing state funding for clean drinking water initiatives? | ||
| Yes | a)Do you support limiting campaign contributions from corporations, unions, and individuals? | ||
| Yes | b) Do you support the use of an independent or bipartisan commission for redistricting? | ||
| Yes | c) Do you support requiring a government-issued photo identification in order to vote at the polls? | ||
| Yes | d) Do you support automatic voter registration? | ||
| e) Do you support the implementation of ranked choice voting in Kansas? | |||
| I'm not sure about ranked choice voting in Kansas. I know some states use this system, but I don't know enough about it and wonder how it affects outcomes. | |||
| Yes | a) Do you generally support gun-control legislation (e.g. red flag laws, closing the boyfriend loophole)? | ||
| Yes | b) Should background checks be required on gun sales between private citizens at gun shows? | ||
| c) Do you support the right to concealed carry in Kansas? | |||
| I'm uncertain about the right to concealed carry in Kansas. In some cases, I think it would be fine, but I also am concerned about an unexpected accident or escalation of an event that might lead to gun violence and injury or death of innocent people. | |||
| Yes | a) Should the state government increase funding for treatment facilities to combat opioid abuse? | ||
| Yes | b) Do you support a government-run (e.g. single-payer) healthcare program such as Medicare-for-All? | ||
| Yes | c) Should an individual have the right to choose to die (e.g. those with a terminal illness) through euthanasia? | ||
| Yes | d) Do you support mandating vaccinations (e.g. for school or employment)? | ||
| Yes | e) Do you support expanding paid family AND/OR medical leave benefits (e.g. maternity leave)? | ||
| f) Should the government be able to regulate the cost of prescription drugs? | |||
| Yes | g) Do you support legalizing medical marijuana for patients who have chronic diseases, conditions, AND/OR are terminally ill? | ||
| No | h) Do you support banning gender affirming care for transgender youth in Kansas? | ||
| Regarding question f), I have mixed concerns. If the United States had universal health care coverage, as many civilized countries in the world do, then I think it would be appropriate to regulate the cost of prescription drugs. But with the system we have in place, and so many private insurance companies and drug manufacturers, I'm concerned that regulation could be harmful to the creation of new innovative drugs | |||
| Yes | a) Do you support inclusion of sexual orientation in Kansas' anti-discrimination laws? | ||
| Yes | b) Do you support the inclusion of gender identity in Kansas' anti-discrimination laws? | ||
| Yes | c) Do you support greater efforts by Kansas' state government in closing gender, racial, and other wage gaps? | ||
| Medicaid (KanCare) expansion and creating access to affordable health care for all Kansans is my top legislative priority!!! Funding it is easy as Kansas taxpayers have already paid over $7.3 Billion dollars into the program since 2013. We are one of only 10 states in the U.S. that has NOT passed Medicaid expansion, so our $7.3 Billion dollars are going to the other states that have. This is a no-brainer. We must immediately start to return these taxpayer dollars to OUR state for OUR citizens for OUR health care! My second priority is to continue adequate public funding for our public education system. We must NOT allow our public dollars to be used for vouchers, tax credits or any other incentives to be directed or used for private schools as some legislators have proposed. PUBLIC dollars must only be used for PUBLIC education. We have a commitment to our Kansas kids to provide a quality public education for ALL Kansas children! The final one of my top three priorities concerns our Agricultural economy. Having grown up on a fourth generation farm in McPherson Co., I understand how difficult raising a family and providing a living on a family farm can be. It is very hard, but rewarding work, and success is subject to many factors such as weather conditions, climate change, the markets and water supplies because of drought and diminishing water table levels. Farmers are in precarious positions and suicide rates are rising. Health care in rural areas is also a huge issue due to our continuing failure to expand Medicaid. Rural areas are losing population, their clinics, their regional hospitals and their health care structure. We must help this vital part of our Kansas economy to thrive. If I am elected to be the next Senator of District 34, I will do everything in my power to help the constituents of our district. |
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