Karen Koenig'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.
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Karen Koenig has provided voters with clear stances on key issues by responding to the 2020 Political Courage Test.
Iowa State Legislative Election 2020 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 for organizations that perform abortions? | ||
| I support funding organization that perform abortions, if that funding is used to prevent pregnancy, provide reproductive health care, but NOT pay for abortions. | |||
| No | a) In order to balance the budget, do you support reducing state employee salaries AND/OR pensions? | ||
| Yes | b) In order to balance the budget, do you support an income tax increase on any tax bracket? | ||
| State employees, in general, should not see a decrease in pay. However, we need to fund many public services, so I could support an increase in some upper tax brackets. | |||
| Yes | a) Do you support a limit on campaign contributions to state candidates? | ||
| Yes | b) Do you support the regulation of indirect campaign contributions from corporations and unions? | ||
| Yes | c) Do you support the use of an independent AND/OR bipartisan commission for redistricting? | ||
| Yes | d) Do you support requiring a government-issued photo identification in order to vote at the polls? | ||
| Yes | e) Do you support automatic voter registration? | ||
| f) Other or expanded principles: | |||
| Yes | a) Do you support capital punishment for certain crimes? | ||
| Yes | 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 in Iowa? | ||
| No | e) Do you support mandatory minimum sentences for non-violent drug offenders? | ||
| No | f) Do you support the legalization of recreational marijuana? | ||
| Yes | g) Do you support establishing independent task forces to conduct the investigation, prosecution, and enforcement of state and local governments in cases related to law enforcement misconduct? | ||
| h) Other or expanded principles: | |||
| Yes | a) Do you support state government spending as a means of promoting economic growth? | ||
| No | b) Do you support lowering state income taxes as a means of promoting economic growth? | ||
| No | c) Do you support reducing government regulations on the private sector? | ||
| Yes | d) Do you support requiring welfare applicants to pass a drug test in order to receive benefits? | ||
| Yes | e) Do you support an increase of the minimum wage of Iowa? | ||
| No | f) Do you support requiring employers to provide paid family leave? | ||
| Yes | g) Do you support providing financial relief to businesses AND/OR corporations negatively impacted by the state of national emergency for COVID-19? | ||
| Yes | h) Do you support work requirements for participants in the state Medicaid program? | ||
| Yes | i) Should cities and counties be allowed to prohibit housing voucher discrimination? | ||
| For a, b, and f, I am not firm in my answer. I need more information to support my decision. | |||
| No | a) Do you support adopting federal education standards in Iowa? | ||
| No | b) Do you support state funding for charter schools? | ||
| Yes | c) Do you support increasing teacher salaries AND/OR benefits in Iowa? | ||
| Yes | d) Should immigrants unlawfully present in the United States who graduate from Iowa high schools be eligible for in-state tuition at public universities? | ||
| e) Other or expanded principles: | |||
| Yes | a) Do you support state funding for the development of renewable energy (e.g. solar, wind, geo-thermal)? | ||
| Yes | b) Do you support government regulations of greenhouse gas emissions? | ||
| Yes | c) Do you support increasing state funding for clean drinking water initiatives? | ||
| d) Other or expanded principles: | |||
| 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 teachers be allowed to bring guns into the classroom after passing gun safety training? | ||
| Yes | d) Should a license be required for gun ownership? | ||
| I am a firm believer in the right to keep and bear arms. I do not believe the government needs to know if I have a gun my grandfather gave to me. However, if someone who has mental health imbalances and may be a risk to him/herself or others, they should have to pass a background check before being able to get a gun. | |||
| Yes | a) Should the state government increase funding for treatment facilities to combat opioid abuse? | ||
| Yes | b) Do you support Medicaid expansion through Iowa's health care programs? | ||
| Yes | c) Do you support requiring individuals to purchase health care insurance? | ||
| Yes | d) Do you support legislation that grants citizens the right to choose to die through euthanasia? | ||
| No | e) Do you support eliminating religious exemptions for vaccinations? | ||
| Yes | f) Do you support requiring businesses to provide paid medical leave during public health crises, such as COVID-19? | ||
| g) Other or expanded principles: | |||
| Yes | a) Do you support the inclusion of sexual orientation in Iowa's anti-discrimination laws? | ||
| Yes | b) Do you support the inclusion of gender identity in Iowa's anti-discrimination laws? | ||
| Yes | c) Do you support greater efforts by Iowa state government in closing the pay gap between men and women? | ||
| Yes | d) Do you support legislation that prohibits sexual orientation conversion therapy for individuals under the age of 18? | ||
| e) Other or expanded principles: | |||
| As a former environmental educator, I will fight for Iowa's environment. I am also a proud union teacher. I will support collective bargaining and public education. | |||
| My top legislative priority is public education. I plan to continue funding this in the same manner as it has been in the past, including property taxes, state funding sources, and federal grants. I will propose to not increase or minimally increase property taxes. |
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