Maryland State Legislative Election 1998 National Political Awareness Test

Abortion

1. Abortions should always be legally available.
- X

2. Abortions should be legal only within the first trimester of pregnancy.
- No Answer

3. Abortions should be legal only when pregnancy resulted from incest, rape, or when the life of the woman is endangered.
- No Answer

4. Abortions should be legal only when the life of the woman is endangered.
- No Answer

5. Abortions should always be illegal.
- No Answer

6. Abortions should be limited by waiting periods and parental notification requirements.
- No Answer

7. Prohibit the late-term abortion procedure known as "partial-birth" abortion.
- No Answer

8. Support "buffer zones" by requiring demonstrators to stay at least 15 feet away from abortion clinic doorways and driveways.
- X

9. Other
- No Answer

10. Should Maryland government funding be provided to clinics and medical facilities that provide abortion services?
- Yes

Affirmative Action

1. College and university admissions
- Yes

2. Public employment
- Yes

3. State contracting
- Yes

4. Other
- No Answer

Crime

1. Increase state funds for construction of state prisons and for hiring of additional prison staff.
- No Answer

2. Support contracting with private sector firms to build and/or manage state prisons.
- No Answer

3. End parole for repeat violent felons.
- No Answer

4. Support the use of the death penalty.
- No Answer

5. Oppose the death penalty.
- X

6. Implement penalties other than incarceration for certain non-violent offenders.
- X

7. Inform communities when a convicted sex offender moves into the community.
- X

8. Increase state funds for programs which rehabilitate and educate inmates during and after their prison sentences.
- X

9. Decriminalize the use of marijuana for medicinal purposes.
- No Answer

10. Strengthen penalties and sentences for drug-related crimes.
- No Answer

11. Strengthen penalties and sentences for sex offenders.
- No Answer

12. Lower the blood-alcohol-content limit defining drunk driving.
- No Answer

13. Prosecute juveniles who commit murder or other serious violent crimes as adults.
- No Answer

14. Support the "HotSpot Communities Initiative," which concentrates aggressive law enforcement and prevention in 35 high-crime areas in Maryland.
- X

15. Other
- No Answer

Economy and Employment

1. Provide low interest loans and tax credits for starting, expanding, or relocating businesses.
- X

2. Reduce state government regulations on the private sector in order to encourage investment and economic expansion.
- No Answer

3. Support limits on cash damages in lawsuits against businesses and professionals for product liability or malpractice.
- No Answer

4. Increase funding for state job-training programs that retrain displaced workers or teach skills needed in today's job market.
- X

5. Provide grants and low-interest loans to fund the redevelopment of urban sites and brownfields (former industrial sites that pose a threat to public health or the environment).
- X

6. Support funding the Neighborhood Business Development Program, which provides grants and loans to community-based small businesses in revitalization areas.
- X

7. Support Maryland's membership in the Northeast Interstate Dairy Compact, which allows dairy farmers to set wholesale prices for milk.
- No Answer

8. Other
- No Answer

9. Do you support authorizing slot machines at race tracks?
- No

10. Do you support legalizing casino gambling in Maryland?
- No

Education

1. Increase state funds for professional development of public school teachers and administrators.
- No Answer

2. Encourage private or corporate investment in public school programs.
- X

3. Provide parents with state-funded vouchers to send their children to any participating school (public, private, religious).
- No Answer

4. Favor charter schools where independent groups receive state authorization and funding to establish new schools.
- No Answer

5. Support sex education programs which stress abstinence.
- X

6. Support sex education programs which stress safe sexual practices.
- X

7. Increase state funds for school construction and facility maintenance.
- X

8. Increase state funds for hiring of additional teachers.
- X

9. Endorse teacher-led voluntary prayer in public schools.
- No Answer

10. Support the Maryland Science and Technology Scholarship Program, which provides incentives for college students to study computer science, engineering and technology, and to remain in Maryland after graduating.
- X

11. Other
- No Answer

Environment & Energy

1. Require the use of cleaner burning fuels in order to prevent pollution.
- X

2. Support "self-audit" legislation which creates incentives for industries to audit themselves and clean up pollution.
- No Answer

3. Require a cost/benefit analysis to determine the economic impact of proposed environmental regulations before they are implemented.
- X

4. Require the state to fully compensate citizens when environmental regulations limit uses on privately owned land.
- No Answer

5. Provide funding for recycling programs in Maryland.
- X

6. Request added flexibility from the federal government in enforcing and funding federal environmental regulations.
- No Answer

7. Suspend participation in unfunded, federally mandated environmental protection legislation.
- No Answer

8. Restructure the electric utility industry to allow consumers to choose their power company.
- X

9. Support funding the Rural Legacy Program, which purchases conservation easements to protect valuable farm and forest lands.
- X

10. Other
- No Answer

11. State environmental regulations should not be stricter than federal law.
- No

12. Do you support the state purchase of Chapman Forest (land along the Potomac River in Charles County) in order to prevent development?
- Undecided

13. Would you support stricter rules limiting how much chicken waste poultry producers may dispose of on farmland?
- Yes

Government Reform

1. State Senators and Representatives
- No

2. Governor
- No

1. Individual
- No

2. PAC
- No

3. Corporate
- No

4. Do you support requiring full and timely disclosure of campaign finance information?
- Yes

5. Do you support imposing spending limits on state level political campaigns?
- No Answer

6. Do you support partial funding from state taxes for state level political campaigns?
- No Answer

7. Would you vote to ratify an amendment to the U.S. Constitution requiring an annual balanced federal budget?
- No Answer

8. Do you support requiring union officials to obtain annual written permission from their members before using dues to finance political activities?
- No

9. Other
- No Answer

Gun

1. Ban the sale or transfer of all forms of semi-automatic weapons.
- X

2. Increase state restrictions on the purchase and possession of firearms.
- X

3. Maintain state restrictions on the purchase and possession of firearms.
- No Answer

4. Ease state restrictions on the purchase and possession of firearms.
- No Answer

5. Repeal state restrictions on the purchase and possession of firearms by law-abiding citizens.
- No Answer

6. Favor allowing citizens to carry concealed firearms.
- No Answer

7. Require manufacturers to provide child-safety locks with firearms.
- X

8. Other
- No Answer

Health

1. Provide tax incentives to small businesses that provide health care to their employees.
- No Answer

2. Ensure that citizens have access to basic health care, through managed care, insurance reforms, or state funded care where necessary.
- X

3. Support the Maryland Children's Health Program, which provides state funded health care to uninsured children and pregnant women.
- X

4. Transfer more existing Medicaid recipients into managed care programs.
- No Answer

5. Use state funds to continue some Medicaid coverage for legal immigrants.
- No Answer

6. Limit the amount of damages that can be awarded in medical malpractice lawsuits.
- No Answer

7. Guaranteeing medical care to all citizens is not a responsibility of state government.
- No Answer

8. Support a patient's "Bill of Rights" which would require HMO's to provide out-of-network referrals if they cannot provide the care needed by a patient, and allow specialists to serve as primary care physicians.
- X

9. Other
- No Answer

Social

1. Increase state funding for programs to prevent teen pregnancy.
- X

2. Provide tax credits for businesses that provide child care for their employees.
- X

3. Increase state funds to provide child care to children in low-income working families.
- X

4. Deny or suspend state-issued permits and licenses to parents who are delinquent in paying court-ordered child support.
- No Answer

5. Favor banning smoking in public places.
- No Answer

6. Increase state funding for Head Start in order to serve additional children and/or increase services from a half to a full day.
- X

7. Increase state funding for community centers and other social agencies in areas with at-risk youth.
- X

8. Support state funding of programs for at-risk youth such as guaranteed college loans and job training and placement.
- X

9. Other
- No Answer

10. Do you believe that the Maryland government should include sexual orientation in Maryland's anti-discrimination laws?
- Yes

11. Do you believe that the Maryland government should recognize same-sex marriages?
- Undecided

State Budget

1. Agriculture
- Maintain Status

2. Education (K-12)
- Greatly Increase

3. Education (Higher)
- Greatly Increase

4. Environment
- Slightly Increase

5. Health care
- Greatly Increase

6. Law enforcement
- Greatly Increase

7. Transportation infrastructure (highways, roads, bridges)
- Maintain Status

8. Welfare
- Maintain Status

9. Other
- No Answer

State Taxes

1. Alcohol Taxes
- Slightly Increase

2. Capital gains taxes
- Slightly Decrease

3. Cigarette taxes
- Slightly Increase

4. Corporate taxes
- Slightly Decrease

5. Gas taxes
- Maintain Status

6. Income taxes (incomes below $75,000)
- Slightly Decrease

7. Income taxes (incomes above $75,000)
- Maintain Status

8. Property taxes
- Maintain Status

9. Sales taxes
- Slightly Increase

10. Other
- No Answer

11. Do you support a flat tax structure for state income taxes?
- No Answer

12. Do you support increasing the tax rate for cigarettes, expanding the tobacco tax to include additional tobacco products and dedicating the revenue for education and health programs?
- No Answer

Welfare

1. Maintain the five-year limit on welfare benefits.
- X

2. Maintain the requirement that able-bodied recipients work within 24 months in order to receive benefits.
- X

3. Increase employment and job training programs for welfare recipients.
- X

4. Provide tax incentives to businesses that hire welfare recipients.
- X

5. Provide child care for welfare recipients who work.
- X

6. Increase access to public transportation for welfare recipients who work.
- No Answer

7. Allow welfare recipients to remain eligible for benefits while saving money for education, starting a business, or buying a home.
- No Answer

8. Limit benefits given to recipients if they have additional children while on welfare.
- No Answer

9. Eliminate government-funded welfare programs.
- No Answer

10. Other
- No Answer

Legislative Priorities

Please explain what your two main legislative priorities will be if elected. Please explain how you would obtain any additional government funding needed to implement these priorities.
- My two top priorities are in the areas of Public Safety and education. Public Safety includes a safe environment. Polluters should pay their fair share to create a safe environment. Whether additional funds or a redirection of spending priorities are needed will depend on economic conditions that exist at the time.