AAUW-Brevard Voter Guide Questionnaire

Candidates for 11th Congressional District of the US House

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Text in boxes outlined with a black line is the way in which each issue will be introduced in the published AAUW Voter Guide.

QUALIFICATIONS

1.	What are your strongest qualifications for this position?

HEALTH

The rising costs of health care now account for almost 15% of our national economy. While the US spends more per person on health care than any other country, it ranks 37th in the world, based on life expectancy and infant mortality. Almost one in seven Americans is without health care insurance.

2.	Historically in the US, the availability of medical insurance has
been tied to employment. Would you support national health care
coverage as an alternative to employer-provided health benefits?

Support Oppose

2A	Please comment on your response.

3.	Fundamental changes in the American healthcare system are being considered. From the list below, please indicate the IMPORTANCE (Not, Somewhat or Very) that you assign to the following proposed changes:
A.	Make preventive and chronic disease health care affordable:

Not	Somewhat	Very

B.	Control costs to individuals for private insurance and HMOs:

Not	Somewhat	Very

C.	Remove regulations that limit competitive bargaining with	suppliers of drugs and medical devices:

Not	Somewhat	Very

D.	Examine Medicare and Medicaid funding and coverage:

Not	Somewhat	Very

3A.	What would you propose to address your choices?

SOCIAL SECURITY

Social Security is the primary source of retirement income for most
Americans. Nearly seven out of ten beneficiaries receive more than half of their income from Social Security. Many people are concerned that Social Security will not be able to fully pay out promised benefits in the future. Several reforms to the Social Security system have been proposed to keep the system solvent.

4.	Do you support or oppose the following reforms for Social Security?
A. Raising the maximum earnings on which individuals are taxed	from $94,200:

Support Oppose

B. Raising the Social Security tax rate from 6.2%:

Support Oppose

C. Gradually increasing the full retirement age to 70 years old:

Support Oppose

D. Gradually increasing the early retirement age to 65 years old:

Support Oppose

E. Reducing benefits for new retirees:

Support Oppose

F. Lowering benefits for high income retirees:

Support Oppose

G. Changing how Cost of Living Adjustments (COLAs) are	determined:

Support Oppose

4A.	Please comment on your answer.

IMMIGRATION

People with widely differing points of view regarding immigration agree that the present system is not working and that changes are needed. There are a number of bills before Congress which address the complex issues of immigration.
5.	Please indicate the IMPORTANCE (Not, Somewhat or Very) that you assign to the following proposed changes:
A. Improve border and point of entry control:

Not	Somewhat	Very

B. Improve tracking of those who enter legally, so that they fulfill	visa requirements:

Not	Somewhat	Very

C. Assess the apparent needs of US employers for workers, while	enforcing regulations against employers who hire illegally:

Not	Somewhat	Very

D. Clear the current backlog of immigration applicants:

Not	Somewhat	Very

E. Document the estimated ten million undocumented workers in	the country:

Not	Somewhat	Very

5A.	What would you propose to address your choices?

ENVIRONMENT- CLIMATE CHANGE AND POLLUTION

The quality of our lives and that of future generations depends in great part on the quality of our air and water. Americans have become increasingly concerned about pollution and environmental threats to health and natural resources.
6.	Climate change and global warming could significantly impact the economy and environment of North Carolina. From the list below, please indicate the IMPORTANCE (Not, Somewhat or Very) that you assign to proposed changes at the federal level which address the issue of global warming/climate change.
A.	Regulate carbon dioxide emissions:

Not	Somewhat	Very

B.	Provide incentives to states and local communities to	implement environmentally friendly transportation planning:

Not	Somewhat	Very

C.	Make emission standards for vehicles more strict:

Not	Somewhat	Very

D.	Increase incentives to corporations and businesses to support	practices that protect the environment:

Not	Somewhat	Very

6A.	What would you propose to address your choices?

ENVIRONMENT – MERCURY

Mercury is an especially serious health and ecological concern for
North Carolina. Our state is one of the ten top states for mercury “hot
spots,” with 60% of the mercury emissions in North Carolina coming
from coal-fired power plants, many outside North Carolina.
7.	What federal legislation would you support to reduce mercury
emissions?

ENVIRONMENT – ENERGY

The US possesses only 3% of the world’s known oil reserves. The US uses 25% of the world’s annual oil production and is highly dependent on unstable foreign sources for fuel.
8.	What do you propose to increase energy efficiency and/or develop new energy sources in this country?

EDUCATION

No Child Left Behind (NCLB) is a federally mandated program intended to make all students proficient and reduce achievement gaps among student groups. NCLB requires that all schools achieve “adequate yearly progress” as measured by students’ scores on standardized tests in math and reading. NCLB also requires schools that do not make “adequate yearly progress” to undertake specific steps to improve student performance. Many educators suggest that changes to NCLB are necessary to meet the goals of this legislation.
9.	Do you support or oppose the following revisions that have been proposed to strengthen the NCLB legislation?
A.	Fully fund NCLB as authorized in the legislation:

Support Oppose

B.	Give states more flexibility in how to measure schools’ yearly
progress:

Support Oppose

C.	Grant schools more flexibility in how student achievement is
measured:

Support Oppose

D.	Measure student achievement over a longer period of time than	just one year:

Support Oppose

E.	Measure student achievement in more areas other just than	math and reading:

Support Oppose

F.	Allow schools to develop their own remedial action plans if they
don’t make “adequate yearly progress”:

Support Oppose

ECONOMY – JOBS

Western North Carolina continues to lose manufacturing jobs in a US economy that is increasingly composed of professional, technical and other service industries. This has resulted in job loss, loss of
benefits and lower incomes for many in our region.

10.	What would you propose at the federal level to build the economy of Western North Carolina?

ECONOMY- MINIMUM WAGE

The federal minimum wage has remained at $5.15 per hour for more than eight years. At that rate, a full-time worker earns just over $10,000 a year, barely over the poverty level for one person. Yet, estimates place the average “living” wage in North Carolina at $12.32
an hour for a full-time, year-round worker.
11.	Do you support or oppose increasing the federal minimum wage?

Support Oppose

11A.	Please explain your position.

ECONOMY - NATIONAL DEBT

Our national debt is now in excess of $8 trillion (about $28,000 per
US citizen). Since September of 2005, it has been growing at a rate of $2.28 billion per day.
12.	What are the effects of this level of debt on our nation?

12A.	What should Congress do to address the issues you have identified?

Thank you for completing the form. Your responses will be posted on our Voter Guide Page of our Web Site: www.aauwbrevardnc.org shortly.

If you are using MS Word to complete this form, (1) go to File, (2) Select “Send to” and (3) and then click on “Mail recipient (as Attachment)” and (4) Paste harriethutch@citcom.net in the “To” line of the e-mail and Send.

Name of Candidate:

Name of Respondent: Date: 3/2/2006

11th Congressional District Questionnaire Page 9 of 9

AAUW-Brevard Voter Guide Questionnaire

2006-03-02