News
Grant and Nealey Answer Questions About Legislative Issues
Jump to: Laura Grant Interview | Terry Nealey Interview
We invited former Blue Mountain News intern and political junkie Madeline Cavazos to interview the two candidates for the 16th District legislative race, and she said she'd love to. Below are Madeline's questions and the responses she received from the two candidates, Laura Grant and Terry Nealey.
Madeline is a 2009 graduate of Dayton High School and has just begun her freshman year at Lewis and Clark College in Portland, OR. In the summer of 2008 Madeline served as a Page in the U.S. House of Representatives in Washington D.C. In her junior and senior years at DHS, Madeline went to Olympia with the Youth in Government group as part of the mock legislature there.
Questions for Laura Grant
by Madeline Cavazos
Laura Grant
What specifically would you do to help farmers in our district?
Being Vice Chairman of the Agricultural Committee, I have a significant voice in agricultural matters and I will stand up for any issues that come through the House and help foster any policies that seem beneficial to local farmers. I've found it very helpful to keep in contact with local farmers to make sure that policies being discussed are actually helpful to them. There is some legislation coming up [relating to farming and water] that I look forward to working on.
To help balance the budget, what are some things you would do?
I definitely do not support allowing an income tax or increasing taxes. One loophole that's often used is that if the increase in taxes is a small enough percentage, they are technically categorized as "fees", but they are essentially a tax hike. I have fought them and I will continue to fight them. Where we are allowed to, and can afford to cut spending, is in administration budgets and marginal programs. Now isn't the time to institute a lot of new programs.
How do you intend to help our schools?
I feel it's very important to have educators in a legislature, and I am currently the only full-time teacher in either the House or Senate. Teachers bring a valuable knowledge of what might work on paper but not in practice. In our state constitution it says that our government must provide ample funding for education. But what does ample mean? I voted yes on House Bill 2261, which expanded the definition of basic education. Some of the things it includes are all-day kindergarten and librarians.
Governor Gregoire has a plan to extend healthcare to all Washingtonians by 2012 and to all children in Washington by 2010. How do you feel about this plan?
I support a safety net for people who can't afford access to insurance at the lowest levels, but I don't support a single-payer system. I would like people to be able to shop around, even going across state lines. I would like to keep competition but streamline regulations, make it more cost-transparent and expand options.
In regard to energy production, what types of energy do you see as the most important to pursue?
I think we need to recognize hydroelectric energy as important. It is extremely clean, but it isn't considered as renewable and green, which I will work to change. Wind and solar energy production are valuable, but they need to be supported by another form of energy that's strong and consistent. I will look at nuclear production, also. Its name has given it a bad reputation, but it is carbon free and important to consider.
What do you think about Initiative 1033, the Tim Eyman Initiative?
I'm wary of it because it could cripple counties and cities who depend on income as revenue. If this initiative ends up putting some kind of cap on raising taxes, I would not necessarily be against it, but I would have to look closely at its effect on cities and counties.
Laura Grant's Campaign Website: www.votelauragrant.com
Questions for Terry Nealey
Terry Nealey
What specifically would you do to help farmers in our district?
I am pro-agriculture and pro-business and I would pay close attention to general issues like raising taxes and fees that can have negative effects on both of these areas. Another big issue is water. We need water policies that help us retain as much as we can for our communities and our farmers and I will work to help create policies that accomplish this.
To help balance the budget, what are some things you would do?
The first thing we need to do is take a step back and look at the entire budget. The budget revenue is going to be approximately the same this year as it has been. It's not a revenue problem we have; it's a spending problem. My priorities would be to focus on education, health and human services, and public safety. Then we will look at other revenue and expenditures and budget accordingly.
How do you intend to help our schools?
Education funding is in our constitution; it is the paramount duty of our state government. There is an ongoing lawsuit attempting to define what full funding of education is, so we'll probably have some answers from the result of that lawsuit as to what is required of us. Education has never really received the funding it needs. It's unfortunate that we're in such a deficit right now because of the overspending by the Democratic Party, because we need to balance the budget before we can fund necessary projects.
Governor Gregoire has a plan to extend healthcare to all Washingtonians by 2012 and to all children in Washington by 2010. How do you feel about this plan?
We need to wait to see what the national decision is. Whatever decisions we make at the state level are going to have to dovetail with the decision at the national level. I would like to see people be able to purchase insurance across state lines, to increase competition. I would like to see a plan that covers children. Everyone ought to pay something towards their own insurance plan, such as a deductible. If we put the responsibility for paying on the person getting the healthcare, they will be less likely to use their insurance in irresponsible ways, which will save costs in the long run.
In regard to energy production, what types of energy do you see as the most important to pursue?
I want to promote an energy policy that uses a variety of renewable resources. I am particularly interested in developing nuclear energy. It would help keep the costs of power and energy down, and fuel prices go hand-in-hand with that.
What do you think about initiative 1033, the Tim Eyman Initiative?
I am opposed to it. What this initiative does is it changes how property taxes are collected. Any excess taxes are returned to the landowner. It limits a county's ability to collect taxes on a budgetary basis, which I think is a bad idea.
Terry Nealey's Campaign Website: www.terrynealey.com