Candidate Questionnaire - HD 150 -Dot Nelson-Turnier
State Candidate Questionnaire - House District 150 -Dot Nelson-Turnier, Democrat
1. Would you support requiring all electronic voting machines to print on paper for each voter a complete summary of their voting choices, which will become, after their inspection, the authoritative record of their vote?
Response: Yes
2. Would you support single payer, universal health care?
Response: Yes
3. In February 2003 Santa Fe, New Mexico enacted a minimum wage ordinance which raised the minimum wage to $8.50/hour for all business and non-profits with 25 or more employees. The wage will increase to $9.50/hour in 2006 and $10.50/hour in 2008. Would you support similar legislation and an escalator clause that would guarantee cost of living adjustments?
Response: Yes
4. Would you support enactment of legislation providing for public financing of general election campaigns for elective office at the local, state and federal levels?
Response: Yes
5. Would you consider implementing a state income tax to be used to fund health care and public education?
Response: Only after the exhaustion of all other methods of increasing state income. The lack of state income tax is a positive draw for bringing people and business into the state. Until we equalize other tax responsibilities we can not adequately assess the need for a state income tax. Granted, sales tax, gas tax etc. are regressive taxes, but in my experience I have not seen adding new taxes really lead to the lowering of existing ones. We need to ensure that all existing taxes are applied equally before increasing the tax one penny on lower and middle classes.
6. Would you support a ban on the death penalty?
Response: I would support a moratorium on the death penalty until such a time as we can ensure our justice system can apply it equally without regard to race, class, or sex and until such a time when it can be applied only to cases where there is no question of guilt.
7. Would you support increased funding for renewable energy and ending subsidies to the oil and gas industry?
Response: Yes, I would support increased funding for renewable energy, but I do not agree in ending all subsidies to the oil and gas industry. I do not believe we can paint everything with one broad stroke, at this time the oil and gas industry are making billions of dollars and clearly the subsidies are out of line with their profits, however, the oil and gas industry is very geopolitically volatile so to preclude all subsidies at all times would be short sited.
8. Would you support programs to restore full funding for mental health/mental retardation adequate to provide food, shelter and medical/mental health treatment for the homeless?
Response: Yes, however, having worked personally extensively with the homeless and these programs, in order to be effective would need a treatment on demand component.
9. Would you be in favor of changing the Texas method of selecting electors to the Electoral College from “winner take all” to proportional representation by popular vote?
Response: Yes, I would support this.
10. Would you support Instant Runoff Voting?
Response: Yes
11. Would you support a substantial increase in teacher compensation? What other approaches would you take to improve the quality of education in Texas?
Response: Teacher compensation, which includes restoration of and increase in benefits, needs to be competitive in order to keep our excellent teachers in our public school systems. Teachers, like any professionals, need to be given the tools needed to do their jobs. Other things that could be done is to reduce class size, spend more per child on education, invest in infrastructure, give teachers greater access to leadership, and maximize use of technology in the classroom.
12. How would you improve the environment of Texas i.e. TCEQ accountability, grandfathering of refineries, power plants etc and clean air emissions standards?
Response: In the balance between the health and safety of the public and the well being of big business, the scale is definitely tipped in favor of big business. No one wants to put the important energy producing entities out of business when we rely on them for the quality of our day to day life, however, the quality of our day to day life also relies on the measurement, compliance and enforcement of environmental standards. Houston is the worst in the nation on meeting and addressing these standards. Of the top 20 energy producing companies in the country 12 are in TX, 8 in Houston. We should be leading the nation, not following on the energy policy.
13. Are you dissatisfied with the way legislative districts are configured in Texas? If yes, what will you do about it?
Response: Yes. We all know the current districts were drawn to specifically enhance the Republican’s demographics. The districts should be drawn with more natural borders that reflect actual communities that will enhance true representation by elected officials.