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The questions were prepared by the League of Women Voters of California Education Fund and asked of all candidates for this office.
See below for questions on
Budget,
Government reform,
Higher education,
Major issues
Click on a name for candidate information. See also more information about this contest.
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1. How will you prioritize the budget choices the Legislature must make to align the state’s income and spending?
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Answer from Ruben "RJ" Hernandez:
The bottomline is a focus on the greatest good-- that which benefits the most amount of people. In that way the impact upon them will benefit the others.
Answer from Dustin M. Steiner:
I am a fiscal conservative and believe the state of our economy is the biggest threat to our quality of life in California. For decades, Sacramento has been run by special interests and labor unions whose primary interest is self-preservation. Successful businesses are driven out of state by punitive regulation and burdensome taxes. We are fortunate to have a thriving biotech industry in San Diego, but along with other innovative tech companies, it is constantly under attack by a desperate state government trying to balance its budget. California does not have a revenue problem, it has a spending problem. Unfortunately, our leaders in Sacramento punish success and neighbor states like Texas and Arizona continue to lure away our best and brightest in search of lower taxes and a better business climate. As your Assemblyman, I will work to restore our reputation as the Golden State by reducing economic barriers. We have the best University system in the world, technology giants like Qualcomm and renowned research institutions such as the Salk Institute all in our backyard. I believe that the economy works best when the government stays out of the way and I will work to not only stop the exodus of business from California, but to return the `open for business' sign to our fine state.
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2. What types of changes or reforms, if any, do you think are important to make our state government function more effectively?
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Answer from Ruben "RJ" Hernandez:
Detail oriented reforms that cover all the angles instead of simplistic legislation that only covers a broad topic. Budget reform, for example, means repairing structural issues in our budgeting process through creating proformas and closing tax loopholes to maximize our state's revenue. This will help us stand up for ourselves and rely less on the federal government.
Answer from Dustin M. Steiner:
The County of San Diego is one of the best-run governments in the United States. Over the last four years, I have witnessed the state's repeated attempts to raid funding for mandated programs such as veterans assistance. The 77th Assembly District is home to MCAS Miramar and I will do everything I can at the state level to ensure that our active duty, reservists and veterans have all the support they need. My father is a proud Army veteran and I have always had a deep appreciation for the service of our men and women in uniform.
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3. Fees for public higher education have gone up dramatically and funding has been cut. Is this a priority concern, and if so, what measures would you propose to address it?
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Answer from Dustin M. Steiner:
ISSUES
Economy +
I am a fiscal conservative and believe the state of our economy is the biggest threat to our quality of life in California. For decades, Sacramento has been run by special interests and labor unions whose primary interest is self-preservation. Successful businesses are driven out of state by punitive regulation and burdensome taxes. We are fortunate to have a thriving biotech industry in San Diego, but along with other innovative tech companies, it is constantly under attack by a desperate state government trying to balance its budget. California does not have a revenue problem, it has a spending problem. Unfortunately, our leaders in Sacramento punish success and neighbor states like Texas and Arizona continue to lure away our best and brightest in search of lower taxes and a better business climate. As your Assemblyman, I will work to restore our reputation as the Golden State by reducing economic barriers. We have the best University system in the world, technology giants like Qualcomm and renowned research institutions such as the Salk Institute all in our backyard. I believe that the economy works best when the government stays out of the way and I will work to not only stop the exodus of business from California, but to return the `open for business' sign to our fine state.
Public Safety
As the father of a 1-year old daughter, public safety is one of my top priorities. Last year, our region was rocked by the tragic deaths of Amber DuBois and Chelsea King. As your Assemblyman, I pledge to ensure local agencies have the resources they need to protect our families and keep dangerous offenders behind bars. Budget cuts are not a good reason to put predators back on our streets. We must balance our budgets in Sacramento, so that local police, sheriff, fire and first responders can continue to do their jobs back home. I will work to continue to utilize advances in technology to keep our neighbors informed and vigilant.
Education
I am the son of a Kindergarten teacher in California's public school system and have seen firsthand the frustrations stemming from negligent administrators, burdensome regulations and requirements, and a budget that continues to throw money at the problems. There is no job more important than that of a teacher. However, special interests in the field of education continue to sap the energy and funding at the top in Sacramento, leaving little for the classrooms. We need to remember that children come first and work to ensure the teachers, not the unions or administrators, have the tools necessary to promote learning.
I also believe in vocational and technical education. Many schools have dropped these types of classes over the years due to budget cuts. As your Assemblyman, I will work to promote programs that teach technical skills so that we can continue to have an educated and skilled workforce. As a graduate of the University of California, I also know how important it is to support this important institution as a part of our state's culture. The prestige of the UC and CSU systems continues to grow, but so do the fees. I will work to continue to grow our university system, while ensuring that it is still affordable for our children and grandchildren.
Answer from Ruben "RJ" Hernandez:
This is a priority concern. The focus is on maximizing and protecting revenue devoted to education and stop the high pay raises when the state is also raising student fees/tuition. No more of that.
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4. What other major issues do you think the Legislature must address? What are your own priorities?
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Answer from Dustin M. Steiner:
San Diego imports 85% of its water. Right now, the court-ordered protection of a 2-inch bait fish is severely restricting water out of the Delta and to our region. This is an example of extreme environmentalism winning out over common sense. I believe our drought in California is a political drought. We have a conveyance problem. We need to find a better way to move water and we need to reduce the heavy regulations on our current supply. In addition, we're sitting next to the Pacific Ocean, which should be an endless supply of water through desalinization, if we can just get government out of the way. The Carlsbad Desalination Plant is a great start. Unfortunately, it has had to process state and local permits for years and fight off numerous frivolous lawsuits to get to where it is today. Not every company has the means or willingness to do that. We need to fight back against the extremists and make it easier to build desalination plants along our coast. We have an agricultural industry in San Diego County worth $ 5.1 billion annually. I will work to make it easier and less costly to deliver more water to our region.
I believe that the high speed rail is one of the biggest boondoggles facing our state. It has been mismanaged from the start and the recent estimates put the cost at almost double the initial projections. Californians deserve better. This is a case where the costs outweigh the benefits. I also have serious concerns about the infringement on private property rights up and down the state and the impact to our recently built managed lanes in San Diego County. As your representative in Sacramento, I will fight against the high speed rail and work to redirect that money to smart infrastructure that will keep our freeways running smoothly.
Answer from Ruben "RJ" Hernandez:
Focusing on facilitating bipartisan governance in committees and legislation, among others. The state needs to build up its reserves for the long term and cover its debts. We must ensure the state can continue to provide services to citizens and facilitate the growth of businesses. My first goal is to eliminate the income tax for low-moderate wage earners towards the facilitation of a living wage.
Responses to questions asked of each candidate
are reproduced as submitted to the League.
Candidates' statements are presented as
submitted. References to opponents are not permitted.
The order of the candidates is random and changes daily. Candidates who did not respond are not listed on this page.
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League of Women Voters of California Education Fund
