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The questions were prepared by the League of Women Voters of California and asked of all candidates for this office.
See below for questions on
Budget Crisis,
Education,
Water,
Health Insurance
Click on a name for other candidate information. See also more information about this contest.
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1. What does California need to do to address the current budget crisis?
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Answer from John Laird:
California must do a number of things to address the current
budget crisis: refinance accumulated deficit and address the
remaining structural deficit through a combination of cuts and new
revenues. Reforms should be made to require a balanced budget
and reserve, and to protect against future swings in state fiscal
health.
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2. What should the state's priorities be for K-12 education? For the Community College System?
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Answer from John Laird:
The state must plan for outdated school facilities, an upcoming
shortage of teachers, and insure high standards to measure
education outcomes for students. The Community College system
should receive a fair share of the split in revenues under
Proposition 98.
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3. What measures would you support to address California's water needs?
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Answer from John Laird:
I believe that California should address this issue on a number of
fronts: 1) mandate water conservation measures at a state-wide
level; 2) have a faster coordinated response to contaminated water
taken off-line; 3) ensure equity to all areas of California in
distribution of water supply funds; 4) plan for the lessening of
California's water bank + the Sierra snowpack + due to climate
change, 5) manage groundwater supplies in a more organized
manner; and 6) encourage beneficiary-pays, environmentally-
sensitive water development.
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4. What should the Legislature be doing to address the needs of Californians without health insurance?
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Answer from John Laird:
I support SB921, single payer health care, as a method to ensure
that all state residents are insured for health care services. I
supported SB2, which is a step toward this goal. I believe that
enrollment in the Healthy Families program and other programs
that extend insurance to children in California should not be
capped.
Responses to questions asked of each candidate
are reproduced as submitted to the League.
The order of the candidates is random and changes daily.
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League of Women Voters of California Education Fund
