League of Women Voters of California Education Fund
	Santa Clara, Alameda County, CA June 3, 2014 Election
	Candidates Answer Questions on the Issues Member of the State Assembly; District 25

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 Fiscal Choices, Water, Education, Your Priorities Click on a name for candidate information.   See also more information about this contest. 1. How would you prioritize the fiscal choices the Legislature must make to align the state’s income and spending? Answer from Armando Gomez: As the Mayor's Budget Director in San Jose and a Milpitas City Councilmember, I have had to make tough decisions during hard economic times. Careful budgeting is how I will bring fiscal responsibility to Sacramento. 1. Getting Back to Basics - Government can't be everything to everybody. We need to get back to basics by prioritizing funding for education, public safety, and vital infrastructure. 2. Keep Taxes Low - Keeping taxes low is the best way to ensure small businesses stay and grow in California. 3. Responsible budgeting - We need to end Sacramento budget balancing gimmicks. I will work to control rising costs so that we can provide essential services. 4. Work at the Speed of Business - We want California to be home to new high-paying jobs and we want to provide businesses with the opportunity to stay and grow here. By working closely with businesses, we can put California back to work. 2. Given our current drought condition, concern for water rights and usage is an important issue. What solutions would you support to address our water problems? Answer from Armando Gomez: Growing up in the 1980's I remember how devastating the drought was. My plan for protecting our water now and for future generations is: Clean and Safe Drinking Water: I will ensure that every Californian has access to clean and safe drinking water. Conserving our Resources: We cannot take our water supply for granted. Conserving water is the best way we can ensure that we have enough water for our communities, environment, farms and businesses. Improving our Water Infrastructure: We have a decaying water system that is in need of repair. I will work to make sure that we have a system that can reliably store and safely transport our water. 3. California high school students rank lower than many states in student performance. What do you see as the ongoing role of the Legislature in addressing this problem? Answer from Armando Gomez: We have a lot of challenges in education: our kids aren't learning what they need to succeed in college and for the careers of the 21st century, even our highest performing students lag behind the rest of the nation and the achievement gaps between economic groups is troubling. Not to mention our education funding system is a complicated mess. In many instances, schools with the most to overcome get the fewest dollars to do it. That's just wrong. I will invest in early childhood education, reduce class sizes and improve access to continuing education by making college more affordable. 4. What other major issues do you think the Legislature must address? What are your own priorities? Answer from Armando Gomez: Another major issue I think the Legislature must address is our ability to keep and maintain vital businesses in California. When it comes to small businesses and creating jobs, the biggest threat to our small business community is the State Legislature, both in regulatory policy and taxation policy. We have businesses and corporations that are constantly making financial decisions about where they want to grow. We need to get a message to small businesses that we want them to grow and succeed in California. My plan to keep businesses here and create jobs is: 1. Provide certainty in our planning and permitting processes because time and delays in government hurt small businesses 2. Provide infrastructure so that businesses want to move here. 3. Most important: "Do No Harm". I want to work to begin passing business-friendly legislation and not government-friendly legislation. 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.