NYS League of Women Voters - 2014 Voter Guide Questionnaire 

Priorities: What will be your top three priorities if elected?

Jobs: Public jobs for the unemployed in public works and services. 4.5 million construction and manufacturing jobs building a 100% clean energy system by 2030.

Schools: Fully and equitably fund public schools. Tuition-Free CUNY and SUNY. End high-stakes testing.

Taxes: Restore the more progressive tax and revenue sharing policies of the 1970s. 95% would get tax cuts while the state would have 20% more revenue. Increase state revenue sharing to pay for state mandates and cut property taxes.

Campaign Finance: What further changes, if any, to campaign finance regulation and enforcement in New York State do you propose? Please explain your answer

Enact the Clean Money Elections bill (A4116, S4501) for full public campaign financing like Arizona and Maine have. Candidates either opt in to run entirely with an equal grant of Clean Money or opt out to run on private Dirty Money. It levels the field among Clean Money candidates and exposes the Dirty Money candidates.

The partial public finance bill for matching funds enacted by the Assembly and supported by the Governor leaves unlimited private fundraising and spending unchanged.

Election Reform: What election reforms would you support, such as: early voting; voting by mail; better ballot design; and voter registration modernization? Please explain your answer.

Proportional representation in the legislature. Instant runoff voting for executive offices.

Same day registration. State government responsible for registering all qualified voters.

Ballot reform: One page for each race and proposition. Random ordering of candidates. One ballot line for each candidate with all party endorsements on that line. A voter guide mailed to all registered voters, including sample ballots and statements from each political party and each candidate of up to 250 words.

Economy: What steps would you propose at the state level regarding income inequality, while maintaining an economy that encourages growth?

Replace failed trickle-down tax cuts for the rich with a bottom-up wage-led economic policy.

$15 minimum wage. 

Single-payer health care for all.

Public Power to build clean energy and reduce energy costs.

Worker and consumer cooperatives that distribute earnings equitably among members. 

Restore the more progressive taxes and revenue sharing of the 1970s. 95% would get tax cuts. State revenues would increase 20%. Increased revenue sharing to pay for state mandates and cut property taxes. 

Energy Policy: What steps would you propose to secure the state’s energy needs while protecting the local and global environment?

100% Clean Energy by 2030. Immediately create a task force to plan the conversion of New York State’s all-purpose energy infrastructure to one using 100% clean wind, water, and sunlight within 15 years. 

Ban fracking. Phase out nukes. No new fossil fuel infrastructure.

A state bank and public power to develop green industries, including a smart grid linking distributed renewable energy sources, hydrogen energy storage, mass transit, green buildings, clean manufacturing, and organic agriculture.

Transportation: What steps would you propose to maintain the state’s transportation infrastructure?

Build an electrified rail and vehicle transportation system that includes convenient and affordable intra-urban mass transit, inter-urban rail for intermediate distances, and high-speed rail for long distances.

Fully fund the MTA capital program to maintain the good repair of the New York City region's mass transit system. Increase funding for other public transit systems. Congestion pricing in NYC with revenues dedicated to mass transit.

Build “complete streets” safe for bikes and pedestrians. 

Redistricting: Do you support the redistricting proposal appearing on the ballot this November? Please explain your answer.

No. The proposed redistricting commission is not independent. Leaders of the two major parties appoint the commissioners. The legislature votes on the redistricting plan.

I favor an independent redistricting commission staffed by civil servants.

I also favor proportional representation from multi-member districts, which would render gerrymandering one-party districts impossible. Our single-member-district, winner-take-all elections inevitably create uncompetitive one-party districts.