Steve Gist's Issue Positions (Political Courage Test)
Office:
- State House (MT) - District 25, Republican Majority Whip
On The Ballot: Running, Republican for State House (MT) - District 25
Key
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This candidate has responded to a Political Courage Test in a previous election. As a continued effort to provide the American public with factual information on candidates running for public office, these archived responses are made available here.
Montana State Legislative Election 2020 Political Courage Test
| Pro-life | a) Do you generally support pro-choice or pro-life legislation? | ||
| No | b) Do you support legalizing abortion when the pregnancy resulted from incest or rape? | ||
| Yes | c) Do you support the prohibition of public funds for organizations that perform abortions? | ||
| B) Is a complicated question, it should be looked at on a case by case basis, so many factors to keep in mind, the mental and emotional health of the mother and the age of the mother needs to be addressed. Victim support is crucial for any woman who is facing a situation such as this. The unborn in this situation also needs to be protected. | |||
| No | a) In order to balance the budget, do you support reducing state employee salaries AND/OR pensions? | ||
| No | b) In order to balance the budget, do you support an income tax increase on any tax bracket? | ||
| No | c) Do you support establishing a state sales tax in order to reduce personal property taxes? | ||
| A) I would cut out wasteful and fraudulent spending first, then unnecessary positions or duplication of services, then make cuts as needed. B) I would rather see a robust economy generating a sustainable tax base. C) Not the way the state is set up currently. | |||
| Yes | a) Do you support a limit on campaign contributions to state candidates? | ||
| Yes | b) Do you support the regulation of indirect campaign contributions from corporations and unions? | ||
| Yes | c) Do you support the use of an independent AND/OR bipartisan commission for redistricting? | ||
| Yes | d) Do you support requiring a government-issued photo identification in order to vote at the polls? | ||
| No | e) Do you support automatic voter registration? | ||
| D) One must be a legal citizen of the US to vote in the United States. E) I believe that a person should understand what they are voting for, know the issues, and not just checkboxes randomly without understanding what they are voting for or against. Voting is a right in this country, use it wisely. | |||
| Yes | a) Do you support capital punishment for certain crimes? | ||
| Yes | b) Should an individual under 18 accused of a violent crime be prosecuted as an adult? | ||
| Yes | c) Do you support the enforcement of federal immigration laws by state and local police? | ||
| Yes | d) Do you support the use of private prisons in Montana? | ||
| No | e) Do you support mandatory minimum sentences for non-violent drug offenders? | ||
| No | f) Do you support the legalization of recreational marijuana? | ||
| B) Accountability for one's actions should be taught at an early age to help deter this type of situation. E) I prefer to see addiction problems handled in Rehab centers and outreach programs. | |||
| No | a) Do you support state government spending as a means of promoting economic growth? | ||
| No | b) Do you support lowering state income taxes as a means of promoting economic growth? | ||
| Yes | c) Do you support reducing government regulations on the private sector? | ||
| Yes | d) Do you support requiring welfare applicants to pass a drug test in order to receive benefits? | ||
| Yes | e) Do you support an increase of the minimum wage of Montana? | ||
| No | f) Do you support requiring employers to provide paid family leave? | ||
| No | g) Do you support providing financial relief to businesses AND/OR corporations negatively impacted by the state of national emergency for COVID-19? | ||
| D) Cost of testing needs to be taken into account. E) If the business economy can support it. F) This should be left up to the employee and the employer. G) I do not agree with the way financial relief for COVID-19 was handled. | |||
| No | a) Do you support adopting federal education standards in Montana? | ||
| Yes | b) Do you support state funding for charter schools? | ||
| Yes | c) Do you support increasing teacher salaries AND/OR benefits in Montana? | ||
| Yes | d) Should immigrants unlawfully present in the United States who graduate from Montana high schools be eligible for in-state tuition at public universities? | ||
| A) Education standards should be let up to the States. Not all Federal standards have helped Montana schools in the past. B) If they meet or exceed state educational standards. C) Many rural areas are underpaid and it is hard for small communities to retain educators. | |||
| No | a) Do you support state funding for the development of renewable energy (e.g. solar, wind, geo-thermal)? | ||
| No | b) Do you support government regulations of greenhouse gas emissions? | ||
| c) Do you support increasing state funding for clean drinking water initiatives? | |||
| A) This should be done in the private sector B) Complex question, I am against blatant pollution of the environment. We have good technology to recapture gas emissions. The private industry has worked hard to keep our environment clean and safe. C) I would have to know what the initiatives were and how they are worded. | |||
| No | a) Do you generally support gun-control legislation? | ||
| No | b) Should background checks be required on gun sales between private citizens at gun shows? | ||
| Yes | c) Should teachers be allowed to bring guns into the classroom after passing gun safety training? | ||
| No | d) Should a license be required for gun ownership? | ||
| I do believe that firearm safety should be taught. Misuse of a firearm should have a stiff conscience. | |||
| Yes | a) Should the state government increase funding for treatment facilities to combat opioid abuse? | ||
| No | b) Do you support Medicaid expansion through Montana's health care programs? | ||
| No | c) Do you support requiring individuals to purchase health care insurance? | ||
| No | d) Do you support legislation that grants citizens the right to choose to die through euthanasia? | ||
| No | e) Do you support eliminating religious exemptions for vaccinations? | ||
| No | f) Do you support requiring businesses to provide paid medical leave during public health crises, such as COVID-19? | ||
| A) This should be for chemical dependence, not just Opioid abuse. This issue is a burden for all Montanans in various ways; therefore, it is a State issue. F) Businesses cannot afford to carry the load of a health crisis. | |||
| Yes | a) Do you support the inclusion of sexual orientation in Montana's anti-discrimination laws? | ||
| No | b) Do you support the inclusion of gender identity in Montana's anti-discrimination laws? | ||
| Yes | c) Do you support greater efforts by Montana state government in closing the pay gap between men and women? | ||
| No | d) Do you support the creation of Indigenous Peoples Day in Montana? | ||
| C) Pay should be based on each individual's ability to do a given job, not their gender. D) I would rather see efforts put forth that help with the chemical dependency and missing Indigenous women issues. I support efforts that will have a profound beneficial effect on Indigenous People. | |||
| I believe in the Constitution of the United States, and I am against Socialism. I believe in individual freedoms. Many of the questions in this survey are not simple "Yes" or "No" answers; the topics are complex, requiring a lot of studying. As a Legislator, I will encourage people to actively be involved. It is important to understand what is in a bill and how that will affect all of the people in Montana. Knowledge is power. People need to understand what they are voting for or against. | |||
| Environmental Health--Wildland Fire: We need to work on fuel reduction in key areas that will reduce the impact of wildfires. The goal will be to lessen the impact of catastrophic stand replacement fires and bring back the more natural role of fire in our forested areas. Our current situation is from years of mismanagement. It did not happen overnight and will be an ongoing issue for years to come. This will be funded by cutting out abusive and wasteful spending. We already have the money. The funds need to be used in a proactive manner instead of a reactive manner. |
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