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John Kostyo's Issue Positions (Political Courage Test)

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Official Position: Candidate addressed this issue directly by taking the Political Courage Test.
Inferred Position: Candidate refused to address this issue, but Vote Smart inferred this issue based on the candidate's public record, including statements, voting record, and special interest group endorsements.
Unknown Position: Candidate refused to address this issue, or we could not infer an answer for this candidate despite exhaustive research of their public record.
Additional Information: Click on this icon to reveal more information about this candidate's position, from their answers or Vote Smart's research.
Other or Expanded Principles & Legislative Priorities are entered exactly as candidates submit them. Vote Smart does not edit for misspelled words, punctuation or grammar.

John Kostyo refused to tell citizens where he stands on any of the issues addressed in the 2012 Political Courage Test, despite repeated requests from Vote Smart, national media, and prominent political leaders.

What is the Political Courage Test?
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.

Ohio State Legislative Election 2006 National Political Awareness Test

The Political Courage Test asks candidates which items they will support if elected. It does not ask them to indicate which items they will oppose. Through extensive research of public polling data, we discovered that voters are more concerned with what candidates would support when elected to office, not what they oppose. If a candidate does not select a response to any part or all of any question, it does not necessarily indicate that the candidate is opposed to that particular item.

Indicate which principles you support (if any) regarding abortion.

a) Abortions should always be illegal.
b) Abortions should always be legal.
c) Abortions should be legal only within the first trimester of pregnancy.
d) Abortions should be legal when the pregnancy resulted from incest or rape.
e) Abortions should be legal when the life of the woman is endangered.
f) Prohibit public funding of abortions and to organizations that advocate or perform abortions.
g) Require clinics to give parental notification before performing abortions on minors.
I strongly support Pro-Life positions... In cases of rape, incest or where the health of the mother is at issue, I believe these decisions are best evaluted within doctor-patient confidence. I do not support the criminalization of personal rights particularly in cases of rape, incest or where the health of the mother is concerned. I cannot support making crime victims, criminals... I believe we must start with a firmly announced and uniformly considered right to life...

State Budget: Indicate what funding levels (#1-6) you will support for the following general categories. Select one number per category, you can use a number more than once.State Taxes: Indicate the tax levels (#1-6) you will support. Select one level per tax.

Greatly Increase a) Education (Higher)
Greatly Increase b) Education (K-12)
Greatly Increase c) Emergency preparedness
Maintain Status d) Environment
Greatly Increase e) Health care
Slightly Increase f) Law enforcement
Maintain Status g) Transportation and highway infrastructure
Maintain Status h) Welfare
i) Other or expanded categories
Greatly Increase a) Alcohol taxes
Maintain Status b) Capital gains taxes
Greatly Increase c) Cigarette taxes
Maintain Status d) Corporate taxes
Maintain Status e) Gasoline taxes
Slightly Decrease f) Income taxes (incomes below $75,000)
Slightly Decrease g) Income taxes (incomes above $75,000)
Slightly Decrease h) Property taxes
Maintain Status i) Sales taxes
Maintain Status j) Vehicle taxes
k) Other or expanded categories
Yes l) Should the state sales taxes be extended to Internet sales?
No m) Should accounts such as a "rainy day" fund be used to balance the state budget?
No n) Should fee increases be used to balance the state budget?
I would support a tax on sales or charges incurred for mature or adult internet downloads, including mature music to fund efforts to monitor sexual predators and remove sexual predators from the internet.

Indicate which principles you support (if any) regarding campaign finance and government reform.c) Do you support limiting the following types of contributions to state legislative candidates?

Yes a) Do you support the current limit of terms for Ohio governors?
Yes b) Do you support the current limit of terms for Ohio state senators and representatives?
Yes 1) Individual
Yes 2) PAC
Yes 3) Corporate
Yes 4) Political Parties
Yes d) Do you support requiring full and timely disclosure of campaign finance information?
Yes e) Do you support imposing spending limits on state level political campaigns?
Yes f) Do you support adopting statewide standards for counting, verifying and ensuring accuracy of votes?
Yes g) Do you support prohibiting media exit polling of voters until all polling locations in Ohio are closed?
Yes h) Should Ohio recognize civil unions between same-sex couples?
Yes i) Should all voters be required to show valid identification on Election Day before voting?
j) Other or expanded principles

Indicate which principles you support (if any) regarding crime.

a) Increase state funds for construction of state prisons and hiring of additional prison staff.
b) Support the death penalty in Ohio.
X c) Support programs to provide prison inmates with vocational and job-related skills and job-placement assistance when released.
d) End parole for repeat violent offenders.
X e) Implement penalties other than incarceration for certain non-violent offenders.
f) Strengthen penalties and sentences for drug-related crimes.
X g) Minors accused of a violent crime should be prosecuted as adults.
X h) Require that crimes based on race, ethnic background, religious belief, sex, age, disability, or sexual orientation be prosecuted as hate crimes.
X i) Increase state funding for community centers and other social agencies in areas with at-risk youth.
X j) Increase state funding for state and local emergency agencies to prevent or respond to terrorist attacks.
X k) Prohibit sex offenders from living within 1,000 feet of school premises.
X l) Support legislation increasing mandatory prison terms for sex offenders.
X m) Require sex offenders to wear a tracking device for life.
X n) Support the restriction of the sale of products used to make methamphetamine (e.g. tablets containing pseudophedrine, ephedrine and phenylpropanolamine.)
o) Other or expanded principles

Indicate which principles you support (if any) regarding education.

a) Support national standards and testing of public school students.
b) Provide parents with state-funded vouchers to send their children to any public school.
c) Provide parents with state-funded vouchers to send their children to any private or religious school.
X d) Increase state funds for school capital improvements (e.g. buildings and infrastructure).
X e) Increase funds for hiring additional teachers.
f) Support teacher testing and reward with merit pay.
g) Endorse voluntary prayer in public schools.
X h) Require public schools to administer high school exit exams.
X i) Provide state funding to increase teacher salaries.
X j) Increase funding for Head Start programs.
X k) Provide state funding for tax incentives and financial aid to help make college more affordable.
X l) Support sexual education programs that include information on abstinence, contraceptives, and HIV/STD prevention methods.
m) Support abstinence-only sexual education programs.
X n) Support making a rigorous curriculum a condition of admission to Ohio’s state-funded four-year colleges and universities.
o) Move all remedial education to Ohio’s two-year colleges.
X p) Require all students to take a college and work-ready assessment in their junior year of high school.
X q) Add a measure to the School Report Card to indicate how well high schools are preparing students for college and work.
X r) Index levels of state funding of state colleges and universities to graduation rates.
s) Other or expanded principles

Employment: Indicate which principles you support (if any) regarding employment.Affirmative Action: Should race, ethnicity or gender be taken into account in state agencies' decisions on:

X a) Increase funding for state job-training programs that retrain displaced workers and teach skills needed in today's job market.
X b) Reduce state government regulations on the private sector in order to encourage investment and economic expansion.
X c) Provide low interest loans and tax credits for starting, expanding, or relocating businesses.
X d) Provide tax credits for businesses that provide child care for children in low-income working families.
X e) Increase state funds to provide child care for children in low-income working families.
X f) Include sexual orientation in Ohio's anti-discrimination laws.
X g) Increase the state minimum wage.
h) Other or expanded principles
No a) Public employment
No b) State college and university admissions
No c) State contracting
d) Other or expanded principles

Indicate which principles you support (if any) regarding the environment and energy.

X a) Promote increased use of alternative fuel technology.
b) Support increased production of traditional domestic energy sources (e.g. coal, natural gas, and oil).
X c) Use state funds to clean up former industrial and commercial sites that are contaminated, unused, or abandoned.
X d) Increase funding for improvements to Ohio’s power generating and transmission facilities.
X e) Support funding for open space preservation.
f) Enact environmental regulations even if they are stricter than federal law.
g) Other or expanded principles

Indicate which principles you support (if any) regarding guns.

X a) Maintain and strengthen the enforcement of existing state restrictions on the purchase and possession of guns.
b) Ease state restrictions on the purchase and possession of guns.
c) Repeal state restrictions on the purchase and possession of guns.
X d) Allow citizens to carry concealed guns.
e) Require background checks on gun sales between private citizens at gun shows.
f) Require a license for gun possession.
I believe current federal and state restriction on purchase and possession of guns are sufficient. Some consideration may go to prevent aliens/nationals from purchase of firearms.

Indicate which principles you support (if any) regarding health.

X a) Ensure that citizens have access to basic health care through managed care, insurance reforms, or state-funded care where necessary.
b) Transfer current Medicaid recipients into managed care programs.
c) Limit the amount of punitive damages that can be awarded in medical malpractice lawsuits.
X d) Support patients' right to sue their HMOs.
e) Guaranteed medical care to all citizens is not a responsibility of state government.
f) Legalize physician assisted suicide in Ohio.
g) Allow doctors to prescribe marijuana to their patients for medicinal purposes.
I suggest we reform our medical malpractice system to follow an Indiana type screening process. This would protect patient's rights and the interests of medical professionals.

Indicate which principles you support (if any) regarding welfare.

X a) Support increased work requirements for able-bodied welfare recipients.
X b) Increase funding for employment and job training programs for welfare recipients.
X c) Increase access to public transportation for welfare recipients who work.
d) Redirect welfare funding to faith-based and community-based private organizations.
e) Use federal TANF (Temporary Assistance to Needy Families) funds to extend health and child care subsidies to the working poor.
f) Support marriage promotion programs for welfare recipients.
g) Eliminate government-funded welfare programs.
Renew support in Head Start and family support programs to assist needy families and children.
Please explain in a total of 75 words or less, your top two or three priorities if elected. If they require additional funding for implementation, please explain how you would obtain this funding.

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