NC House District 113
Prepared by AAUW, Brevard, NC Branch
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NC House District 113 Prepared by AAUW, Brevard, NC Branch You may scroll down to begin viewing the
information provided by the candidates in this race,
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NC House District 113 Race,
2004
Information provided by Candidates
to AAUW, Brevard Branch
Candidates:
Republican: Trudi Walend
NR, indicating
No Response to a particular question, will appear until a response is received.
….#, indicates that the response exceeded the 50 word limit.
What are your strongest qualifications for this position?
Walend (R): Background Public Health Administration, Business Owner/Macintosh Computer Services, and former Transylvania County Commissioner.
6 years effective
legislator (see my record at www.ncleg.net), strong on constituent service
- NC House Majority Whip - serving as Chair Appropriations - General Government,
committees include Information Technology, Education, Judiciary, and Financial
Institutions.
| Economy: The recent North Carolina Progress Board Report points out that in tough economic times, demands for state services increase, while state income declines. |
List three (3) steps you would recommend to meet these state budget challenges:
Walend (R):
1. Prioritize spending. Allow no "pork" for politicians.
2. Open the process to the public and press. No more
closed door, back-room budget sessions.
3. Insist on a zero-based, line item budget in place of our current
narrative expansion budget.
| Economy: North Carolina revenue is based on a system of taxes established in the 1930s. A shift in our economy from products which are taxed to services which are not taxed has greatly decreased sources of state revenue. Also sales tax revenue has declined with the rise of out-of-state and internet sales. |
Walend (R):
Research shows there has been no decline of tax revenue in North Carolina...
only a decline in the projected increases. NC should revamp an outdated
tax code, study other states' taxes, and make our taxes no higher to be
competitive for jobs and business. Jobs increase state revenue.
| Economy: Between 2000-2002 North Carolina's poverty rate grew to over 1.07 million people. (BTC Reports: October 2003. NC Budget and Tax Center) |
What types of legislation would you support to address the needs of the state's poor?
Walend (R):
I support more funds for Community Colleges to work with those needing
skills to move from poverty to self-sufficiency. I support Work First
funding for those needing a hand up with childcare and basic bills while
they work through education and job training.
| Health: Health costs associated with Medicaid continue to consume more of the state budget |
How
do you propose to deal with these costs as the number of people eligible
for health care under Medicaid continues to increase?
Walend (R):
NC offers 27 optional Medicaid services - more than most states.
Our current Medicaid program is expected to bankrupt NC in 10 years.
A Legislative Study Commission will bring recommendations to the General
Assembly next year. We should consider and incorporate the
Commission's ideas for cutting these optional services.
| Environment: Environmental issues, particularly air quality, are of major concern in North Carolina . |
List three (3) steps you would recommend to address the air quality problem:
Walend (R):
1. NC needs to influence states to our west and south to clean up their
smokestacks.
2. Increase lanes on our congested highways so that traffic is not
slowed to a standstill.
3. Direct more funds to businesses that develop energy efficient
products.
| Education: The
funding of education programs that are required by state and federal
governments is a major concern of educators at the local level. Local
school districts are often asked to carry out state or federal mandates
without additional funds to do so.
Do you support or oppose allocating more state funds to carry out mandates in the areas of: |
(R) |
| Special education |
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| Diabetes care plans |
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| Four-year educational plans for high school students |
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| Reporting and testing requirements |
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| Education: No Child Left Behind (NCLB) is a significant federal initiative to improve public school education. However, it has been criticized for not providing sufficient funds to states to carry out its requirements. |
What is your opinion
of this federal initiative?
Walend (R):
NC is on the right track to deal with the NCLB Federal Act. The NC
ABC plan has moved our state to higher standards in education and greater
accountability. Our ABC plan has shown remarkable progress in student
achievement. NCLB will stretch us even more giving our students more
opportunities.