Senate incumbent faces first-time foe

Written by Hillsboro Free Press Tuesday, 31 July 2012 13:38

EDITOR: Two Republicans, incumbent Jay Emler of Lindsborg and challenger Jesse Bryant of Galva, are on the ballot for the 35th District seat in the Kansas Senate. We asked each candidate to answer a few brief questions; their responses appear below. With redistricting, the new 35th District includes all of Marion County.

JAY EMLER

• What life experiences have prepared you to effectively represent your district in the Kansas Legislature?

I am a practicing attorney. I think that experience is important to the legislative process as we write laws and analyze the intent of laws.

In 2007, I pursued a master’s degree in Homeland Security and Defense from the Naval Postgraduate School. I have been able to use that experience in the Legislature as we work on state-level defense issues and in my role as chair of the Joint Committee on Kansas Security.

I also bring the everyday experience of being a small business owner, a husband, a father and a taxpayer.

• Do you think the law initiated by Gov. Brown­back to reduce the top individual state income-tax rate to 4.9 percent from 6.45 percent in 2013, and eliminate income taxes on non-wage income for about 191,000 small businesses is in the best interest of Kansas?

I would have rather seen the Legislature take a more strategic approach to income tax cuts so the reductions could be measured against economic growth and re-evaluated as our economy stabilizes.

There were reasonable tax plans on the table this session that did not get the consideration they deserved, including property-tax cuts. I would like to see the Legislature take a closer look at those options and find a balance so that Kansas can maintain the solid financial position we are in right now.

• What is your vision in regard to state funding for K-12 public education during the next five years?

Education has been a priority in Kansas for generations. As rural counties lose representation in the Legislature, there will be more and more attention focused on changing the school finance formula.

My vision includes making sure rural schools are treated fairly, that school funding is not shifted entirely to the local level where it would impact property taxes, and that we adequately fund our classrooms and our teachers.

We made some progress this year by restoring $43 million that had been cut from classrooms and stabilizing KPERS retirement system, but there is a lot more work to do. We should not diminish the tradition we have in this state of prioritizing education.

• If you had the authority to enact the legislation yourself, what three specific initiatives would you put forth to secure a better future for the citizens of Kansas?

(1) Kansas Works Job Plan. Job growth, particularly in rural areas, is important. This year, I co-sponsored what is known as the “Kansas Works” plan to bring manufacturing jobs back to Kansas and to target good-paying jobs in emerging sectors like technology and pharmaceuticals. We need innovative plans like this to give Kansas a more competitive edge in the job market.

(2) Budget Stabilization. Kansas is one of only three states that does not have a budget stabilization fund in place. These funds, commonly called “Rainy Day Funds,” are used in other states to prevent fluctuations in funding for essential services—like schools and nursing home care—during times when the economy fluctuates. I believe such a fund would help protect Kansas in case we do not emerge from this recession as quickly as the experts predict.

(3) Disaster aid. Right now, the state is behind in providing disaster-aid assistance to communities that have experienced destruction from natural disasters, such as the tornadoes that struck Greensburg and Chap­man. We need to develop a plan for addressing these disasters so our communities can depend on getting assistance when they need it most.

JESSE BRYANT

• What life experiences have prepared you to effectively represent your district in the Kansas Legislature?

So far I can only mention my service in the U.S. Army as a noteworthy achievement, and my deployments to Iraq and Afghanistan. But more importantly, I think that the military prepared me for this task because I was required from the beginning to swear an oath to protect and uphold the Constitu­tion of the United States. I would say that’s the most critical requirement to meet, and I have already obligated myself to it.

• Do you think the law initiated by Gov. Brown­back to reduce the top individual state income-tax rate to 4.9 percent from 6.45 percent in 2013, and eliminate income taxes on non-wage income for about 191,000 small businesses is in the best interest of Kansas? Why or why not?

I should hope so; small business folks have had a rough time here in America for at least the past decade, especially these past few years. And yet they provide the mainstay of employment for the common people of America.

I worked for a small businessman after I left the military. He was a shrewd and hard-working individual, but he had to be especially prudent about how to spend his funds—and to be honest, as a new employee my pay was very low.

If we want the economy to recover and the people to enjoy prosperity, then we absolutely must allow small businesses and new businesses to thrive. I would suggest that we must also lower the tax rate on individual workers as well, so that they will have more money to participate in the markets with.

• What is your vision in regard to state funding for K-12 public education during the next five years?

I’ll say that I adhere to some controversial beliefs about learning and education. I know we spend over half of our state budget every year on education. That comes out to about $12,000 dollars per student each year.

Now, of course education is crucial to the success of our society, but as conservatives, we have to be realistic and something must be done to make it efficient and lower costs. I would argue that parents could just as easily work together and pool their money to hire tutors and instructors for a much more affordable rate, and they could tithe to their local church schools as well. Therefore I think we need to accommodate such measures.

But in the meantime, we need to evaluate the expenses of the public schools and trim some of the fat. People always emotionalize this argument and rely on sentiment rather than real numbers or costs, but I would urge everyone in our state to reconsider exactly what they believe the schools should be doing, and how to pay for it.

• If you had the authority to enact the legislation yourself, what three specific initiatives would you put forth to secure a better future for the citizens of Kansas?

(1) Personally, I would give tax credits to families who home school their children because I believe it would make them more productive and it might alleviate the burden on our public education system. I would pass HB 2767, the Kansas Educa­tion Liberty Act.

(2) I would steadily reduce the income tax by increments of 5 percent, and cut spending accordingly, with the ultimate goal of eliminating the state income tax altogether.

(3) I would also institute a Constitutional Sheriffs Program here in Kansas, and require all sheriffs and local law enforcement to attend it.