Proposed Republican Policies: Election 2014

This is the second part of a five part series by Tara Marbach on the gubernatorial election in Maryland. 

From the looks of all the media coverage, at least around Baltimore, one might assume there are only three candidates running for the coveted governor’s seat. There are other options, however, from the Republican party. In this post, I will give another rundown of the issues most concerning to HER and review each candidates’ position.

 

On the Republican side, we have four candidates: Harford County executive David Craig, Delegate Ron George, Businessman and former State Cabinet Secretary Larry Hogan, and business executive Charles Lollar (a Tea Party Republican).

 

On minimum wage, Craig states that an increase would be unnecessary if the administration were to eliminate the state income tax.

 

Neither George nor Lollar agree with the minimum wage increase, stating that more jobs will be lost.

 

Hogan accepts that the increase in minimum wage has passed but also states that this will force employers to let go of thousands of entry level workers.

 

On taxes, Craig plans to eliminate the state income tax in five years and save eight billion dollars through “fiscal responsibility.” He wants to lower corporate income tax by 1.25 percent per year until reaching 4 percent. Craig would decrease the estate tax to match federal law, though believes it should be repealed altogether.

 

George, however, supports a retroactive 10 percent personal income tax cut and a gradual reduction in the corporate income tax to 5.75 percent by 2019. Like Craig, George also supports a gradual reduction and recoupling of the estate tax with federal law.

 

Hogan wants to lower the estate tax as well as the personal income tax, across all income levels. As for corporate income tax, he proposes setting it to a level that “makes Maryland competitive with other states.”

 

Similarly, Lollar wants to phase out over five years the state income tax for both individuals and small businesses taxed as individuals. Also over five years, Lollar plans to reduce the corporate income tax to 5 percent and wants to repeal both estate and inheritance taxes (aka “death taxes”).

 

How do these candidates plan to help small businesses? They all want to lower corporate and personal income taxes, and do not support increasing the minimum wage. All of the candidates offer vague promises to make decisions based on what would be good for small businesses (such as lowering taxes and deregulation.), what would keep businesses in Maryland and make Maryland competitive with other states.

 

On education, Craig wants to “eliminate duplication in government” to put money toward teacher pay and classrooms. He believes the school system, not the state, should determine how teachers and schools are evaluated. He also opposes expanding pre-K.

 

George agrees with some outcome-based measurements of student performance but that they should not constitute a significant portion of teacher evaluations. He supports making pre-k voluntary and available to lower-income children.

 

Hogan believes increases in the education budgets should go into the classroom, rather than to administrators and bureaucracies. He supports more local control of the education system and opposes pre-K expansion.

 

Lollar supports the development of merit pay to reward teachers for their performance and teacher reviews by their senior professionals. He believes it is the parents’ responsibility to address pre-K education.

 

Surprisingly, (or not) the issue of domestic violencedoes not seem to be on any of these Republican candidates’ radars. It is not listed as an “issue” on their respective campaign sites, nor is it mentioned. Sorry ladies, you will have to look elsewhere for support in this area.

 

Interestingly enough, George and Lollar are both staunch supporters of the second amendment and promise to protect and/or expand the rights of Maryland gun owners.

 

Debate bonus-It took a bit of google-fu to even find out information on the first republican debate, as it took place on WBAL’s AM radio station. There does not seem to be a transcript readily available.This article offers some coverage on what they discussed. The next debate will take place on Saturday, May 31st.

 

Coming up next, will be a rundown of each candidates’ accomplishments (both Democratic and Republican) on issues pertaining to HER, in Part III of our five-part series.

Tara MarbachTara Marbach holds a Masters in Clinical Psychology and has diverse professional experience. She has conducted neuropsychological evaluations for children with developmental disabilities as well as adults, both in a clinical environment and in support of various studies at Kennedy Krieger Institute and Johns Hopkins Hospital. She has worked with clients with traumatic brain injuries and managed their residential staff. She was also a therapist and group facilitator at a maximum-security women’s prison. Tara is currently a busy stay-at-home mom who keeps up with politics and current events. She enjoys raising awareness and promoting education on a variety of health and societal issues.

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