Nate Willems

Questions from a survey done by the Cedar Rapids Gazette with Nate's responses.

Top Campaign Issues

Education – A sustained commitment to keeping teacher salaries competitive with our neighbors is necessary but not sufficient. Iowa should ensure that every high school student – whether urban, suburban, or rural - has the opportunity to earn AP credit. The state should encourage school districts, particularly at the elementary level, to experiment with ideas like year-round schooling. Whether it is through a public or private provider, Iowa should ensure that all families have access to quality early childhood education.

Health Care – Iowa cannot afford to wait for a solution to come from Washington D.C. We need to build upon recent successes to make progress towards insuring every single Iowan. Given the State’s limited resources, we must take an incremental approach; however, the Legislature should strive every year to find health insurance coverage for more Iowans.

Attraction and Retention of Young Families – I have seen too many of my friends or former co-workers leave Iowa because they were offered a better paying job or they could not find any opportunity in their field in Iowa. I recognize that there is no magic bullet solution that will stop this trend, but I believe we need legislators who will always be on the lookout for innovative ideas to attract young people to this state.

Questions:
1. What are your ideas for property tax reform? Please be specific.
Property tax reform is like a water balloon, reducing one type of tax simply shifts the burden on to other types of taxpayers. The State needs to do its job by making sure it does not place unfunded mandates on local government. Over the past number of years, the Legislature has cut taxes which has caused cuts in State aid which has caused local governments to raise property taxes in order make up the difference; this chain of events is neither healthy nor desirable.

2. One of the ideas for property tax reform would allow 10 "pilot" cities to raise revenue through fees and a sales tax, with the revenue taking the place of property taxes. What do you think of that idea?
I do not support shifting the tax burden on to lower-income Iowans. Before I would support such a tax shifting proposal, I would need to be convinced that it would not result in a tax increase for low-income families.

3. What should the state do to address the $200 million annual shortfall in road/bridge maintenance funding? Do you think the state gas tax should be increased to pay for road and bridge repairs? Please be specific.

Now is not the time to raise the gas tax. I also don’t think Iowans want toll booths on their highways. The Legislature recently decided to raise the cost of a number of licenses, and this will increase revenues. However, the Legislature will have to look for additional sources of funding. We have a lot of old bridges in this state and we want to avoid a bridge collapse similar to I-35 W in Minneapolis. Furthermore, the recent floods demonstrate the precarious state of our highway and bridge infrastructure. I hope we can use this disaster as a wake-up call to get serious about finding the revenue sources for a sustained commitment to road and bridge funding.

4. What are your thoughts on health care? Should the state mandate that all Iowans have health insurance coverage?

The problem is not that people do not want health insurance, it is that they cannot afford it. As long as Iowa’s Medicare and Medicaid reimbursement rate is 50th in the country, our health care system will be chronically in crisis. This issue must be addressed at the federal level because it negatively impacts the ability of hospitals to stay open, and provides incentives for physicians and nurses to leave the State entirely. We need to adequately fund Medicaid, make every effort to expand coverage to more individuals, and make every effort to achieve cost savings by promoting the pooling of health care and pharmaceutical purchases.

5. How can the state make higher education - both two-year and four-year colleges - more affordable? What can be done to keep more young Iowans in the state after they've been to college?

Since Democrats regained control over the Legislature we have made funding of our state universities a priority, and tuition increases have been the lowest in years. It is no secret that there is a direct relationship between State aid and the cost of higher education; more money for our state universities and community colleges translates to lower tuition increases. I think we also need to do more to educate and encourage parents to save for their children’s college education. For many families, of course, putting money aside in today’s economy is simply not an option. Other families, though, could save for college but do not or start too late. If we want Iowa college graduates to choose a job in Iowa which may not pay quite as much as a job elsewhere, then we need to get serious about lowering the amount of debt students must incur to pay for college.

6. Should Iowa reinstate the death penalty?

No. Iowa already has what amounts to an effective death penalty: individuals convicted of first degree murder are incarcerated for life without the possibility of parole.

7. Should drivers be barred from using cell phones while operating a motor vehicle?
No. This would be very difficult to enforce and merely lead to many people continuing to have cell phone conversations with a hands-free device.

8. Should speed-monitoring cameras be banned at highway intersections?
N/A. The constitutionality of such a proposal is presently before the Iowa Supreme Court.

9. Should voters be able to decide whether to add a same-sex marriage ban to the Iowa Constitution?
No. I do not support amending the Iowa Constitution for the purpose of discriminating against a group of Iowans. For anyone interested in this issue, I recommend reading the analysis portion of Varnum v. Brien (beginning on page 43) which can be found at: http://www.gazetteonline.com/graphics/samesexruling.pdf

10. Should the state go to curbside recycling and end the bottle-deposit law? Please explain why you support curbside recycling, or if you support the bottle bill, whether you support expanding it.

Ideally, curbside recycling would be the best solution, however, Iowans have grown very accustomed to returning their cans and bottles to grocery stores. It is important to remember that the bottle bill was enacted in order to prevent littering, not to promote recycling. The bottle bill has been very successful in meeting the goal of cleaning up our highways. Until all communities have curbside recycling, the bottle bill will have to remain an important component of Iowa’s recycling efforts.

11. Should more state gaming licenses be issued to new casinos?
No. I believe that the market for gambling in Iowa has reached the saturation point. I recognize that the existing casinos are here to stay, but see no need for additional casinos.