Although I am an openly gay candidate running for state office, I am running on economic issues, e.g. bringing businesses and jobs back to California, not social issues. The following are my responses to a questionaire on issues of interest to the lesbian and gay community sent to me from Equality California, a state-wide gay rights organization which had endorsed Cruz Bustamonte during last year's recall election.
I would not support legislation prohibiting private employers from differentiating between the benefits offered to the spouses of their employees and those benefits offered to the domestic partners of employees, so long as the State of California continues to differentiate between the benefits offered to the spouses of state employees and those offered to the domestic partners of state employees, such as eligibility for the CALPERS Long Term Care Program. Many private employers have an admirable record of providing domestic partner benefits and have been quicker to provide such benefits than the state of California has.
I believe that all appointments to executive, legislative and judicial positions in California should be made without regard to race, religion, gender, sexual orientation or any other category protected under existing federal and state anti-discrimination law.
I support the extension to registered domestic partners in California of all the rights and responsibilities accorded under state law to spouses, and would work with the governor to achieve this goal.
I oppose the FMA and, as a state legislator, would vote against any amendment to the U.S. Constitution to bar recognition of same-sex marriages.
I support AB205 and would support extending the law to include equal tax treatment of domestic partners under the Revenue and Taxation Code.
I support the PPIA (Permanent Partners Immigration Act) and extending spousal immigration rights to the long-term partners of gay and lesbian citizens, provided that the same anti-fraud provisions are in place that exist for foreign spouses of U.S. citizens.
I would support legislation prohibiting discrimation in the adoption process on the basis of sexual orientation. I do believe that it is in the best interests of the child to have a married couple, or domestic partners, as adpotive parents rather than a single adoptive parent.
I voted against Proposition 22.
I agree that the right to marry is a fundamental human right.
I support funding and enforcement of existing laws to prevent harassment based upon sexual orientation in schools.
I support legislation requiring that sex education be free of bias based upon sexual orientation.
I support amending FEHA to include the existing non-discrimination provisions regarding sexual orientation in the Government Code.
I support the governor's proposed enrollment caps on ADAP (the AIDS Drug Assistance Program). It is unfortunate that this temporary measure is necessary owing to the former governor's, and the Legislature's, failure to exercise control over state spending, including a 37% pay increase for correctional officers.
I do not support legislation requiring all insurance companies, including HMO's, to pay for gender reassignment surgery.
I did not support AB17 and would have voted against it had I been a member of the Legislature. See first paragraph above.
I did not support AB196 and would have voted against it had I been a member of the Legislature. I do not support "job-killer" bills that serve the interests of trial lawyers over the state's businesses.
As an openly gay legislator, I would speak in support of measures to eliminate discrimination against gay and lesbian Californians.
I have already been endorsed by the Log Cabin Club of California and would welcome Equality California's endorsement.
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