League of Women Voters of California Education Fund
Santa Clara County, CA March 2, 2004 Election
	Khanh D. Tran Answers Questions Candidate for Member of the State Assembly; District 23; Democratic Party

Read the answers from all candidates.

Questions & Answers

1. What does California need to do to address the current budget crisis?

Expansion is needed to help California financially recover. Creating new jobs will provide new income tax revenues for our state. It will potentially increase consumer consumption, which will have a positive effect on our state sales tax revenues. Companies are moving jobs out-of-state and offshore. We need to stop exporting California jobs and start exporting our technology, services, and goods! Everyday Californians are leaving our state and taking talents with them. Californians are leaving, because they cannot find jobs and the high cost to live in California is making it impossible to maintain stability. When I am in Sacramento, I will work to rebuild the California economy and revive her as a business-friendly "High-Tech Capitol of the World" state. I want to keep the needed talents, businesses and jobs here in California while I work to lower the cost of housing.

As assemblyman, I will work to pass legislation to protect jobs and unionize the high-tech industry, subsidize businesses to increase hiring and training new workers. I will expand affordable housing with a rent-to-own option restoring hope and the American dream for every family. I will work on building desalination plants and pipelines powered by nuclear energy to address water and energy shortage. I will work to mass produce and service inexpensive fuel-efficient electric-powered vehicles, which will lower fuel consumption and fuel cost.

Regarding the unregulated Internet cyberspace, this is an untap source of tax revenues for our state. Regulating this cyberspace will also provide additional homeland security for our state against unwanted attacks against our cyber infrastructure. As a high-tech security expert by trade, I know how the Internet works and how our state can tax sales on the Internet for needed revenues. Also, we can designate all private extranet connections use by private companies for Voice-Over-IP and begin taxing offshore service import into California. I will work to make California the first state to successfully regulate the Internet cyberspace for the purpose of taxation. This will require local businesses and abroad conducting electronic commerce over the California Internet cyberspace be licensed by the State of California. New Internet communication standard for online transactions and payments will be developed, regulated, and audited by the state.

2. What should the state's priorities be for K-12 education? For the Community College System?

We need more teachers teaching in our schools. We have to find ways to recruit more qualified K-12 teachers. I would explore granting emergency credential to potential teachers holding Masters degree and above to teach in our K-12 schools. Education should be the number one priority. These kids and their education make the future of California. We are already losing hundreds and thousands of jobs to offshore. We need our schools to turn out more engineers, doctors, teachers, and professionals. We cannot do this if we continue to cut funding for education. I see education is an investment not only for our students, but for the State of California as well. These kids and young adults are lifelong learners and the future workforce and taxpayers of this great state. We do not lose when investing in our future.

3. What measures would you support to address California's water needs?

I will work on building water desalination plants and pipelines powered by nuclear energy to convert sea water into drinking water. These investments will create more jobs for Californians, unlimited water and energy resources, and provide opportunities for companies to sell their services and technologies to our State.

4. What should the Legislature be doing to address the needs of Californians without health insurance?

I believe we should impose an Internet sales tax and/or offshore serice imports, to provide universal healthcare for all uninsured children and senior citizens. We should also make it mandatory for employers to share the cost of insurance and provide healthcare to their part-time and full-time employees.