Below is the survey created by the Montana Tea Party Coalition and mailed to every legislative candidate.
Montana Tea Party Coalition 2010 Candidate Survey
1. Candidate Name____________________________________________
2. Office you are seeking _____________________________________________
3. Is there an incumbent seeking reelection? ___________________________ If, so please name and give party affiliation of incumbent______________________
4. What party(s) are you running under? ______________________________________
5. Contact information for your campaign manager____________________________________________
6. Campaign budget (total amount you plan to spend) _______________________
Constitutionally Limited Government
1. Do you agree to require that the legislature specify the source of authority in the U.S. and Montana Constitution for the enactment of any proposed legislation? Yes No
2. Do you support the Firearms Freedom Act as passed in Montana and in over a dozen states, which exempts any firearm from Federal regulation via the Interstate Commerce Clause, as long as the firearm is made, sold, and owned inside the borders of a particular state? Yes No
3. Will you contribute to defend this law should it be challenged? Yes No
4. Other states have been adding penalties for Federal Agents who violate their Firearms Freedom Act legislation, thereby asserting their state rights to control police power within their states borders and under the U.S. Constitution. Would you support legislation along the lines of the following, which has been prepared by the well-respected Tenth Amendment Center foundation?
“Any official, agent, or employee of the United States government or any employee of a corporation providing services to the United States government that enforces or attempts to enforce an act, order, law, statute, rule or regulation of the federal government of the United States in violation of this act shall be guilty of a felony and upon conviction must be punished by a fine not exceeding five thousand dollars ($5000.00), or a term of imprisonment not exceeding five (5) years, or both.” Yes No
5. Do you commit to oppose any legislation or treaties which would do one or both of the following: Limiting the sovereignty of the state of Montana or violating the rights of the people as afforded by the United States Constitution and the Constitution of the State of Montana? Yes No
6. Do you commit to uphold the people’s right to own property; and to oppose any efforts by the government to exercise eminent domain and take such property without just compensation? Yes No
7. Would you support a resolution calling for Montana’s Congressional delegation to vote in favor of legislation requiring an independent audit of the Federal Reserve System? Yes No
8. Do you support the rights of small business owners to use company funds to do uncoordinated expenditures in
support of or in opposition to candidates based upon their position on any number of business issues? Yes No
Free Markets
9. Will you support legislation that will enable the State of Montana to nullify or opt out of any federally mandated health care legislation? Yes No
10. Will you support eliminating the business equipment tax, which destroys new jobs by taxing struggling businesses that are under pressure to make a profit? Yes No
11. I believe in and will support any and all legislation that sustains the free market, which is the economic consequence of personal liberty. Yes No
12. Do you support the idea of the Federal government not owning any portion of private enterprise; nor should it compete with private enterprise in any areas not specifically enumerated in the Constitution; and so you commit to repeal any legislation that has allowed government to own portion of private enterprise? Yes No
13. Will you agree to remove all federal stimulus funds for one-time projects that were added to the state general fund during the 2008 session and either return them to the federal government or place them in a rainy day fund? Yes No
14. Will you agree to reject federal stimulus funds? Yes No
Fiscal Responsibility
15. Do you agree, in the event of budget shortfalls, to cut government administration and programs rather than increase taxes to balance the budget? Yes No
16. Without increasing the property tax rates, many states have dramatically increased property tax collections through massive increases in the assessed value of real property. Would you vote to cap increases in both the mill rate and the assessed value of real estate so that the property tax may not increase at a higher rate than the cost-of-living index? Yes No
17. Would you support limiting the growth of government spending by linking it to population and economic growth (sometimes referred to in legislation as a Taxpayer Bill of Rights)? Yes No
18. Will you commit to vote against any budget that proposes to increase overall spending if the previous budget required statutory spending cuts to remain in balance? Yes No
Character (optional)
1. Whom do you consider to be a “model congressional/elected” legislator or leader? ____________________
2. Who are the 2 most influential human beings in your life? ________________________ and
3. Why do you want to become a legislator, what difference do you think you can make and what life experience do you have that will indicate you can make a difference?
I have ready, understood and answered the survey truthfully and to the best of my ability:
Signature Date
