Daniel Kordik: Candidate Profile

Note: Answers provided have not been edited for grammar, misspellings or typos. In some instances, candidate claims that could not be immediately verified have been omitted. Jump to:BioKey IssuesQA Bio City: Villa ParkWebsite: http://Votekordik.comOffice sought: 46th District RepresentativeAge: 52Family: 3 adult children (ages 27, 25, 19)Occupation: Attorney. Small business owner. Founder of Kordik Law FirmEducation: Graduate of Elmhurst Public Schools, York High School 1977 Bachelor's degree in Accountancy, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign 1981; passed CPA exam Law Degree, University of Illinois College of Law 1984Civic involvement: St. Alexander Catholic Church: Lector since 1993 Elmhurst Noon Lions Club, Member since 1997, Past President Elmhurst Lions Club: Lion of the Year 2000 - 2001 DuPage County Bar Association and Illinois State Bar Association, Member St. Thomas More Society of DuPage County (an organization of Catholic lawyers) Certified (Chair) Arbitrator for the 18th Judicial Circuit, DuPage County, Illinois Township Clerks Association of DuPage, since 2005: Secretary since 2009 Member of both the Villa Park and Elmhurst Chambers of Commerce Past activities include: Village of Villa Park Planning and Zoning Commissioner, 1999-2010; Illinois Association of School Boards: 4 time achievement award winner for board service and leadership: Master Board Member; Villa Park/Lombard Elementary School District 45 Foundation for Excellence in Education: Director 1996-1998;Villa Park Elementary School District 45 Citizens' Advisory Committee on Budget/Referendum 1998-99; Villa Park Vision 2000 Committee Chairperson (led to new streets and sewers); Villa Park Economic Development Strategic Plan Steering Committee 1999-2000; DuPage County Board Solid Waste (Recycling) Committee, Municipal Member, District 2; Education Advisory Committee: State Representative Dan Cronin 1991-1992; Villa Park Youth Baseball:1992-1997 (manager, coach, sponsor); Illinois State Bar Association: Community Involvement Committee 1991-1995, Public Relations Committee 1995-96Elected offices held: York Township Clerk 2005 to present York Township Republican Precinct Committeeman since 1994 York Township Republican Precinct Committeemen's Organization: Vice Chair since 2000 Villa Park Elementary School District 45 Board of Education Member 1988-1995; Board Vice President 1991-1995Have you ever been arrested for or convicted of a crime? If yes, please explain: No.Candidate's Key Issues Key Issue 1 Reduce spending. The state must stop spending money it does not have. I will draw upon my accounting and legal background and experience as a business owner to carefully analyze and prioritize all expenditures. The State must reduce its role in subsidizing its citizens' lives so that essential services can always be provided.Key Issue 2 Lower taxes. Repeal and certainly do not extend the recent state personal and corporate income tax rates.Governor Quinn's razor thin election should not havebeen construed as a mandate to raise taxes. Lowering taxes of individuals and business will help stimulate the economy.Key Issue 3 True government reform: from pension reform to more transparency in government, from consolidating governmental entities to improve efficiency (eliminating the State Comptroller's office or merging with the Treasurer's office as one specific example) to real change in the way business gets done in Springfield.Questions Answers What can you do specifically to help the economy in your district? What is your view of the tax breaks granted to companies like Motorola Mobility, Navistar and Sears? For incumbents, how did you vote on the Sears plan in this fall's veto session?I would repeal the income tax increases. I would have voted againstgiving tax breaks to big companies like Motorola, Navistar and Sears. Illinois needs to create an economy where big companies want to locate here based on low taxes and the availablity of an educated competent workforce, not because the state has given tax breaks to the select few and not to small business.Do you favor limiting how much money party leaders can give candidates during a general election? If elected, do you plan to vote for the current leader of your caucus' Why or why not?Yes, I do favor those limits. I will vote for whom I believe to be the best candidate and if Leader Cross is able to obtain a Republican majority this election, that would certainly be a strong argument in favor of his re-election.How, specifically, would you cut the budget? What does Illinois need to do to fix its status as a "deadbeat state?" How have you or will you vote on future gambling bills' What is your view of slots at racetracks' Casino expansion?Across the board budget cuts. As a state, we need to stop spending money we don't have. We need to stop borrowing to pay for programs that we do not have the funds for since the incurrence of interest associated with the borrowing is only digging a deeper hole of debt for our state. We did not get into this mess overnight and therfore the fix is not going to happen overnight either. I will vote against future gambling bills. I will vote against slots at racetracks and casino expansion. I do not believe that it is good public policy to rely upon gambling to fund our government.What do you specifically support to deal with the state's pension gap? Would you vote for House Republican Leader Tom Cross's three-tier pension plan? Why or why not?I would vote for Leader Cross' plan but with reservations. The biggest reason that the state's pension plan is in so much trouble is because Governor Blagovich failed to fund the plans and used monies for other programs which is not the fault of hardworking employees that have been contributing their own money to their pensions. The abuses of working one day as substitute teacher and qualifying for teachers retirement and basing pensions on outside union wages instead of the employee's government salaries as exposed by recent media investigations must stop immediately. I would also create a special category for public safety such as police who put their lives on the line and who typically start out in their occupations at a relatively low salary.Should gay marriage be legalized? Should Illinois define life as beginning at conception as others have? How would you vote on a concealed carry firearm plan? Should the death penalty be reinstated?Gay marriage should not be legalized. I do believe that life begins at conception and therefore I would be in favor of defining life as beginning at conception. I would vote in favor of concealed carry firearm plan. I believe the death penalty should be reinstated, but in light of technological advances such as with DNA evidence that a higher standard of proof should be required for a death penalty sentence, i.e well beyond any reasonable doubt as supported by scientific evidence.