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20th District Representative McAuliffe: Candidate Profile

20th District Representative (Republican)

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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:BioQA Bio City: ChicagoWebsite: www.michaelmcauliffe.netOffice sought: 20th District Representative Age: Candidate did not respond.Family: Married with two children.Occupation: full-time state representativeEducation: Candidate did not respond.Civic involvement: Candidate did not respond.Elected offices held: Candidate did not respond.Have you ever been arrested for or convicted of a crime? If yes, please explain: NoQuestions Answers How will you work to make the General Assembly function more productively and effectively? Wlll you vote to retain your party's current legislative leader? In what specific ways do you support changing how government in Springfield works?As a current member of the minority party of the General Assembly I will continue to work with both sides of the aisle on issues that will impact the future of the State of Illinois. I have a great working relationship with members of the legislative body and if re-elected, I will leave partisan politics aside while working towards the common goals of the 20th House District in which I represent. Jim Durkin was elected as our legislative leader and has done a great job. I will be happy to support him if he chooses to remain as our leader.If the Supreme Court, strikes down the SB 1 pension reform, what is your Plan B and why do you think it would be both legal and effective?I supported Senate Bill 1 and will await the Illinois Supreme Court's decision on its constitutionality.As it stands now, the 2011 income tax increase will expire as planned on Jan. 1. Do you think that expiration should be reconsidered? Would you support making the increase permanent or extending it for some period of time? Please be specific about what level of tax increase, if any, you would support.I did not support the income tax increase and will not support any future attempts in making the increase permanent.Do you support cuts in state spending? If so, what specifically do you suggest cutting and how will those cuts be sufficient to restore the state's financial health and economic climate?The budget, which now exceeds $35 billion, has always contained excess spending. I look forward to helping implement reform of the current spending practices as well as supporting an audit of various state agencies in hopes of reducing unnecessary spending.What changes, if any, do you believe the state should make in the area of education? Would you support the the so-called pension cost-shift to local schools?The State of Illinois needs to invest more in our education system. Looking for ways to increase the availability of technology in our classrooms should be a priority. Shifting the pension cost to local school districts will only cause an increase in property taxes which will further enhance the tax burden on our residents. Our state is already ranked #2 in the United States for our high property taxes, and any further increase will continue to drive people out of Illinois.What other issues, if any, are important to you as a candidate for this office?The increase in air traffic and noise due to the restructuring of runways is something that is very important to the quality of life surrounding those who live near O'Hare Airport. I am working towards getting more federal hearings in order to give area residents an opportunity to voice their concern over the reduced quality of life caused by the noise. Further we must implement a noise and environmental study to determine the impact on the local communities by the new traffic patterns. Finally, we need to expand the sound-proofing of homes to provide noise relief for area families.Please name one current leader who most inspires you.Pope FrancisWhat's the biggest lesson you learned at home growing up?Learn the history and life-lessons taught by our elders.If life gave you one do-over, what would you spend it on?Spend more time with family on vacations and doing fun activities. Those times are often taken for granted.What was your favorite subject in school and how did it help you in later life?American History - history often repeats itself.If you could give your children only one piece of advice, what would it be?Take your education very seriously and continue to learn as you grow older.