Ohio representative, District 44
By Staff Writer
Kurtis Liston (Libertarian) vs. Josh Sines (Republican) vs. Vernon Sykes (Democrat, incumbent)
Voters will vote for one candidate for state representative for District 44 on the Nov. 2 General Election ballot. Republican candidate Josh Sines and Democratic incumbent Vernon Sykes did not respond to our request for election information by the stated deadline. For more on Sines, visit his campaign website at joshsines.com. For more on Sykes, visit his campaign website at www.sykes.tv. The information provided below was submitted by Liston, with his responses to our questions printed as submitted.
Kurtis Liston
Kurtis Liston
Political affiliation: Libertarian
Age: 33
Resident of: West Akron
Education: St. Vincent-St. Mary High School (1995); A.A.S., plant science-horticulture, Cuyahoga Community College (2010)
Profession: Currently, horticulturist at Suncrest Gardens (one year)
Professional activities (top three listed): Founder, head, The Summit County Ron Paul Meetup Group; precinct captain, 2008 Ron Paul presidential campaign; northeastern regional liaison, Libertarian Party of Ohio
Campaign website: www.listonforliberty.org, www.ichooseliston.org
What would you do to bring jobs to Ohio?
“Get government out of the way. We must take off the shackles that have been placed on business, especially small business, and make it easier to create, operate, and expand in Ohio. With that in mind, we must end the use of ‘feeing’ business and individuals as a revenue stream. Remember, government DOES NOT create jobs, it impedes them.”
What suggestions do you have to creatively address the school funding formula in Ohio?
“Competition, by making schools compete this will not only make them better but will bring down the cost. The introduction of a so-called ‘backpack program,’ where funding stays with the student, and not the district they happen to reside in would go a long way to encourage progress, competitiveness, and efficiency in education.”
What solutions do you have to address the estimated $8 billion hole in Ohio’s fiscal 2012-13 budget?
“First, stop all non-essential spending immediately! Second, I am proposing the creation of an Ohio Grace Commission, made up entirely of private individuals from various industries as well as independent non-partisan organizations, to go through the state budget, line by line, to expose fraud, theft, waste, and mismanagement. Third, eliminating the Third Frontier program and the downsizing/elimination of the Ohio Dept. of Development and the Ohio Consumer Council.”
What ideas do you have to address the problems and to cut costs with Ohio’s public pension systems?
“All current contracts must be honored but we must address this issue with as many voices and ideas as possible to not only be fair to Ohio’s public workers but to Ohio’s taxpayers as well.”
