Courtesy of the candidate
Name as it appears on the ballot: Steven J. DiFiore
Age: 36
Party Affiliation: Libertarian
Campaign website: StevenForNorthCarolina.com
Occupation & Employer: Self Employed
Years Lived In North Carolina: 16
1) What in your background qualifies you to lead the people of North Carolina effectively? What would you cite as your three biggest career accomplishments?
Having worked in many different sectors of the American economy, from the Post Office, to large corporations, to small businesses, I'm familiar with the burdens working people deal with and will work to make it easier for North Carolinians to earn an honest living. Being outside the two party horse race a Libertarian governor is better positioned to work with Republicans and Democrats in the General Assembly to find bipartisan solutions that work for the people of our state. As a member of the Libertarian Party of North Carolina, I've been able to influence the bylaws and platforms of both the State Party and the Mecklenburg County affiliate. Helping grow our party's infrastructure and institutional knowledge to continue ongoing positive impact for communities across the state is something I'm very proud of.
2) Students returning to university this semester were forced to abandon their dorms after COVID-19 outbreaks. What comprehensive plan do you support for students returning to school safely as the pandemic continues?
Universities will likely have to follow many of the same recommended practices other businesses and local school districts follow. Reasonable measures such as temperature checks, masks in classrooms, desk spacing, and reduced capacity are just some of the health and safety precautions taken by many other institutions during the pandemic. Colleges and Universities should be no different and require appropriate leeway from state regulators to find the solutions that fit the conditions of their individual campuses.
3) More than 3,000 people have died from COVID-19 since the onset of the pandemic and thousands more have been left with crippling medical debt. Do you believe the state needs to invest in an expansion of Medicaid? How would you address healthcare affordability for North Carolinians?
While current policy would have the Federal Government cover a portion of the state's medicaid and medicare expansion, there is no guarantee that this will be a permanent situation. With the national debt and deficit rising into the Trillions, I don't trust Washington D.C. to keep its part of the bargain. Additional government subsidies to inflated healthcare costs are treating the symptom, not the disease. The state needs to work towards reducing the base cost of healthcare in our state by removing the anti-competitive, anti-consumer, and pro-monopoly Certificate of Need (CON) laws.
4) The pandemic has also dealt a major blow to the state economy, resulting in thousands losing their jobs. What initiatives do you support to help give a boost to the state's small businesses and allow them to stay afloat during this time of economic uncertainty?
Shutdowns have forced many workers to take a pay cut but nothing has been done to reduce their tax burden. A tax holiday for small business owners during the pandemic will reduce some of the imposed burden of lowered income. We must help get people back to work by fostering an environment more friendly to small businesses. Occupational License laws protect entrenched industry and prevent new competition. Removing the fees for licenses and having requirements only for health and safety will promote a better environment for workers so they can earn a living without undue burdens.
5) Do you support the Black Lives Matter movement? What policies would you support to address police accountability and racial equity?
I've marched with my fellow Queen City neighbors in the George Floyd Justice Walk and Kidz Fed Up & NAACP Protests over the summer. While I understand why some don't view BLM favorably as an organization, there is a broad movement of our fellow citizens who want more fairness and equality in our criminal justice system. I support ending Qualified Immunity so those who misuse their power and violate the civil rights of their fellow citizens can be held to account for their misconduct. I support reform to our cash bail system so that our jails don't become de facto debtors prisons. I support decriminalizing victimless crimes, which disproportionately impact poor and minority communities.
6) North Carolina's minimum wage is among the lowest in the country. Do you support raising the minimum wage, and if so by how much? What other initiatives would you take to support low-income families in North Carolina?
I don't support raising the minimum wage at the state level but I do support ending the prohibition placed on county and city governments from doing just that. I support ending burdensome Occupational Licensing requirements that create a barrier to the poorest citizens when seeking to earn an honest living. I support reducing or eliminating property taxes so that all North Carolinians can truly own a piece of our state and begin the process of creating generational wealth.
7) Housing affordability is rapidly becoming an issue in major metros like Charlotte and Raleigh, pushing low-income families further from their jobs. What policies do you support to ensure North Carolinians are able to afford to live in the communities where they work?
Reducing or abolishing property taxes will help ensure that some of the impacts of gentrification don't negatively impact poor families or people on fixed incomes. We must also work with our local municipal and county governments to reform zoning laws that restrict the supply of much needed “missing middle” housing.
8) Scientists say the increased threat of hurricanes and the resulting coastal devastation is only expected to worsen in the coming years due to climate change. Please state three specific policies you support to reduce carbon emissions in the state and safeguard the environment.
Under current law, power utilities have government protected monopolies in their service area. This hurts innovation in emerging industries like rooftop solar or wind. It also helps keep power costs high as there is no competition. Ending state protected monopolies will allow new green energy industries to gain a foothold in our state and thrive. A second policy that must be amended is the state mandated oligopoly around the car dealership industry. Current law prevents electrical vehicle companies, like Tesla, from selling directly to the people of our state. This not only keeps costs high but ensure that our state loses out on much needed sales tax revenue. The third major policy to reduce our state's carbon footprint would be to work with the Federal Government to make it easier to build and develop the newest generation of safe and clean Gen IV fission power plants.
9) Do you believe assault weapons should be commercially available in North Carolina? Do you support universal background checks for all gun purchases? What policies do you support to address gun violence?
As a staunch supporter of your Second Amendment rights, I would strive to reduce restrictions on the rights of our fellow citizens to choose the their best means of self defense. That being said said the majority of firearms deaths in North Carolina, according to the most recent data, are due to suicide. This speaks to a mental health crisis and the intolerable failures of the current system to help those in need. Reforms to our licensing and accrediting system will allow for more mental health professionals to help those who are most at risk. The current system limits who can provide services and in what way those services can get to those in need. Unfortunately entrenched interests and legislative corruption have reduced the supply and quality of care.
10) Are there any issues this questionnaire has not addressed that you would like to address?
With a likely state revenue shortfall as a result of the economic downturn we need legislation that will support K-12 schools, students, and teachers. I support legislation that will remove the cap on the Opportunity Scholarship program, while at the same time decoupling property taxes, paid for the purposes of public education, from local administrative boards. In this way tax money paid into the system can follow the child rather than flow towards entrenched institutions. I support legislation that would allow families to choose the public school of their choice regardless of school district and for tax credits to be issued to families who choose remote learning.
Comment on this questionnaire at backtalk@indyweek.com.
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