Caleb Seth Kleinpeter
Jeremy S. LaCombe
Kirk Rousset
In Louisiana, incarceration remains high and still we continue to rank within the top 10 states in most crime reporting categories. Do you support reduction of crime by shifting funding from police and incarceration to increased investment in education, housing, employment, mental healthcare, infrastructure, equitable economic opportunity, and similar systems and programs?
Yes
Do you support abolition of the death penalty?
Yes
Do you support decriminalizing sex work at the state level?
Yes
Do you support alternatives to youth incarceration and will you work to pass laws that reform our juvenile justice system and continue to move our state toward a therapeutic, child-centered environment?
Yes
Considering the high percentage of students who have a parent impacted by the criminal legal system, do you believe schools should address this traumatic reality for children?
Yes
Please expand on this answer.
(Assuming this refers only to the last question.) Children are not at fault for what is done to them, or what they suffer, or the mistakes of their parents. But they too often pay the consequences. Children who have a parent incarcerated, suffering from addiction, or any other long term trauma need extra specialized support to keep us from losing them.
Do you think youth who commit crimes should be treated as adults?
No
How will you invest in preventions and supports (such as addressing education, mental health services, and poverty) and rehabilitation as an alternative to incarceration?
We first have to stop arresting and criminalizing people for consensual and/or non violent offenses (sex work, marijuana etc) and help them to clean up their records. Overall housing and education are to me the building blocks of assisting people caught up in the system and those of limited financial means. Without stable and affordable housing, everything else can fall apart. My hope is that bc government is beginning to focus on issues like insurance that there will be stronger government investment in rental housing as well - we all need a place to live. Re education, early education is where we can make the biggest mark. The state has made greater strides in investing in early ed and literacy but we need to do so much more to make an impact. This is generational and it’s harder to get people to focus on longer term gains but it’s critical.
Do you believe we should ensure schools are being held accountable to the community in their implementation of alternatives to suspension such as PBIS and restorative justice practice?
What provisions will you put in place to ensure this occurs?
This is a hard one, because as we’ve seen, we have tried and failed repeatedly to pass a statewide ban on corporal punishment. I think we need major school systems, BESE, and the legislature to work on suspension issues together. It seems that those jn charge often don’t realize or won’t acknowledge that suspensions are extremely harmful to the children and parents.
Comments on Criminal Justice
Most of the work I’ve done on CJ issues has been medical focused, such as removing medical co-pays for those incarcerated and decriminalizing pregnancy outcomes. This also overlaps with my focus in the lege on maternal health and women’s health jn general. The first bill I passed was a prohibition on solitary confinement for people who are pregnant or have just given birth. This was the *first* change to solitary confinement in Louisiana jn over a century, and paved the way for future legislation such as prohibiting solitary for juveniles. Finally my bill and the strong education and advocacy team for the sex work decrim bill is one of the most substantive and impactful pieces of legislation I have worked on. Our research showed it was the first time this was introduced in a state lege, and it was a huge platform to help educate nationally. But most importantly, we introduced an issue that many of my colleagues had never considered, and from my point of view, educated them and started some thoughts and conversations. It is easy to pass bills that tweak existing laws. It is harder, more impactful, and more important to start a process and do it competently and meaningfully.
Do you believe every woman should have access to the full range of reproductive health care services, including access to safe and legal abortion? Will you support a woman's right to safe, legal abortion?
Do you support Medicare for All?
Yes
Do you support restricting access to firearms by requiring background checks?
Yes
Comments on Public Health
My work and experience on reproductive rights and women’s health is unparalleled in our legislature. It is one of the reasons that I ran. As a lawyer, I’ve represented an abortion clinic, an IVF clinic, and minors seeking abortion through judicial bypass. It is difficult, unpopular work, and I have never hid from it. I have been able to catch awful laws and amendments, help set future litigation records, and generally been the voice of reason and expertise on these issues jn the lege and media. I am essentially the only elected official in Louisiana who talks openly and with knowledge on RR in the state. Beyond that, much of my legislation focuses on maternal health. My most substantive and important legislation has resulted in an additional 20 million dollar investment in post partum health care for new mothers. Louisiana was the first state in the country to enroll jn this new program. Yes, the first. Finally I have been the ONLY rep to try to pass gun safety legislation the past few years: universal background checks last year, and allowing orleans to pass further, more focused laws for our parish. It is a very lonely and often scary road to push gun control jn Louisiana. No one will do it. But if no one does it, then the appearance is that everyone agrees that we need more guns. WRONG! The national org Everytown for Gun Safety endorsed me, which they never do in Louisiana. I’m also a two time Moms Demand Action Gun Sense Candidate. I am disappointed that none of my colleagues have followed this lead but I think the tide is turning on this issue nationwide.
Do you believe formerly incarcerated people, regardless of their parole or probation status, should be allowed to vote?
Yes
Will you support the expansion of voting rights and commit to ensuring every Louisianaian can vote fairly by supplementing and upholding the protections of the Voting Rights Act in our state?
Yes
Extreme partisan gerrymandering is a threat to our democracy’s long-term health. Do you believe in the abolition of partisan gerrymandering and support establishing clear, uniform rules for drawing lines that make the redistricting process more transparent and participatory?
Yes
What provisions do you think are particularly important?
I think that the currently incarcerated should be able to vote as well. No one over 18 should be stripped of their voting rights. Independent redistricting commissions seem to be an interesting idea, although I wonder if that will be corrupted in Louisiana as well. Unfortunately it seems that we cannot depend on the courts any longer (I hope that I’m wrong). I think it’s worth it to try some alternatives at local levels to see how they work.
Comments on Democracy
In 2020, I filed a 100% expansion of voting by mail - before Covid happened. Evidence and experts agree that universal VBM is the best way to increase participation. Yet when Covid happened and we literally HAD a vehicle to address, those in charge of the state refused, even though VBM is hugely popular. If we had a public referendum prices this would pass. That is what we need to work on - public referendums.
Do you favor raising the minimum wage in Louisiana?
Yes
If yes, what would you raise it to immediately? By 2025?
At least $15, although that is already too low. Given the amount of service industry and tipped workers in Louisiana, a raise to $15 would help. However realistically over $20 is probably what is needed. We can absorb it, as the current job economy shows.
Across Louisiana, there is a shortage of rental homes affordable and available to extremely low income households (ELI), whose incomes are at or below the poverty guideline or 30% of their area median income (AMI). Many of these households are severely cost burdened, spending more than half of their income on housing. Severely cost burdened poor households are more likely than other renters to sacrifice other necessities like healthy food and healthcare to pay the rent, and to experience unstable housing situations like evictions, creating a housing crisis. Is addressing this potential crisis a top priority for you?
Yes
Most workers in Louisiana don’t have access to paid family or medical leave that would support them when they get sick, need to care for an ill family member or when they need time to bond with a new baby. Do you support ensuring Louisianaians are covered by a paid leave policy that lets them take care of themselves or a family member?
Yes
Comments on the Economy
Do you believe in investing in the expansion of access to high-quality early care and education for children aged birth to three?
Yes
Do you support policy and sources of revenue that will make early care and education investments in the community and will support children, families, businesses?
Yes
Comments on Education
See above. massive investment in child care and early ed would reform the state. We’d see massive changes in education, jobs, the economy, you name it. This also makes sense from a “conservative” perspective and I think if we get the right people and industries involved that we can make some changes here.
29 As one of the nation’s leading petrochemical exporters, what will you do to protect the citizens of the state and particularly in “Cancer Alley” from the harmful effects of producing these materials that can lead to respiratory complications and other severe health concerns?
Well first we need the elected officials in those areas as well as the governor’s office on board to protect these communities. Reforming ITEP would help as well, as the local communities would have greater say in what biz moves to their area.
Do you support investment in renewable energy?
Yes
Louisiana is one of the most vulnerable states facing impacts to climate change. The state is facing intense hurricanes and rising seas. State lawmakers are in a powerful position to address environmental impacts. Will you work to support mutual aid groups that can help support on the ground recovery efforts?
Yes
We need increased public transparency around air pollution.Do you support the examination and study of the relationship between the emission of air pollutants and the discharge of wastes by facilities located in or near residential areas in our state?
Yes
Comments on Environmental Justice
LDEQ needs to be heavily funded or dismantled or taken over by another entity. They are either inept or impotent at their job. Individuals there generally try hard and want to do the right thing but as a state entity they do not protect the public as they are supposed to do.
Do you support comprehensive immigration reform that offers a path to citizenship for the undocumented who live in the US?
Yes
Comments on Immigration
Yes of course. We can and should be more welcoming to immigrants in our state.
What do you perceive to be Louisiana’s greatest challenges as a state over the next decade?
Making sure that people can still live here. Climate change is here, and we are losing communities to water and storms but also to unavailable or unaffordable insurance. And our economy needs so much help. We are so dependent on tourism. It’s not sustainable or stable.
What Committees do you think you would add value to and why?
Any, with focus on legal issues, money, and natural resources. As a longtime practicing lawyer I am helpful on any committee in terms of catching bad law and helping to explain.
What two things do you think you can accomplish in your first term?
More money for Nola infrastructure where it is truly needed (flooding, housing, real things that help people on the ground) and revising the abortion prohibition as much as possible. Have already started there.
In Louisiana, incarceration remains high and still we continue to rank within the top 10 states in most crime reporting categories. Do you support reduction of crime by shifting funding from police and incarceration to increased investment in education, housing, employment, mental healthcare, infrastructure, equitable economic opportunity, and similar systems and programs?
Yes
Do you support abolition of the death penalty?
Yes
Do you support decriminalizing sex work at the state level?
Yes
Do you support alternatives to youth incarceration and will you work to pass laws that reform our juvenile justice system and continue to move our state toward a therapeutic, child-centered environment?
Yes
Considering the high percentage of students who have a parent impacted by the criminal legal system, do you believe schools should address this traumatic reality for children?
Yes
Please expand on this answer.
Louisiana isn’t doing enough to acknowledge the trauma experienced by children with parents impacted by the criminal legal system, and schools are not doing enough to directly address this trauma. We must take a holistic approach. That includes offering access to a continuum of care, including mental/ behavioral health and wraparound services, especially for children with incarcerated parents.
Do you think youth who commit crimes should be treated as adults?
No
How will you invest in preventions and supports (such as addressing education, mental health services, and poverty) and rehabilitation as an alternative to incarceration?
I want to continue to champion legislation that reforms the juvenile justice system in order to prevent recidivism when the youth is released. This includes looking further into the effects of solitary confinement on minors and the creation of re-entry programs. With regard to preventing recidivism, we have to center our approach around providing a path filled with economic opportunities, housing, and other critical resources. I am dedicated to supporting efforts to invest in job opportunities, legal services, and more for returning residents, especially among our youth. We have never truly adopted the Missouri Model, which is a therapeutic model. There are other programs we can connect them to when they’re in juvenile detention as well as leaving that can connect them to good jobs, mentors, and wraparound services that will help them succeed.
Do you believe we should ensure schools are being held accountable to the community in their implementation of alternatives to suspension such as PBIS and restorative justice practice?
What provisions will you put in place to ensure this occurs?
We need to create review processes in which independent community stakeholders are able to sit down and review individual schools' statistics on the implementation of PBIS and restorative justice initiatives. If a student is suspended, the school needs to illustrate their attempts at alternative solutions. These programs are vital to preventing the school-to-prison pipeline and preventing juveniles from entering the justice system.
Comments on Criminal Justice
Do you believe every woman should have access to the full range of reproductive health care services, including access to safe and legal abortion? Will you support a woman's right to safe, legal abortion?
Do you support Medicare for All?
Yes
Do you support restricting access to firearms by requiring background checks?
Yes
Comments on Public Health
Do you believe formerly incarcerated people, regardless of their parole or probation status, should be allowed to vote?
Yes
Will you support the expansion of voting rights and commit to ensuring every Louisianaian can vote fairly by supplementing and upholding the protections of the Voting Rights Act in our state?
Yes
Extreme partisan gerrymandering is a threat to our democracy’s long-term health. Do you believe in the abolition of partisan gerrymandering and support establishing clear, uniform rules for drawing lines that make the redistricting process more transparent and participatory?
Yes
What provisions do you think are particularly important?
The process must be more independent, participatory, and representative of the people that make up each district. We cannot continue along the path we have been going by drawing up lines that benefit one party over the other.
Comments on Democracy
Do you favor raising the minimum wage in Louisiana?
Yes
If yes, what would you raise it to immediately? By 2025?
In the coming legislative session, I would propose increasing our minimum wage to $15. I've actively fought to raise the minimum wage. If the legislature cannot get this passed on a state level, we must give individual parishes and cities the ability to increase their own minimum wage.
Across Louisiana, there is a shortage of rental homes affordable and available to extremely low income households (ELI), whose incomes are at or below the poverty guideline or 30% of their area median income (AMI). Many of these households are severely cost burdened, spending more than half of their income on housing. Severely cost burdened poor households are more likely than other renters to sacrifice other necessities like healthy food and healthcare to pay the rent, and to experience unstable housing situations like evictions, creating a housing crisis. Is addressing this potential crisis a top priority for you?
Yes
Most workers in Louisiana don’t have access to paid family or medical leave that would support them when they get sick, need to care for an ill family member or when they need time to bond with a new baby. Do you support ensuring Louisianaians are covered by a paid leave policy that lets them take care of themselves or a family member?
Yes
Comments on the Economy
Do you believe in investing in the expansion of access to high-quality early care and education for children aged birth to three?
Yes
Do you support policy and sources of revenue that will make early care and education investments in the community and will support children, families, businesses?
Yes
Comments on Education
29 As one of the nation’s leading petrochemical exporters, what will you do to protect the citizens of the state and particularly in “Cancer Alley” from the harmful effects of producing these materials that can lead to respiratory complications and other severe health concerns?
I think a large part of the fight for people in areas like “Cancer Alley” is the fact that these chemicals causing their health complications come from pollution to the environment, which is also contributing to climate change in our state and country. We cannot continue to let these large companies get away with polluting our environment without consequences. I brought legislation to increase penalties for our state’s worst polluters, and I’ve consistently supported legislation that will protect our state’s coastline. In the state senate, I will continue being a voice for progress on this issue. Protecting our coastline also includes making sure it is not polluted and oil and petrochemical companies are held accountable for any pollution that they do spread.
Do you support investment in renewable energy?
Yes
Louisiana is one of the most vulnerable states facing impacts to climate change. The state is facing intense hurricanes and rising seas. State lawmakers are in a powerful position to address environmental impacts. Will you work to support mutual aid groups that can help support on the ground recovery efforts?
Yes
We need increased public transparency around air pollution.Do you support the examination and study of the relationship between the emission of air pollutants and the discharge of wastes by facilities located in or near residential areas in our state?
Yes
Comments on Environmental Justice
Do you support comprehensive immigration reform that offers a path to citizenship for the undocumented who live in the US?
Yes
Comments on Immigration
What do you perceive to be Louisiana’s greatest challenges as a state over the next decade?
I think the greatest challenges we face over the next decade as a state are our fight against climate change and flooding, our degrading infrastructure, and our underperforming economy. We have faced these challenges for a while now, but they are becoming ever more prevalent. It is imperative that we as a state come together to tackle these issues and create solutions that will make a better future for generations to come.
What Committees do you think you would add value to and why?
Senate Finance because our budget reflects our state's priorities. This committee is crucial and I will ask the important questions while advocating for the priorities to serve the underserved in our state. Also, Jud C because we still have so much work to do around criminal justice reform in our state. We lock up the most people, but we’re not the safest. We must be smarter about criminal justice policy in our state.
What two things do you think you can accomplish in your first term?
Two things I think I can accomplish in my first term are passing legislation to create a cost-free automated expungement system, as well as allowing municipalities to provide paid sick leave to their employees. There are other issues I would like to focus on as well, more broadly issues such as public safety, climate change, and better access to mental healthcare.
