Foster, Ralph

Meet the Candidate

Running For:
State House of Representatives
District:
15
Political Affiliation:
Republican
Phone:
(406) 745-6789

Survey

Response Legend

  • SSStrongly Supports
  • SSupports
  • OOpposes
  • SOStrongly Opposes
  • *Comment
  • −Declined to respond
  • †Declined to respond, Position based on citation

Question Response Comments/Notes
1. Public Schools in Montana are overfunded: O
2. Public Schools in Montana are underfunded: S
3. Public Schools in Montana are adequately funded: S
4. Parental choice in education should be expanded through tax credits, education savings accounts, vouchers, and other means to allow children to attend any school of their or their parents choice: SO
5. Parents should be allowed to home school their children without additional state regulation: O
6. The teaching of "Critical Race Theory" (CRT) should be banned in Montana public schools: S
7. Comprehensive sex education, beginning as early as kindergarten, should be allowed in public elementary schools: O* As someone who has two children that were educated in a Public School system & a father who has been a school teacher for over 40 years, I can understand your concerns. With one of my children I ended up sending him to a private school in elementary as the reading technique used by one teacher caused him to develop an ability to memorize the stories being taught instead of the words. Had tried and true methods been applied this would have not been necessary. In my opinion tenure for teachers is a bad thing and lends to teachers teaching what they want not what is needed. A solid basic foundation for education should be the goal of public education. The standards should be tested to guarantee advancement based on merit. Socialized passing has to be phased out. Currently this creates a class of students that cannot read, write, or perform arithmetic in a manner that gives them enough skills to function in society. We would have enough funding to teach students if subjects such as sex ed, CRT, religion, etc... were kept basic as tenured instructors tend to infuse their opinions on these subjects. If a parent wants to home school, private school or chartered this should be a parent's option and they should be happy to fund it on their own just like I did. There should still be a basic test (Reading, writing & arithmetic) before awarding a diploma. As for funding of schools it should be based upon a base line figure per district and the number of students that live in a district, not through specialized formulas that reward schools for remedial students, how many attend on certain days or even graduation rates. This is not to say that one should neglect those with special needs or set standards so low that they can be attained every year, but we must be objective in the goals of education and try to turn out graduates that we are proud of.
8. Income taxes in Montana are too high: O
9. Property taxes in Montana are too high: O
10. Corporate taxes in Montana are too high: O
11. The 2nd Amendment to the U.S. Constitution allows all citizens to own firearms for self-protection: S
12. Climate Change is a problem requiring increased regulation: O
13. Environmental regulations in Montana are too stringent: O
14. Environmental regulations in Montana are NOT stringent enough: O* As long as taxes are equal and equitable a fair system is appropriate, however, property taxes on your primary residence should be kept at your purchase price of the property. There should be a study to look at exempting a primary residence tax once a person is 72 as most people are unable to work past this age according to the federal government which is what most people have to do to pay for the tax increases they experience. As a mortician who has seen the effect of guns that have been used for suicide, homicide and accidents, I support the 2nd Amendment but some common sense should dictate that we are responsible for the proper storage and usage of any and all weapons and that who has the ability to own one should be examined. As for the environment, the rules and regulations for our state should be made by our state and not influenced by people who treat Montana as a Sacred Preserve and Playground for their use but for the people who actually live year round..
15. Montanans should not be discriminated against or treated differently because of their vaccine status: S* No, however, it is important to remember that the Employer can set standards for employment.
16. Doctor assisted suicide should be legal in Montana: S
17. Abortion should be banned in ALL stages of pregnancy: O
18. Abortion should be banned during all stages of pregnancy, with the exceptions for rape and incest: O
19. Abortion should be banned only after a heartbeat is detected (around 6 weeks): O
20. Abortion should be banned only after the first trimester (12 weeks): O
21. Abortion should be banned only when a fetus becomes viable outside the womb (20 weeks): S
22. Abortion should be banned only after the 2nd trimester (28 weeks): O
23. Abortion should never be banned, not at any stage of pregnancy: O
24. The Montana Constitution should be amended to allow abortion: O
25. Infanticide (the killing of infants born alive with physical abnormalities, including infants born as a result of a botched abortion) should be banned in Montana. O
26. Companies and individuals should be allowed to opt-out of the abortion related mandates contained in Obamacare: SS* The state should not legislate morality issues. I would follow the wishes of my constituents in regards to abortion, as an elected official I am here to represent what my house district wants and if they want a pro choice position I would do so even if I do feel that after a fetus can be sustained viably without the mother one should not terminate the pregnancy with a procedure. In regards to infanticide each case has its own merits and sometimes nature needs to take its course (if allowed) Especially if one feels that doctor assisted suicide is something that is seen as humane act.
27. Transgender athletes should be allowed to compete against athletes of the opposite sex: O
28. Doctors should be banned from performing sex-change procedures on minors: SS
29. Homosexuals and transgender people should be allowed to adopt children: SS
30. Non-discrimination laws should be expanded to protect sexual orientation and gender identity in the same way that race, creed, nationality, and religion are protected: O
31. Montana’s marriage laws should be changed to reflect the legalization of same-sex marriage by the U.S. Supreme Court: SS* In a state that has made it clear that until one is 21 they cannot buy cigarettes or alcohol because their brains are not fully developed shouldn't we follow the same logic in regards to this matter. We as a state should not legislate morality, currently men and women are regarded as equals so gender does not need to be protected and as for sexual orientation that is something that is a private family matter that should be kept private. Just because you change your sex it does not change your chromosomes so until the Federal Government states otherwise the chromosomes should determine your gender. .