1. AGRICULTURE
1.1. While we believe in the humane treatment of animals, we oppose attempts to impose additional restrictions on present animal husbandry practices and the use of animals in medical research.
1.2. We support less government interference in agriculture, the lifting of sanctions, and opening of foreign markets for our commodities. We believe that in order to assure free trade, the federal government must require other countries to comply with commitments made in all trade negotiations.
1.3. We oppose efforts to impose a surcharge or additional taxes on all forms of meat, poultry, fish and dairy.
1.4. We support increased research and worldwide consumer education concerning the safety and benefits of Genetically Modified Organisms (GMOs).
2. BUSINESS AND ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT
2.1. We believe that the focus of OSHA should be to work with, not against, businesses to improve the safety of workers.
2.2. We support continuation of Iowa's Right to Work Law, and passage of a National Right to Work Law. We also support promotion of Iowa's Right to Work Law in state economic development activities. We are in favor of this to promote the economic freedom and progress of the American worker.
2.3. We support developing a better business climate in Iowa through reduced regulations and lower taxes. Specifically, we call for legislation to assist small businesses in Iowa to grow our economy by reducing worker compensation insurance premiums, adopting sensible tort reform, and enacting the changes in the tax code called for in section 13 below.
2.4. We support "paycheck protection" that would bar corporations from collecting or using employee's money for political purposes without express written consent, and that would prohibit unions from requiring members to contribute to a Political Action Committee.
3. EDUCATION
3.1. We support the passage of legislation to make it easier to start or expand state approved charter schools, private schools, utilize open-enrollment, and engage in home schooling.
3.2. We support the passage of legislation that requires valid and reliable assessments of Iowa's children to accurately and consistently measure their academic progress - educators must be accountable for student performance and local school boards must have the flexibility to base increases in teacher compensation on the improvement in the performance of their students and ban the social promotion of students who have not mastered the basics of their grade.
3.3. We support the use of a school voucher system and/or tax credits to assist parents as they exercise their right to choose government, private, home, or alternative educational programs for their children.
3.4. We oppose compulsory preschool, and any proposal to lower the age at which children are required to attend school.
3.5. We believe that patriotism, citizenship, voter rights and responsibilities, and respect for our country and its symbols, along with an accurate portrayal of America's history should be taught in our schools. We support themandatory recitation of the Pledge of Allegiance in its entirety including the phrase "under God."
3.6. We support the right to allow voluntary prayer in public settings.
3.7. We favor the right to allow the Ten Commandments to be posted in public schools and government facilities.
3.8. The teaching of any sexual lifestyle should be excluded from educational curriculum. We believe that sexual education should be strictly relegated to personal hygiene and sexual health issues.
3.9. We oppose the awarding of scholarships based solely upon one's sexual orientation or lifestyle.
3.10. We support fast-track teacher certification to allow competent professionals to teach in our schools.
3.11. We support programs that reward superior teachers and outline clear procedures to remove ineffective educators.
3.12. We believe Educators at all levels shall have comprehensive communication skills in English, and that English should be the official language used in the Iowa educational system.
3.13. We believe that the ability of parents to open enroll their children should not be limited by the financial or ethnic-balance concerns of the school they wish their students to attend or leave. All state and local funds should be allocated to each student's school of choice.
3.14. Health education should present factual, medically sound, and scientifically-based information by trained health educators. Entities outside of the educational system, particularly those who will benefit financially by recruiting students as clients, will not be allowed to teach health education, or distribute information or contraceptives in our schools.
4. ENERGY AND TRANSPORTATION
4.1. In order to reduce our dependency on foreign oil, and to reduce the likelihood of dangerous tanker spills, we believe the environmentally friendly alternative of offshore drilling should be started or increased particularly in the oil-rich areas off Florida, Louisiana, and California. We also urge the development of the oil and gas fields in and around the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge and construction of a pipeline from Alaska to the lower 48 to transport the oil and gas. We call for the construction of one or more oil refineries here in the state of Iowa.
4.2. We oppose the Kyoto treaty on the environment and the language of the UN Kyoto Protocol, as it would put the US, its jobs, citizens, and businesses at an economic disadvantage. We support responsible environmental policy that recognizes the importance of existing as well as alternative sources of fuel for both developed and developing countries. We support greater reliance on the use of nuclear plants to produce electricity.
4.3. We urge that all motor fuel taxes and motor vehicle registration fees be used to maintain both the rural and urban infrastructure of roads, streets, and bridges. We oppose any transfer of State Road Use Funds for uses other than building and maintaining roads and bridges.
4.4. We encourage the use of bio-fuels, while also increasing exploration of energy sources here at home including all alternative energy sources such as nuclear, wind, solar and biomass.
5. FAMILY VALUES
5.1. We support passage of an Amendment to Iowa's Constitution defining marriage as the exclusive union of one man and one woman.
5.2. We oppose any legislation or executive order granting rights, privileges, or status for persons based on sexual orientation or lifestyle
5.4. We support the elimination of no-fault divorce.
5.5. We support new and innovative approaches to encourage and prepare people to get off welfare. We affirm that welfare should be a short-term safety net designed to elevate the recipient to a self-sufficient status.
5.6. We believe prayer in public institutions should be neither required nor prohibited. Current restrictions on voluntary prayer should be removed.
6. GOVERNMENT
6.1. We believe in retaining the moral absolutes which our Founding Fathers derived from Holy Scriptures as the principal foundation of our laws. We maintain that the phrase, "the wall of separation between church and state" attributed to Thomas Jefferson many years after the Constitution was proposed, ratified, and placed in operation contradicts the original intent of the Constitution.
6.2. We support English as the official language for the United States.
6.3. We oppose any further restrictions on guns and ammunition, eroding our 2nd Amendment rights. We call for Iowa to enact a "right-to-carry" law. We reaffirm our belief that the 2nd Amendment of the Constitution protects an individual's right to keep and bear arms
6.4. We support "the Constitutional option" if Democrats should filibuster President Bush's
nominations of federal judges
6.5. We oppose government ownership of any gambling facility or activity. We support the effort to remove automatic teller machines from gambling establishments.
6.6. We believe that Iowa is a wonderful place to live, raise a family, and develop a career. In order to insure that Iowa maintains its positive, family friendly reputation, we ask for a complete ban on ALL Lottery Touch Play devices. We request that all current devices be removed from their existing locations within thirty (30) days from the date of this convention.
6.7. We believe the State of Iowa should repeal the "Iowa Values Fund" and let the market decide where capital and labor are best employed in our economy.
6.8. We oppose attempts to remove mention of God from our government buildings, monuments, or currency.
6.9. We support a requirement of official positive photographic voter identification before anyone is allowed to vote. The use of ID cards issued by foreign governments should not be
accepted!
6.10. We adamantly oppose use of eminent domain to take property from one owner to transfer it to another private party instead of using it for public purposes such as roads, pipelines, or transmission lines. Further, we believe any "taking" which diminishes an owner's right to utilize private property, not just an actual transfer of ownership, should result in just compensation.
6.11. We support shifting health care to universal usage of Health Savings Accounts (HSAs) by making contributions to such accounts 100% tax deductible. We call on the government to shift government workers, members of the military, and Veterans, and those on Medicare and Medicaid to such accounts which would give choice, portability, and incentives to not waste health care dollars.
6.12. We support equal access for non-union and union contractors to government and school district projects, without mandating that contractors sign project labor agreements.
6.13. We believe sports, entertainment, and the arts should be funded by users and voluntary donors, not by tax dollars.
6.14. We support legislation that would eliminate automatic cost of living adjustments (COLAs) in legislative increases in pay and/or benefits. Such increases should be adopted only on a recorded roll-call vote, and not go into effect until after the next general election as provided in the 27th Amendment to the Constitution of the United States.
6.15. Be it resolved that the Iowa State Legislature rescind the Executive Order issued by Governor Vilsack that automatically reinstates voting rights for convicted felons who have been released from prison without any review or application for reinstatement of said voting rights. Convicted felons should be required to apply to have said rights restored and be reviewed as previously done by the Iowa Board of Parole and then forwarded to the Governor as previously required by law previous to the Executive Order of July 2005.
6.16. We propose that no "earmarks" or pork projects of only local significance be allowed in
federal spending bills unless shown by the author to have national benefit.
7. HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES
7.1. We support changes that would allow citizens options within the Social Security system that allows for investment through personal retirement accounts.
7.2. We believe that in order to receive social security benefits, including SSI, one must have paid in for a minimum of 40 quarters and must be a citizen of the United States.
7.3. We support a cap on medical malpractice awards for other than actual damages to help hold down healthcare costs.
7.4. We strongly oppose the adoption of any socialized national health care system.
7.5 Be it resolved that Medicare equipment be recycled as practical to other Medicare patients.
8. HOMELAND SECURITY AND IMMIGRATION
8.1. We oppose welfare and other government benefits being given to illegal aliens. We support the deportation of all illegal aliens and call for the imposition of much more severe penalties on individuals and industries that are found employing illegal aliens.
8.2. We call for legislation that would prevent the automatic granting of citizenship to people who are illegally in this country that give birth to children on American soil.
8.3. If a new 'guest worker" program is adopted, credentials should only be issued in foreign nations for the citizens thereof. Those who have waited their turn and not come here illegally should be given preference in the issuance of such credentials.
8.4 We call on upon all US government agencies to actively enforce all immigration laws currently on the books.
9. LAW AND JUSTICE
9.1. We support shifting to the English practice of "loser pays" for attorney and court costs as a way to discourage nuisance lawsuits.
9.2. We support harsher punishments for violent crimes, including reinstating the death penalty for class A felonies.
9.3. We support legislation requiring jurors and juries be informed of their right and duty to consider both the facts and the law in reaching just verdicts.
9.4. We believe individuals, including juveniles, should be required to make restitution if convicted of a criminal offense.
9.5. We support faith-based initiatives for prisons and other rehabilitative service providers.
9.6. We support Iowa's joint physical custody law and oppose judicial favoritism toward women in child custody cases.
9.7 We believe that prisons should work towards being self-supporting; prisoners should either work within the prison for its support or work outside with what they make going to offset the costs of incarceration.
10. NATIONAL DEFENSE AND FOREIGN POLICY
10.1. We support the war on terrorism and believe in the policy of confronting and defeating those who engage in terrorist acts along with those nations, groups, and individuals who harbor or support them.
10.2. We believe restrictions should be placed on the transfer of sensitive technologies to foreign governments and corporations to protect from potential military or terrorist threats and development of weapons of mass destruction.
10.3. We oppose reinstating the draft.
10.4. We call for deployment of a strategic missile defense system.
11. NATURAL RESOURCES AND ENVIRONMENT
11.1. We should maintain an environmental policy that protects the rights of humans before other species. We deplore extremist scare tactics not based on sound scientific evidence.
11.2. We oppose attempts to eliminate the hunting and trapping of game. Due to the overpopulation of deer and the damage they do, their number should be reduced by longer seasons, encouragement of out-of-state hunters, and doe-only hunting.
12. RIGHT TO LIFE
12.1. The Republican Party believes in the sanctity of human life. We believe our society has a responsibility to legally protect the most vulnerable among us, namely, the unborn, the elderly, and persons with disabilities from abortion and euthanasia.
12.2. Be it resolved that the Johnson County Republican Party recognizes the outstanding care provided to premature infants by the University of Iowa neonatal intensive care unit. We further acknowledge that the UIHC's survival rates of 38%, 69%, and almost 80% for 22, 23, and 24 week premature infants respectively, are among the best in the nation. We therefore are disheartened by and vehemently oppose abortion of viable unborn premature infants in Iowa and elsewhere. We affirm our belief that society has a responsibility to protect the most vulnerable among us, namely, premature infants.
12.3. We support legislation to expand Iowa's current "Parental Notification Law" to add Parental Consent provisions (with a judicial opt-out in the case of abuse) for abortion on minors to honor parental authority.
12.4 We support adoption as an alternative to abortion and urge greater education of expectant mothers and support for them to make this more likely. We call for the elimination of all government rules, regulations, and informal practices that work against adoption, such as preventing interracial adoption.
12.4. We support the reversal of Roe vs. Wade and return of decision making on abortion to the states.
12.5. We support umbilical cord and adult stem cell research.
12.6. We support a Woman's Right to Know law that requires all performers of abortions to provide their clients with complete factual information on the health risks associated with abortion, the physical development of their unborn child, and all alternatives to abortion to assure informed choice.
12.7. We support the statistical reporting of abortion procedures to the State Health Department by all doctors and facilities performing abortions in the state of Iowa.
13. TAXES AND SPENDING
13.1. We support making Bush's tax cuts permanent.
13.2. We encourage anyone who objects to any tax cut that has been enacted to give as much money as they would have been taxed back to the U. S. Government's or State of Iowa's general fund, to put their money where their mouth is.
13.3. We believe that state and federal capital gains taxes should be abolished so as to encourage the creation of new businesses and jobs.
13.4. We support Iowans for Tax Relief's proposal for a People's Right to Vote Amendment
to the Iowa Constitution as well as their earlier Taxpayer's Bill of Rights Amendment which would limit growth in government to the rate of increase in population plus inflation thus putting governments in Iowa on a sensible reducing diet.
13.5. We support Iowan's for Discounted Taxes proposal to establish a "finish line" for taxes in Iowa and to give Iowans, especially older Iowans a choice between the current complex system and a simple flat tax on only earned income.
13.6. We call for repeal of the "Alternative Minimum Tax."
13.7. We call for the elimination of the Federal "death" or estate tax
13.8. Be it resolved that government should not engage in double taxation
13.9. We support current Iowa law that requires a 60% supermajority approval for bonding proposals.
13.10. We call for elimination of "baseline budgeting."
13.11. We call for all tax and spending legislation to include a sunset clause.
13.12. We support the effort to replace the Internal Revenue Code with a consumption tax.
13.13. We believe that state taxes should be repealed on Social Security benefits and pensions.
13.14. We endorse giving the "National Sales Tax Initiative" proposal proper consideration in Congress.
13.15. Be it resolved that we call for all property tax rates in Iowa to be more fairly computed.
14. REPUBLICAN PARTY AND COMMENDATIONS
14.1. We commend the men and women of our military, as well as civilian contractors and workers, for their willingness to put their life in harms way defending the liberties and freedoms we enjoy today.
14.2. We give profound thanks to the members of our police, fire, and emergency services for their sacrifice and outstanding commitment to our communities and our nation as a whole.
14.3. We resolve to work to elect Republican candidates who support the party platform which is a reflection of the beliefs of the grassroots of the party.
14.4. We demand an end to gender-specific offices in the Republican Party.
14.5. We support continuation of Iowa's First in the Nation presidential caucuses
14.6. We give our heartfelt thanks and appreciation to Senator Charles Grassley and Rep. Jim Leach for their continued dedication and service to not only the citizens of Johnson County, but all of Iowa.
14.7. We commend Sen. Jim Hahn, Sen. David Miller, Rep. Jeff Kaufmann, and
Rep. Sandra Greiner for their dedication and service in the Iowa Legislature.
14.8. We commend Congressman Jim Nussle and Bob Vander Plaats for putting aside their differences and uniting as one team to bring strong leadership back to the Offices of Governor and Lieutenant Governor of Iowa.
