Ryan Haynes...

Opposes a State Income Tax and Statewide Property Tax

Our region is booming with new businesses coming from all over the country. This is in huge part because of our business friendly climate with no Income Tax, or Statewide property tax.

Citizens from all across the State of Tennessee have repeatedly said, "We don’t want an Income Tax." As a state legislator, I will listen to what our citizens have consistently said! I will always vote NO to such disastrous policies.

Supports additional state funding for K-12 education

The State of Tennessee consistently lags behind the rest of the country on education. Whether it is teacher pay, students graduating high school, or overall dollars spent for our children’s future, our state is behind. We have a responsibility to correct such rankings.

Our area is leading the way in high technology jobs, and we must educate a well qualified work force in order to sustain our economy. I will support the Tennessee Diploma Project’s higher standards which will strengthen our academic curriculum. I will fight against huge dollar amounts going to education bureaucracy when such funds should be going directly to classrooms and teachers.

Supports Small Businesses across Tennessee

One of the best ways to protect small business owners is to keep taxation and regulation at minimal levels. As President Ronald Reagan once said, "Government's view of the economy could be summed up in a few short phrases: If it moves, tax it. If it keeps moving regulate it. And if stops moving, subsidize it." Here in Tennessee, we know that government tends to make more problems than it fixes.

I will support the Knoxville Chamber of Commerce vision for move tax incentives for companies that focus on research and development as well as technology companies that are critical to our success in the future.

Supports Harsher Penalties for Sexual Predators

Rarely does it seem that we can turn on our Televisions and not hear about some young child being abused. As many of us know, just recently two young college girls were murdered and raped for nothing more than a debit card and an SUV. People that commit such heinous crimes ought to be put to death. If crimes like molesting children multiple times and murdering our best and brightest do not warrant the death penalty than nothing does!

Supports the Second Amendment

The right to bear arms is essential to our freedoms, and as a member of the NRA, I can assure you that I will protect gun ownership rights.

Recently, the Tennessee General Assembly introduced an amendment to our State Constitution that will recognize hunting as part of our Tennessee heritage, and guarantee the right of future generations to hunt. I will vote for this amendment.

Opposes TennCare Abuse

Currently about 50% of our State Budget is spent on Health and Social services. This accounts for $11,908,826,900 of our expenditures. We cannot afford to have people rip off our system by fraudulently taking advantage of our generosity. People who no longer live in our state need to be removed from TennCare rolls and fraudulent claims must not go unpunished.