Andrew Apsley
Candidate for Utah Senate 7
http://www.andrewsapsley.com
8016453035
Spanish Fork
Utah County
Democratic
UCA Candidate Survey
Should government be involved in funding the arts and humanities?
Yes
Please explain your answer (one or two sentences is sufficient):
The arts and humanities are not necessarily profitable pursuits, so they are often vulnerable in purely capitalistic systems. This does not mean that they are any less valuable than engineering, mathematics, or the sciences. Arts and humanities are what make us human and allow us to share common experience with each other, eliciting emotion in ways nothing else can. Government is a tool by which we, as a society, can ensure the preservation of art and cultural pursuits that couldn't find funding in the private sector.
If your elected office could impact the amount of money spent on public K-12 arts & humanities education, what would you choose to do?
Increase Spending
If your elected office could impact the amount of money spent on after school K-12 arts & humanities education program, what would you choose to do?
Increase Spending
Do you believe that during-the-day arts and humanities education should be a part of K-12 curriculum?
Yes
If your elected office could impact the amount of money spent on cultural programs, what would you choose to do?
Increase Spending
Do you consider the arts and cultural sector an economic driver in Utah?
Yes
Do you support Utah's Percent-for-Art Act, which designates 1% of public building costs for public art?
Yes
Do you support the designation of Robert Smithson's Spiral Jetty as the State Work of Art?
Unsure
If your office could impact legislation, would you support a bill that exempts cultural non-profits from property tax?
Unsure
Please explain your answer to (one or two sentences is sufficient):
Property taxes are largely used to fund public education. Since cultural non-profits provide their own type of public education through cultural exhibits, performances, classes, and outreach, they shouldn't necessarily have to pay to fund other forms of education--especially since they operate at no profit.
However, some non-profit organizations still have to pay property taxes on their real estate to continue to support local schools. I'd have to review the precise fiscal impact of the bill to know whether or not it makes sense.
Would you support a minor increase to bed or tourism taxes to fund more cultural districts in your community?
Unsure
Please explain your answer (one or two sentences is sufficient):
Our community doesn't have much tourism nor does it have much in the way of cultural districts. I'd be interested in learning about the benefits of such legislation as it pertains to more tourism-rich communities in our state.
Last year the state legislature passed a bill (HB223 Local Historic District Amendments) restricting the creation of historical districts. What are your thoughts about historic preservation? (One or two sentences is sufficient).
I think historic preservation needs to strike a balance with the needs of the community in which it occurs. Certain historic monuments need preservation against future potential redevelopment, but others may act as more of a long-term weight on the community without providing much economic or cultural benefit. I think it's difficult to approach the issue with a broad brush, but historical preservation is certainly an important issue that should receive the support it needs to move forward without too many barriers.
Have you had a personal experience with arts, culture, or humanities that has had an impact on your life? Please explain (one or two sentences is sufficient).
My undergraduate degree is in the humanities, and I try to encourage my children to participate in artistic and cultural pursuits whenever the opportunity arises. I feel there is so much about the human experience that we cannot understand without art, and it's so important to encourage that type of expression in the rising generation so that they have an outlet for complex feelings, and others have an opportunity to understand what others are experiencing. There is so much emphasis on STEM education right now, but I think that a STEAM approach is far more beneficial, and it produces a more well-rounded populace that can comprehend not only empirical concepts, but more emotional and social concepts as well.
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