Poll Finds
Widespread Public Support for Bonds
77% of Likely Voters Would Vote Yes on $3.1
Billion Referendum
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A poll of 804 likely voters shows
77 percent would support a $3.1 billion bond
issue for higher education facilities, with only
19 percent opposed. The poll, conducted for NCCBI
by Wirthlin Worldwide, found that 65 percent of
those surveyed were more likely to support the
bonds if they knew it would not raise taxes,
which supporters -- including state Treasurer
Harlan Boyles, say they wouldn't.
“We are encouraged with the strong support
that we found for both community colleges and the
university system,” said NCCBI President
Phil Kirk. “While we realize that the public
still needs to be educated on this issue, the
initial polling results are extremely
positive.”
NCCBI conducted the poll as a step towards
leading the campaign for passing the referendum
in the fall balloting. “NCCBI is committee
to taking a leadership role in putting together
an aggressive campaign to pass these bonds in
November,” Kirk said. “Although the
poll results are very strong, we know that it is
going to take an aggressive campaign to ensure
passage of these bonds, which will address the
critical needs of both the university and
community college systems.”
The poll was conducted March 21-25 by Wirthlin
Worldwide from telephone interviews with 804
likely voters and has a margin of error of plus
or minus 3.5 percentage points.
In part, the survey asked respondents to say how
they feel about certain statements about the
state's higher education facilities needs. Here's
how they responded:
* “The UNC System will not
rely solely on bonds to finance its buildings. It
will produce 40 percent of the funds needs from
non-state revenue.” 71 percent found that
statement convincing, 27 percent said it was not
a convincing reason to vote for the bonds.
* “The
UNC System expects enrollment to grow by 48,000
students over the next 10 years. Current capacity
on its campuses will not allow for this growth.
This means many qualified students will not be
able to attend a public university in North
Carolina.” 80 percent convincing, 19 percent
unconvincing.
* “Nearly
800 buildings in the UNC System need significant
repairs or upgrades, especially the science and
technology buildings.” 86 percent
convincing, 13 percent unconvincing.
* “North
Carolina's public universities and community
colleges are a strong factor in the state's
strong economy and quality of life, preparing
North Carolinians for good jobs and bringing
world class companies to the state.” 90
percent convincing, 10 percent unconvincing.
* “The
state's business leaders strongly support this
proposal, and believe building and repairing
these facilities are vital to the state's growing
economy.” 79 percent convincing, 21 percent
unconvincing.
* “The
community colleges expect enrollment to grow by
31,000 new full-time students by 2005. Current
capacity on its campuses will not allow for this
growth. This means many qualified North Carolina
residents will not be able to receive the
education and job training they need.” 83
percent convincing, 17 percent unconvincing.
* “Currently,
counties have the responsibility of building and
maintaining community college facilities, using
property tax receipts to pay for this expense.
The state should help the counties pay for
building and maintaining community college
facilities.” 79 percent convincing, 21
percent unconvincing.
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