Executive Summary
This seventeenth report of the Orange County Annual Survey continues
to monitor social, economic and political trends. We focus on the effects
of increasing urbanization by comparing the quality of life and local
government ratings in Orange County with Los Angeles County. We also
analyze the impact of changing demographics by contrasting survey responses
of Latinos, Asians and non-Hispanic whites. The 1998 survey was conducted
Sept. 1-13 and included random telephone interviews with 2,002 Orange
County adults in English, Spanish and Vietnamese. The margin of sampling
error is +/- 2% at the 95% confidence level. Here are the highlights
of this year's findings:
Overall Mood
Three in four residents (76%) rate the Orange County economy today
as excellent or good, a 13-point improvement over last year's survey.
However, six in 10 worry that the Asian financial crisis will hurt the
Orange County economy in the next year or so, with 46% expecting a somewhat
harmful effect locally and 15% anticipating a great deal of impact.
Ratings of the county's quality of life are overwhelmingly positive,
with 91% now saying things are going well and only 9% thinking they
are going badly. Positive ratings of the county's quality of life are
up three points since last year. Optimists outnumber pessimists, with
36% saying the county will be a better place and 25% thinking it will
be a worse place in the future, similar to last year.
Quality of Life
Orange County residents are more likely than Los Angeles County residents
to be very satisfied with their housing (58% vs. 45%), jobs (55% vs.
37%), leisure (54% vs. 42%) and finances (28% vs. 16%), and to report
being very happy with their lives (36% vs. 26%). Non-Hispanic whites
in Orange County are more likely than Latinos and Asians to express
a great deal of satisfaction with their housing, jobs, leisure and finances,
and to report being very happy. Orange County residents are more satisfied
than Los Angeles County residents with the job opportunities in their
region (33% vs. 21%), but their ratings of the availability of housing
they can afford (22% each) and their region's cost of living (16% vs.
12%) are similar. Non-Hispanic whites in Orange County are more likely
than Latinos and Asians to say they are very satisfied with job opportunities
in their region. Los Angeles County residents are much more likely than
those in Orange County to perceive major problems with traffic congestion
(35% vs. 26%) and pollution of all kinds (38% vs. 20%), but both regions
are equally likely to call population growth a major worry (27% vs.
26%). Non-Hispanic whites in Orange County are a little more likely
than Latinos and Asians to say that traffic and growth are big problems
in their region.
Local Government
Orange County residents give higher marks than Los Angeles County residents
to the quality of their local public services, including parks and beaches
(78% vs. 69%), police protection (78% vs. 69%), local freeways and streets
(60% vs. 50%) and local public schools (57% vs. 41%). Non-Hispanic whites
in Orange County are more likely than Latinos and Asians to give positive
scores for local parks, police and roads, but not for public schools.
Orange County residents are more likely than Los Angeles County residents
to say they have a great deal or fair amount of confidence in their
board of supervisors (64% vs. 56%), but slightly fewer trust their mayors
and city councils (65% vs. 70%). Performance ratings of county government
in Orange County show improvement since last year: Thirty-eight percent
now think the county government does an excellent or good job in solving
county problems; 63% say county government leaders are paying a lot
or some attention to what the people think; and only 36% say county
government wastes a lot of taxpayers' money.
El Toro Airport
The county continues to be divided about the El Toro reuse plans.
Forty-one percent favor the proposal to transform the base into an international
airport, while 48% are opposed. The new airport is slightly favored
in North County (47% vs. 40%), while opposition is very strong in South
County (24% vs. 71%). When residents are asked to choose between two
competing El Toro reuse proposals, 40% favor the county government's
plan that includes an airport, while 51% favor the "Millennium Plan"
that does not include an airport. Most residents (48%) prefer to have
John Wayne alone meeting Orange County's future air travel needs, while
32% want both airports open and 13% would like to close John Wayne and
use only the El Toro airport. Forty-three percent disapprove of the
county government's handling of the El Toro issue.
Public Schools
Ratings of local public schools continue to rise, with 57% now giving
their local schools excellent or good grades. Scores are up seven points
since 1997 and 15 points in two years. As for school reforms, eight
in 10 residents favor ending social promotions and nearly six in 10
favor providing parents with tax-supported school vouchers to send their
children to any school they choose. Only a narrow majority (50%) favors
lowering the barrier to pass school construction bonds from a two-thirds
vote to a simple majority. Residents express even more reluctance to
raise taxes for schools-only 45% say they would vote for a tax increase
for their local schools. Even among parents with children in the public
schools, support for a tax increase is well short of the required two-thirds
majority.
Consumer Confidence
The Consumer Confidence Index now stands at 105, a decline of five
points from a year ago. The Orange County score surpasses the U.S. index,
which is at 100. Four of the five questions in our Consumer Confidence
Index are unchanged from a year ago: Fifty-one percent say they are
financially better off now than they were a year ago; 49% expect to
be better off next year than they are now; 56% believe the United States
will have continued good economic times during the next five years;
and 72% think this is a good time for major purchases. The biggest change
from the 1997 survey is a 14-point drop in those expecting good times
for the U.S. economy next year (59%, down from 73%). The Consumer Confidence
Index is higher for non-Hispanic whites (106) and Latinos (105) than
for Asians (98), reflecting Asians' greater worries about the impacts
of the Asian financial crisis.
Most Important Problem
Crime is rated the county's most serious public policy problem by
30% of residents, followed by schools (12%), traffic (11%), the El Toro
airport controversy (9%), the economy (6%) and growth and immigration
(5% each). Since 1993, crime has consistently been called the most serious
public policy issue in Orange County. Despite a declining crime rate
in the region, many residents worry about becoming a crime victim in
their local area. Fewer than half of Orange County residents say they
feel very safe walking alone in their neighborhoods at night (46%),
while about one-third feel only somewhat safe (37%) and about one in
six feels unsafe (17%). Non-Hispanic whites (52%) are more likely than
Latinos (32%) or Asians (45%) to feel very safe.
Housing market
Seventy-five percent of homeowners and 61% of renters believe that
buying a home in Orange County is an excellent or good investment. The
number of homeowners who think a home in Orange County is a favorable
investment is up five points since last year and 15 points in two years.
Among renters, the number who consider buying a house in Orange County
to be an excellent or good investment has risen five points since last
year and 16 points in two years. Sixty-three percent of homeowners and
56% of renters pay more than $750 a month for housing. The median monthly
mortgage payment is $964 this year, and the median monthly rent is $795.
Mortgages are up slightly from last year, while rents are up sharply.
South County remains the most expensive region for housing. Non-Hispanic
whites are more likely than Latinos or Asians to be homeowners (70%
vs. 42% vs. 58%).
Transportation
Twenty-five percent of residents say the current freeway system is
satisfactory, 48% want lanes added and 27% want new freeways built.
There is no change in satisfaction from a year ago. Satisfaction with
freeways is higher in South County than North County (34% vs. 21%).
Twenty-two percent of workers say they experience major traffic problems
during their commute, which is a three-point rise from last year and
up six points from the decade's low reached in 1993. South County residents
are more likely than those in the north to say they have no commuting
problems (46% vs. 33%). Measure M projects remain highly popular: Three
in four now say they are satisfied with the way Measure M funds are
being spent. Overall satisfaction is unchanged from 1997, but is up
three points since 1996, five points since 1995 and 27 points since
1992.
Charitable Attitudes
Fifty-six percent of Orange County residents say they filed the long
form on their 1997 federal income tax return, and 45% claimed a deduction
for charitable donations. Both trends are unchanged from last year.
Non-Hispanic whites are more likely than Latinos or Asians to have itemized
their taxes (60% vs. 44% vs. 53%) and claimed a charity deduction (51%
vs. 29% vs. 42%). Sixty-eight percent of residents were asked to give
to a charity (including a religious organization) in the past year,
also unchanged since 1997. Non-Hispanic whites are more likely than
Latinos or Asians to have been asked to make a donation (75% vs. 48%
vs. 71%). As for charitable giving, 29% say they gave more than $500
to all charities in the past year, while 43% of households earning more
than $50,000 report this level of giving. Non-Hispanic whites are more
likely than Latinos or Asians to say they gave more than $500 (36% vs.
13% vs. 21%), while Latinos are more likely than Asians and non-Hispanic
whites to say they gave $100 or less (64% vs. 41% vs. 31%). The median
donation was $203-down from $226 a year ago. Forty-seven percent say
they did some volunteer work in the past year, unchanged from 1997 and
the same as national trends. Non-Hispanic whites are more likely than
Latinos or Asians to have done some volunteering (51% vs. 36% vs. 38%).
Political Climate
About six in 10 Orange County residents, including most non-Hispanic
whites (62%), Latinos (54%) and Asians (57%), describe themselves as
middle-of-the-road to somewhat conservative. Only one in five residents
has a great deal of interest in politics, about half have a fair amount
and one in three has little or no interest. Non-Hispanic whites are
more likely than Latinos and Asians to say they have at least a fair
amount of interest (71% vs. 53% vs. 56%). Four in 10 county residents
say they follow what's going on in government most of the time, one
in three says some of the time and one in four says only occasionally
or seldom. Half of non-Hispanic whites (49%) follow government news
most of the time, compared with fewer than one in four Latinos (24%)
and Asians (22%). About half of Orange County residents say they always
vote, one in five nearly always votes and one in three votes infrequently
or never. While a majority of non-Hispanic whites (56%) say they always
vote, only a quarter of Latinos (26%) and Asians (27%) say they do not
miss an election. Many Latinos (53%) and Asians (43%) say they never
vote, compared with only 13% of non-Hispanic whites. Fifty-one percent
of Latinos say they are not registered to vote, compared with 40% of
Asians and only 13% of non-Hispanic whites.
