UCI

Local Government Ratings

What kind of job is local government doing when it comes to solving problems at the county and city level? County government gets an excellent or good job rating from 42 percent of Orange County residents, a rating that has remained stable over the past few years. By contrast, 58 percent think that their city government is doing an excellent or good job.

Latinos are more positive than whites (54% to 39%) in rating their county government, as are residents in the North County compared to those in the South County (44% to 39%). As for city government ratings, there are no differences between whites and Latinos, but South County residents give higher rankings than North County residents (61% to 56%). County government ratings decline with education and income, while city government ratings do not vary much by these factors.

County government continues to receive mixed grades when it comes to fiscal efficiency, even well after the 1994 county-government bankruptcy: 81 percent say the county government wastes at least some of the taxpayer’s money, and 35 percent say that it wastes a lot. Whites (85%) are more likely than Latinos (73%) to say that the county government wastes at least some of the taxpayer’s money. The perception that the county government wastes taxpayer money tends to increase with age, education, homeownership, and income. There are no differences in perceptions of county government inefficiency across political groups or between North and South County residents.

When it comes to assessing county officials’ responsiveness to public opinion when drafting policies, many residents still complain about a lack of responsiveness (the controversy over the county’s plans to develop an airport at the El Toro Marine Base was finally resolved by local voters at the ballot box). Only 12 percent of county residents say that county officials pay a lot of attention to what people think when deciding policies; 35 percent say that county government pays very little or no attention to what people think. We found no differences across income, education, or racial/ethnic groups, or across political parties or county regions.