Special Survey of Orange County 2004

The Orange County Survey - a collaborative effort of the Public Policy
Institute of California and the School of Social Ecology at the
University of California, Irvine - is a special edition of the PPIC
Statewide Survey. This is the fourth in an annual series of PPIC
surveys of Orange County. Mark Baldassare, director of the PPIC
Statewide Survey, is the founder and director of the Orange County
Annual Survey at UCI and a former UCI professor. The UCI survey was
conducted 19 times from 1982 to 2000; thus, the Orange County Survey
collaboration between PPIC and UCI that began in 2001 is an extension
of earlier survey efforts. The special survey of Orange County is
co-sponsored by UCI with local support received for this four-year
series from Deloitte and Touche, Pacific Life Foundation, Disneyland,
Los Angeles Times, Orange County Business Council, Orange County
Division of League of California Cities, Orange County Register,
The Irvine Company, and United Way of Orange County.

Orange County is the second most populous county in the state and one
of Californiaˇ¦s fastest growing and changing regions. The county is
home to three million residents today, having gained approximately
one million residents since 1980. Three in four residents were white
and non-Hispanic in 1980; today, nearly half are Latinos and Asians,
and more population growth and racial/ethnic change are projected for
the next several decades.

The county's dynamic economy has become one of the leaders in the
high-technology industry. The county is a bellwether county in state
and national politics and the site of many important local governance
issues, including a county governmentbankruptcy that occurred 10 years
ago in December 1994. There are also housing, transportation, land use,
and environmental concerns related to development. Public opinion
findings are critical to informing discussions and resolving public
debates on key issues. The purpose of this study is to inform
policymakers, the media, and the general public by providing timely,
accurate, and objective information about policy preferences and
economic, social, and political trends.

To measure changes over time, this survey of 1,008 adult residents
includes questions from earlier Orange County Annual Surveys. It also
includes key indicators from the PPIC Statewide Survey for comparisons
with the state and regions of California. We also consider
racial/ethnic, income, and political differences. The following issues
are explored in this Orange County Survey:

* Orange County Issues - What are the trends over time in consumer
confidence and the public's ratings of the quality of life and the
economy in Orange County? Do residents recall the Orange County
government bankruptcy in 1994, how do they perceive its impacts today,
and have attitudes toward the county government recovered in the past
10 years? How satisfied are residents with their local public services
and city governments? What are the most important issues facing the
county and how do residents rate the problems in their regions? What
are their perceptions of commuting and transportation plans and
preferences for local transportation taxes?

* Housing Issues - How satisfied are residents with their homes and
neighborhoods and how do they perceive their opportunities for buying
a home in Orange County? How many residents feel the financial strain
of housing costs, perceive the benefits of rising home values, or are 
seriously considering moving? What housing and neighborhood options are
they willing to consider?

* State and National Issues - What is the overall outlook for
California and U.S. conditions? How do residents rate the job
performances of Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger and President George W.
Bush? What are their perceptions of the national election and the
second term of the Bush presidency? Has the partisan divide in trust in
the federal government increased over time?


Copies of this report may be ordered by:
   e-mail (order@ppic.org)
   phone (415-291-4400)

Copies of this and earlier reports are posted on the publications page
of the PPIC web site (www.ppic.org).

For questions about the survey, please contact survey@ppic.org.