New York City (NYC) Poll * November 15, 2006 * No Pay Raises Or Longer Terms - Quinnipiac University

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November 15, 2006 - No Pay Raises Or Longer Terms For City Council, New York City Voters Tell Quinnipiac University Poll; Narrow Margin To Keep Rebuilding Ground Zero

By a 72 - 24 percent margin, New York City voters oppose extending term limits from eight years to 12 years for the individual City Council member who represents them, according to a Quinnipiac University poll released today. Results were similar when the question was shifted from "the City Council member who represents you" to "all elected city officials."
By a 53 - 27 percent margin, voters oppose a pay raise for their Council members, the independent Quinnipiac (KWIN-uh-pe-ack) University poll finds.
Opposition to extending term limits for "the City Council member who represents you" ranges from 84 - 16 percent in Staten Island to 65 - 29 percent in Manhattan. Only 4 percent of voters are undecided on this issue.
"Give city officials four more years? No, New Yorkers say 3 - 1. But how about for your City Council member, the one who showed up at your block party? Still no," said Maurice Carroll, director of the Quinnipiac University Polling Institute.
"And no to pay raises, too, although it's only 2 - 1. Democrats, Republicans, independent voters all agree: keep the eight-year term limit and no raises."
Attitudes about the pace of work at Ground Zero have improved, with 50 percent of New York City voters saying the work is going "very well" or "somewhat well," and 45 percent saying "somewhat badly" or "very badly."
This compares to 40 percent who said "very well" or "somewhat well" in a July 12 Quinnipiac University poll, when 52 percent said Ground Zero redevelopment was going "somewhat badly" or "very badly." This was the lowest rating on this issue in four years of questioning.
Construction should continue at Ground Zero, while the search for human remains goes on, 51 percent of New York City voters say, with 46 percent who say construction should stop until the search for remains is completed.
"New Yorkers are feeling a little better about the pace of work at Ground Zero and by a narrow margin, they want to keep going," Carroll said.
School Funding
Voters agree 80 - 14 percent with a court ruling that an additional $5.6 billion must be spent on New York City public school students. Republicans back the ruling 59 - 33 percent, while Democrats back the court ruling 88 - 8 percent and independent voters support it 74 - 20 percent.
New York City should contribute some of this additional funding, 56 percent of voters say, while 37 percent say all this additional funding should come from the state.
"Amid all the euphoria over a new team in Albany, there's a question that keeps coming up - what about that court order to spend $5.6 billion on New York City schools? Not surprisingly, four-fifths of New Yorkers applaud the court ruling," Carroll said.
"But it is a surprise that most New York City voters agree with Governor-elect Eliot Spitzer that the City should pick up some of this tab."
From November 8 - 12, Quinnipiac University surveyed 1,314 New York City registered voters, with a margin of error of +/- 2.7 percentage points.
The Quinnipiac University Poll, directed by Douglas Schwartz, Ph.D., conducts public opinion surveys in New York, New Jersey, Connecticut, Pennsylvania, Florida, Ohio and nationwide as a public service and for research.
For additional data -- www.quinnipiac.edu or call (203) 582-5201
12. Currently, there is an 8 year term limit for all elected New York City officials. Do you favor or oppose extending this limit to 12 years for the city council member who represents you?
Tot Rep Dem Ind Wht Blk Hisp Favor 24% 18% 26% 23% 25% 21% 24% Oppose 72 78 70 73 70 75 74 DK/NA 4 4 4 4 5 4 2 Brnx Kngs Man Qns StIsl Men Wom Favor 24% 25% 29% 20% 16% 28% 20% Oppose 71 71 65 77 84 69 75 DK/NA 4 4 6 3 - 3 5
13. Do you favor or oppose extending this limit to 12 years for all elected city officials?
Tot Rep Dem Ind Wht Blk Hisp Favor 21% 22% 21% 24% 27% 14% 16% Oppose 75 77 76 73 70 81 81 DK/NA 3 1 3 3 3 4 3 Brnx Kngs Man Qns StIsl Men Wom Favor 18% 23% 27% 18% 15% 25% 18% Oppose 77 73 69 80 85 73 77 DK/NA 5 4 4 1 1 2 5
14. Does the New York City Council member representing your district deserve a pay raise or not?
Tot Rep Dem Ind Wht Blk Hisp Yes 27% 28% 29% 22% 22% 29% 33% No 53 58 50 61 53 54 53 DK/NA 20 14 22 17 25 17 13 Brnx Kngs Man Qns StIsl Men Wom Yes 27% 29% 27% 23% 25% 27% 27% No 57 53 44 58 65 55 52 DK/NA 16 18 29 19 11 19 21
15. A court appointed panel has found that an additional 5.6 billion dollars must be spent on New York City's public school students every year to give them a sound basic education. Do you agree or disagree with the panel's finding?
Tot Rep Dem Ind Wht Blk Hisp Agree 80% 59% 88% 74% 73% 87% 86% Disagree 14 33 8 20 19 9 10 DK/NA 6 8 5 7 8 4 3 Brnx Kngs Man Qns StIsl Men Wom Agree 81% 79% 79% 83% 79% 77% 83% Disagree 12 16 12 14 15 18 11 DK/NA 6 5 9 3 6 6 6
TREND: A court appointed panel has found that an additional 5.6 billion dollars must be spent on New York City's public school students every year to give them a sound basic education. Do you agree or disagree with the panel's finding?
Nov 15 Mar 8 2006 2006 Agree 80 75 Disagree 14 17 DK/NA 6 9
16. Do you think that all of the money for this additional spending on New York City schools should come from the state or should New York City also contribute some money?
Tot Rep Dem Ind Wht Blk Hisp All from State 37% 36% 39% 38% 38% 35% 42% City contribute 56 58 55 55 54 59 52 DK/NA 7 7 6 7 8 6 6 Brnx Kngs Man Qns StIsl Men Wom All from State 39% 38% 41% 34% 33% 40% 35% City contribute 54 55 49 61 63 54 57 DK/NA 7 7 10 5 4 6 8
TREND: Do you think that all of the money for this additional spending on New York City schools should come from the state or should New York City also contribute some money?
Nov 15 Mar 8 2006 2006 All from State 37 40 City contribute 56 53 DK/NA 7 8
17. What is your impression of how well the redevelopment of lower Manhattan is going? Would you say very well, somewhat well, somewhat badly, or very badly?
Tot Rep Dem Ind Wht Blk Hisp Very well 11% 17% 9% 12% 8% 10% 14% Somewhat well 39 56 37 36 36 43 42 Somewhat badly 28 15 31 26 32 30 17 Very badly 17 8 17 20 19 11 18 DK/NA 6 3 6 6 5 7 9 Brnx Kngs Man Qns StIsl Men Wom Very well 8% 11% 9% 12% 11% 10% 11% Somewhat well 40 38 32 43 47 39 39 Somewhat badly 25 30 31 24 25 28 27 Very badly 16 15 24 14 13 18 16 DK/NA 10 6 4 7 5 5 7
TREND: What is your impression of how well the redevelopment of lower Manhattan is going? Would you say very well, somewhat well, somewhat badly, or very badly?
Nov 15 Jul 12 Apr 12 Mar 9 Oct 13 May 12 Sep 10 2006 2006 2006 2006 2005 2005 2003 Very well 11 9 8 10 9 13 12 Somewhat well 39 31 36 33 38 41 50 Somewhat badly 28 30 27 28 27 23 18 Very badly 17 22 20 19 15 13 8 DK/NA 6 9 9 10 12 10 11
18. Who do you think is most to blame for continued problems and delays of Ground Zero development; the Port Authority, the city, or the state?
Tot Rep Dem Ind Wht Blk Hisp Port Authority 20% 20% 20% 23% 20% 17% 27% City 18 20 19 12 13 29 18 State 31 26 32 34 35 27 29 DK/NA 30 33 28 31 32 28 26 Brnx Kngs Man Qns StIsl Men Wom Port Authority 23% 21% 18% 19% 29% 23% 18% City 17 21 11 21 24 15 21 State 31 29 40 26 28 33 29 DK/NA 30 29 31 34 19 28 32
19. As you may know there have recently been new discoveries of human remains near the ground zero construction site. The city has begun a new search for additional remains. Should construction be stopped until the search is complete, or should the construction go on as planned while the search is being conducted?
Tot Rep Dem Ind Wht Blk Hisp Stop construction 46% 32% 52% 39% 38% 54% 59% Go on as planned 51 65 45 58 58 43 38 DK/NA 3 3 3 3 4 2 3 Brnx Kngs Man Qns StIsl Men Wom Stop construction 58% 46% 38% 45% 48% 37% 54% Go on as planned 39 52 58 52 49 61 43 DK/NA 4 2 4 3 3 2 4