MD STATE LEGISLATION BUDGET

Spring 2003

The State is facing a large deficit for the coming fiscal year. Please tell me whether you generally agree or disagree with proposals to deal with this deficit and balance the state’s budget.

Do you agree or disagree…	Agree %	Disagree %	Don’t know %	N
Reductions in spending on higher education	21	77	2	344
Reductions in spending on road assistance to local government	30	62	8	342
Reductions in spending on programs to preserve open space	36	59	6	340
Increases in spending on public schools despite the state’s deficit	72	25	3	340
Increasing the gas tax by 1 or 2 cents.	49	48	2	339
Increasing the sales tax by 1 cent.	51	48	1	341
Increasing income taxes just enough to cover the deficit without cutting programs	37	60	3	337
Introducing slot machines at racetracks in Maryland	67	29	4	340

Spring 2003

Generally speaking do you think that greater emphasis should be placed on cutting programs or raising taxes to try to deal with the state deficit? (N=340)

Cutting programs.	40%
Increasing taxes	36%
Don’t know	24%

Spring 2003

The governor has presented legislation that would allow slot machines at some Maryland racetracks. Please answer the following questions regarding this proposal.

Do you agree or disagree…	Agree %	Disagree %	Don’t know %	N
Do you think that horse racing in Maryland is an industry which should be subsidized with earnings from slot machines?	46	47	6	336
Do you think that the gambling industry puts too much pressure for passage of this legislation?	Yes 44	No 46	10	336
Do you think that gambling interests should be prohibited from making political contributions?	Yes 56	No 38	6	332
Do you think that gambling is generally immoral?	Yes 20	No 78	2	334
Do you think that gambling addiction is a serious problem that will accompany slots in Maryland?	Yes 48	No 47	5	333
Do feel that the possible economic benefits from slots are more or less important than any possible negative social consequences?	More important 52	Less important 39	9	333
Does the idea that Maryland loses revenue to neighboring states that have legalized slots seem like a strong reason to approve it here?	Yes 64	No 32	4	332
Have you used slot machines during the last two years?	Yes 41	No 58	0	333
Have you played the “lotto” during the last two years?	Yes 61	No 38	0	333
Have you gambled at race tracks during the last two years?	Yes 14	No 86	0	332
Do you know anyone who has an addiction to any form of gambling?	Yes 27	No 72	1	333
Do you generally agree or disagree with the introduction of slot machines at Maryland race tracks	69	29	2	332

Fall 2003

The state derives most of its general revenues from two taxes: personal income taxes and sales taxes. Which of the following possible actions by state government would you support the most to deal with likely deficits?

Increase these taxes (personal and/or sales)	13%
Increase other taxes	8%
Create other new taxes	5%
Rely on new sources of revenue such as slot machines	44%
Reduce spending	27%
Volunteered other suggestion (specify:	3%
Don’t know	0%

Fall 2003

Tell me whether you would tend to favor or oppose each of the following suggestions regarding the expansion of gambling as a partial solution to Maryland’s deficits

	Favor	Oppose	No answer
Introduce slot machines only at racetracks or resorts	69%	28%	3%
Introduce slot machines at resorts in western Maryland or the Eastern shore	58%	39%	3%
Introduce slot machines at any sites likely to produce the most revenue for the state	40%	58%	2%
Introduce casino-style gambling at sites likely to produce the most revenue for the state	41%	57%	2%
Have the state, rather than private enterprise, own the gambling facilities	48%	46%	6%

Fall 2003

Five spending categories currently account for most of state government spending, This means that these categories would probably need to be reduced to bring the budget into balance. After I have read you these categories, tell me which would be your highest priority for reduced spending: (Circle one)

Public school spending	15%
Public health spending	14%
Higher education	35%
Medicaid (which pays for health care for the poor)	15%
Public safety	21%

Fall 2003

Please tell me whether you tend to favor or oppose the following:

Approach	Favor	Oppose	Unsure/ NA
An increase in state income taxes	26%	72%	3%
An increase in the state gasoline tax	29%	69%	2%
An increase in the general sales tax	46%	53%	2%
Governor Ehrlich’s veto of a package closing corporate loopholes	47%	32%	20%
Increasing the County’s local income tax rate	24%	72%	5%
Creating specific taxes to fund County public safety such as fire & police	53%	43%	5%
Re-examining the property tax revenue cap formula in AA County	54%	38%	8%
Increasing impact fees on new housing development in AA County	65%	30%	5%
Paying a toll to use less crowded freeway lanes	47%	50%	4%
The elimination of many vacant state and County jobs	67%	27%	6%
Layoffs of state and County employees	26%	69%	6%

Spring 2004

The state of Maryland is facing a serious budget deficit. Tell me whether you support or oppose the following proposals meant to deal with the deficit:

Approach	Support %	Oppose %	Unsure/NA %	Cases
Increasing the corporate income tax rate by 1 percent	63	35	2	379
Postponing fully funding the Thornton Plan for public education	32	47	20	376
Creating a $2.50 surcharge on monthly sewage fees to help upgrade waste water treatment plants	65	31	4	377
Placing a 3 percent surcharge on the income tax of people who make $500,000 or more annually	73	26	1	375
Reducing salaries of state employees	14	81	5	375
Cutting back on state services	16	77	7	372
Reducing financial support for higher education	18	78	4	373
Legalizing slot machines in Maryland	62	33	6	375
Holding a referendum on whether to have slot machines	68	27	5	369
Increasing the state sales tax by 1 percent, from 5 to 6 percent	31	66	2	376
Would you be more or less inclined to support a one cent increase in the sales tax if you knew that the additional revenue only went to support education	More 72	Less 23	(3) No change 4 (0) no answer 1	371

Spring 2005

The governor and General Assembly have been unable to agree on whether to use slots revenue, taxes or some combination to solve Maryland’s revenue gap. Which of the following best captures your thoughts about this? N=372

(1) I favor increasing taxes, but not having slots in Maryland 15 percent

(2) I favor slots in Maryland, but not increasing taxes 55 percent

(3) I favor both slots in Maryland and increasing taxes 11 percent

(4) I oppose both slots in Maryland and increasing taxes 15 percent

(0) Don’t know/ No answer 5 percent

Spring 2004

During the last budget cycle, Maryland’s transportation trust fund which finances roads and public transportation was severely depleted. Tell me if you would favor any of the following methods to restore the fund:

Approach	Support%	Oppose%	Unsure/NA %	Cases
A five-cent increase in the state gasoline tax	17	82	2	372
A $25 increase in annual vehicle registration fees	38	59	4	371
An additional $50 added to speeding or other moving violation fines	64	33	3	372
A ban on taking money out of the trust fund unless used for transportation only.	65	24	11	373

Spring 2005

On slots in Maryland, the House of Delegates passed a bill that would allow slots at four locations, including the Laurel race track, while the Senate bill allowed slots at seven locations to be designated by a commission at a later time. Which of these do you most favor, if any? N=305

(1) House Bill - 31 percent

(2) Senate Bill - 32 percent

(3) Neither - 30 percent

(4) No answer, unsure - 6 percent

Spring 2005

The budget presented by Gov. Ehrlich included some cuts and some increases in spending. When I read each of the following items, tell me whether you would tend to increase, decrease or keep funding levels the same assuming that any increase would require increasing taxes:

	Percent Increase	Percent Decrease	Percent Keep same	Percent Unsure, N.A.
Financial assistance to counties	24%	6%	61%	9%
Seniors’ prescription drug assistance	66	4	25	5
State’s contribution to its employees health care costs	34	9	49	8
State funding for the costs of nursing homes	46	8	38	9
Special trust for land preservation	36	9	47	8
Funding for public schools	70	4	24	3
Funding for higher education	62	5	31	3
State employee salaries	28	10	53	9
Funding to upgrade wastewater treatment plants	57	2	34	7

Spring 2007

A set of new County and State laws has been discussed recently. Tell me

whether you generally agree or disagree with the following proposals:

Proposal	Agree %	Disagree %	No answer %
Increasing the cigarette tax by one dollar to help pay for increasing health insurance coverage to the uninsured.	72%	27%	1%
Banning all roadside solicitation on county roads	76%	21%	3%
Forcing all new cars sold in Maryland to comply with California pollution standards	51%	40%	9%
Banning smoking in all restaurants and bars	68%	29%	3%
Repealing the death penalty in Maryland	33%	58%	9%

Fall 2007

The state is facing a 1.7 billon dollar deficit in its current budget. Governor Martin

O’Malley has made several proposals to deal with this deficit. When I read you each

of the proposals, tell me whether you generally agree or disagree with it:

Proposal	Agree%	Disagree%	No answer%
An increase in the sales tax from 5 to 6 percent	34	63	3
An increase in the car titling tax from 5 to 6 percent	34	63	3
An increase in the corporate income tax	60	37	3
A restructuring of state personal income tax, placing a greater burden on those with incomes over $200,000	61	36	3
A reduction in the state property tax	71	25	4
Introduction of slot machines in Maryland	61	34	5
A one dollar increase in cigarette tax dedicated to paying for increased health insurance coverage to the uninsured.	70	28	2

Fall 2007

Generally speaking do you think that a greater emphasis should be placed on cutting programs or raising taxes to deal with the state deficit?

Cut programs 47%

Raise taxes 27%

Some other approach 13%

Don’t know 13%

Fall 2009

Governor Martin O’Malley has proposed several measures to try to deal with state budget deficits.

When I mention a budget cutting measure, tell me whether it was “about right” or was it too big a

cut or too small.

	About right %	Too big %	Too small %	No answer %
The proposal to cut $210 million in state-aid to localities in Maryland	32	41	8	19
The proposal to cut $15 million in local aid to Anne Arundel County	31	47	9	13
The governor’s policy of making state employees take 3 to 10 days of unpaid leave.	51	37	7	6
Laying off 200 state employees	38	45	7	9
Cutting a combined $30 million in health related funding	23	60	6	11

Fall 2009

Do you support or oppose the following related ideas?	Support %	Oppose %	Unsure %	No answer %
Maintaining the tuition freeze at the University of Maryland	79	15	5	1
Shifting the cost of teachers’ pensions to local governments	24	58	15	4
Maintaining the level of state funding for public schools	78	17	4	1
Requiring school employees to take several unpaid days off	36	59	4	1

Fall 2009

Overall, would you say that Governor O’Malley has done a good job, an okay job, or a poor

job in balancing the state budget?

(1) Good job 13% (2) Okay job 42% (3) Poor job 38% (4) Unsure 7% (0 No answer 1%

Fall 2011

Several proposals have been discussed to replenish Maryland’s Transportation Trust Fund; when I mention a proposal say whether you support or oppose it.

Proposal	Support %	Oppose%	Unsure/NA %
Increase the toll on the Bay Bridge from $2.50 to $4.00	33	64	4
Create a new tax on ownership of vehicles	10	86	4
Increase the state’s property tax, adding $63 million to the fund	11	86	3
Increase the corporate income tax rate by one percent, adding $100 million to the fund	57	39	4

Spring 2013

The following items are proposals that the county and state are considering or may consider in the future. When I read a proposal to you, indicate whether you support or oppose it.

	Support%	Oppose%	Unsure%	No answer%
Repealing the death penalty and replacing it with life without the possibility of parole	39	52	7	2
Having those seeking to purchase a handgun pay a $100 fee at the time of purchase	45	49	4	2
Having handgun purchasers be fingerprinted at the time of purchase	78	19	3	0
Having handgun purchasers be required to complete a safety course prior to purchase	82	16	2	0
Expansion of wind energy financed by a $1.50 fee on residential BGE customers	43	53	4	0
An annual fee of $85 to help pay for storm water management and Bay clean-up	36	61	2	1
Provide curbside composting pickup	66	27	5	2
A county proposal to have charter schools tap into the same construction funding for building facilities currently used by regular public schools	39	51	9	1
Allow counties to increase the sales tax on gasoline sales to improve roads.	21	77	3	0

Spring 2014

The following items are proposals that the state and county are considering or may consider in the future. When I read a proposal to you, indicate whether you support, oppose or are unsure about it.

	Support %	Oppose %	Unsure %	NA/Won’t say %
	36	50	13	1
Leaving unchanged the county’s storm-water fee meant to help clean up the Bay.	44	41	14	1
An increase in the state minimum wage to $10.10 by 2016	60	30	9	1
A decrease in Maryland’s corporate income tax	43	39	16	2
Reducing the estate tax in Maryland so that it only applies to estates over $5 million	69	17	12	2
Having a later start time for students in high school	55	27	15	3
Increased availability of pre-kindergarten schooling for low income families	82	11	5	2
Changing gun control laws to make the purchase of shotguns as strictly regulated as the purchase of handguns	51	42	7	1
The construction of a new high school in the Crofton area.	64	7	25	4

Fall 2014

Do you support or oppose the following policies that might be considered by state or county government…

	Support%	Oppose%	Unsure/NA%
Removing speed cameras and losing $300,000 in county income	44	47	9
Increasing the salary of the next county executive from $130,000 to $142,000	19	74	7
Doubling the number of high schools over the next 20 years, but making them much smaller than current high schools	54	32	14
Increasing the county’s income tax rate to help create a high school in Crofton	28	62	10
	1	2	3	0
The County's storm water fee, which pays for repairs of storm pipes and waterways to decrease pollution, will generate $17 million next year and $22 million the following year. Do you feel this fee – currently costing $85 a year for a single family home - is too low, too high, or just right?	1.Too low 5%	2.About right 46%	3.Too high 38%	0.NA 11%
Which option to you prefer – cutting property taxes by 3 percent, or adding more county services related to education or public safety	1.Cut taxes 52%	2.Add services 41%	3.Unsure 4%	0.NA 3%