These poll numbers were released earlier today by Rasmussen Reports -- "an electronic publishing firm specializing in the collection, publication, and distribution of public opinion polling information."
48% of Wisconsin Voters Want Public Employee Pension Increases Approved by Voters
Wedmesday, March 9, 2011
A plurality of Wisconsin voters think voters should have the right to approve or reject new pension plans agreed to by government officials and union members if they'll lead to increased government spending. They are evenly divided as to whether approval should be required for public employee pay raises that push spending higher.
If public employee unions and elected state officials agree to a union contract with increased pension benefits that would lead to higher state government spending, 48% of Likely Wisconsin Voters think that contract should require voter approval before it can be implemented. A new Rasmussen Reports telephone survey finds that 39% disagree, and 14% are not sure. (To see survey question wording, click here .)
When the topic moves away from pension benefits, there is less support for requiring voter approval of union contracts with a pay raise that would increase state government spending. On that type of contract, 40% believe voter approval should be required, while 41% disagree and 19% are undecided.
This difference may be partially explained by national polling showing that 71% of voters believe government employees receive better pension benefits than private sector workers . But only 36% think the average public employee in their state earns more than
The survey of 500 Likely Voters in Wisconsin was conducted on March 7, 2011 by Rasmussen Reports. The margin of sampling error is +/- 4.5 percentage points with a 95% level of confidence. Field work for all Rasmussen Reports surveys is conducted by Pulse Opinion Research, LLC . See methodology .
Data released yesterday shows that Wisconsin voters remain generally opposed to weakening collective bargaining rights. However, most voters in the state support specific changes in collective bargaining arrangements such as preventing local unions from requiring a school district to buy health insurance from a union-created insurance company.
This dynamic is similar to polling on government spending topics. Voters overwhelmingly oppose general cuts in popular areas such as infrastructure projects. At the same time, they support more specific cuts such as eliminating Amtrak subsidies and oppose new spending plans for a high speed rail system . In those polls on government spending, the difference is explained by looking at those who oppose spending cuts in general and finding that many are willing to embrace specific cuts.
In the Wisconsin case, the difference is explained by looking at those who are generally opposed to weakening collective bargaining rights. A third of those voters (32%) support the idea of requiring voter approval for union contracts with pension benefit increases.
It's also worth noting that 36% of households with a public employee union member support the idea of requiring voter approval for such contracts. Half (52%) of that group are opposed to the requirement for voter approval.
On an income basis, support for requiring voter approval for pension benefit increases is higher among middle and lower income Wisconsin voters. Opposition to the voter approval requirement is higher among those who make more than $75,000 a year.
Additional information from the most recent survey of Wisconsin Likely Voters will be released in the coming days.
The overall sample for the survey included nine percent (9%) with a private sector union member in their household and 21% with a public sector union member.
Additionally, the sample includes 51% who voted for Republican Scott Walker last November and 43% who voted for his Democratic challenger Tom Barrett. Walker won the election by a 52% to 46% margin and is now pushing for the elimination of most public employee union collective bargaining rights as a budget-cutting measure. This move has prompted a union uproar in the state.