Education is top funding concern for 5 states’ residents

5 states with largest $ gaps

Jon Boyd, Oct 17, 10.

Residents of five states surveyed by the Pew Center ranked higher education, medicaid, and K-12 education as funding priorities over transportation, according to an article in the AASHTO Journal. The same study revealed a disconnect between the perceptions of state transportation budgets and the actual budgets, says the AASHTO Journal:

More than half of the respondents in a Pew Center on the States survey released last week said they would support raising taxes to pay for education as well as health and human services, but only about 25% indicated they would be willing to pay higher taxes to support their states’ transportation departments.

The survey, “Facing Facts: Public Attitudes and Fiscal Realities in Five Stressed States,” polled residents of California, Florida, Arizona, Illinois, and New York about their public attitudes about the fiscal crisis facing states and what residents think their elected officials should do about it. These states were chosen because collectively they represent 45% of states’ total projected budget gaps for Fiscal Year 2011.

Results of the survey show large discrepancies between public perceptions of the size of state transportation budgets and the actual facts. While transportation only makes up 8% of the total budget in Illinois, nearly 25% of those surveyed in the Land of Lincoln wrongly named transportation as the state’s biggest expense. In reality, K-12 education on average makes up nearly 25% of the states’ budgets, while Medicaid accounts for nearly 20%. Transportation spending comprises less than 10% of most states’ budgets.

“When given a choice between asphalt or teachers’ jobs, it is not surprising that the public would choose to defer investments in transportation in favor of perceived more immediate needs in education,” said John Horsley, executive director of the American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials. “Our hope is that through education and awareness campaigns, we can help the public to see the importance of transportation and the need to invest more, especially right now. These projects create jobs and have long-term benefits that help the economy grow.”

Pew study
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