NYT & Idaho's prisons

Steve Cooke (scooke@uidaho.edu)
Fri, 17 Apr 1998 15:11:37 -0700

Dear Visionaries,
In a survey of Idaho voters taken in 1993, voters preferred to increase
public expenditures on the following public services: roads & bridges (72%
in favor), K-12 education (71% in favor).

It was also found that they would prefer to decrease public expenditures
on environmental protection (56% in favor), correction (60% in favor),
social services (76% in favor).

These numbers suggest to me that there is not broad based public support in
Idaho for the current increase in state spending on prisons, but there is
strong support for the decreased state spending on welfare.

Steve Cooke

citation: Stephen Cooke, Neil Meyer, David Patton, Jim Weatherby, and Paul
Zeleus. "An Analysis of a Survey of Idaho Citizen's Preference for State
and Local Public Finance Revenues and Expenditures." A.E. Research Series
No. 94-8, Dept of Ag Econ. & Rural Soc. UI