One of the
highlights of Town Meeting Day in Vermont is the opportunity Vermonters have of
registering their opinions on a variety of issues in the Doyle Poll. This survey has been conducted for many
decades by Senator Bill Doyle, and I want to thank the 179 Charlotters who filled
out the survey this year. Here for your consideration is a tally of the responses.
|
Q#
|
Question
|
%Yes
|
%No
|
%Not Sure
|
|
1
|
Should
drivers be prohibited from using cell phones while driving?
|
65%
|
27%
|
8%
|
|
2
|
Should
Vermont legalize marijuana?
|
48%
|
42%
|
10%
|
|
3
|
Should wind
turbines be constructed on Vermont ridge lines?
|
45%
|
32%
|
23%
|
|
4
|
Should
Vermont increase its minimum wage?
|
67%
|
23%
|
10%
|
|
5
|
Are you
concerned about the increasing use of opiates in Vermont?
|
92%
|
3%
|
5%
|
|
6
|
Should we
reduce the Vermont prison population via alternatives for nonviolent
offenders?
|
79%
|
9%
|
12%
|
|
7
|
Should food
products sold in Vermont produced with genetic engineering be labeled?
|
76%
|
12%
|
12%
|
|
8
|
Do you
believe that Vermont is an affordable place to live?
|
28%
|
56%
|
16%
|
|
9
|
Are
statewide cell service and broadband important to the future of Vermont’s
economy?
|
91%
|
2%
|
7%
|
|
10
|
Should
natural gas be an important part of Vermont’s economy?
|
50%
|
29%
|
21%
|
|
11
|
Should
Vermont create a state bank?
|
24%
|
38%
|
38%
|
|
12
|
Do you
believe Vermont health care is moving in the right direction?
|
50%
|
32%
|
18%
|
|
13
|
Do you
believe that increasing costs of education are unsustainable?
|
70%
|
20%
|
10%
|
|
14
|
Do you
believe that our national government collects too much information on the
lives of American citizens?
|
70%
|
15%
|
15%
|
Several
questions relate to the quality of life in Vermont and reveal concerns that the
legislature will need to deal with. The
greatest concern was directed at the increasing use of opiates in Vermont. This topic was the focus of Governor Shumlin's
State of the State address in January and is receiving a lot of attention in
both the House and Senate. Respondents seem to agree by a wide margin that
there is a better way to handle non-violent offenders than keeping them in
prison, and the legislature is currently looking into ways to increase the use
of diversion programs to get offenders back on the right track rather than
simply incarcerating them. Legalization of marijuana is favored by a slim
margin, and comments indicate that feelings are strong on both sides of this
issue.
With school
budgets and property taxes being the hot topic on town Meeting day, it is not
surprising that strong opinions related to these issues were reflected in the
poll. A heavy majority of respondents
felt that rising education costs are unsustainable. Comments added to the poll reflected a desire
for the legislature to come up with a new method of financing education that
puts less of a burden on property taxes.
A majority of respondents also felt that Vermont is not an affordable
place to live, an attitude that is likely related to high property taxes. On the other hand, a majority also believe
that Vermont is on the right track with respect to health care policy.
While
hand-held cell phone use while driving is frowned upon, statewide cell service
and broadband is overwhelmingly seen as an important factor in Vermont's
economy. This is not the case for
creating a state bank, which has been promoted in some circles recently. South Dakota is the only state with a state
bank and is looked upon as a model by the promoters of the idea in Vermont.
The idea of
labelling genetically engineered foods is still a controversial subject in the
legislature, not because of its popularity as reflected by these poll results
as well as by the overwhelming support it received during a Senate hearing in
February, but because of the concern that Vermont could be subject to an
expensive lawsuit by Monsanto if the bill passes. Nevertheless, passage of the bill in some
form seems likely before the end of the session.
Finally, more than 2/3 of respondents think that the federal government collects too much information on us.
