Survey: Americans do not feel benefits from ARRA
A majority of Americans think the condition of the infrastructure in their area has stayed the same or worsened despite the billions of dollars made available to state and local governments by the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA), according to a new America THINKS survey from Kansas City, Mo.-based HNTB Corp.
More than seven in 10 (71 percent) Americans have not personally seen results from ARRA spending, according to the survey. “I have no doubt the stimulus plan is an invaluable tool that supports much needed investment in infrastructure, jobs and the generation of future economic growth,” HNTB President Paul Yarossi said in a statement. “But it’s clear the vast majority of Americans have yet to feel its impact personally.”
The survey also found that, while 58 percent of Americans say they are willing to pay more today for national infrastructure that is energy-efficient and less wasteful — therefore, saving money and resources in the long run — that support is down from 68 percent in late February and early March, before ARRA was finalized and signed into law. Also, nearly three in four (72 percent) of Americans think that at least one infrastructure component has not been adequately addressed by the stimulus plan, according to the survey.
However, since ARRA’s passage, more Americans now believe the federal government should be most responsible for planning and funding infrastructure (41 percent), versus the states (40 percent), private sector companies (10 percent) or cities (9 percent). Last winter, only one in four (26 percent) Americans thought the federal government should be most responsible.
HNTB’s America THINKS survey polled a random nationwide sample of 1,000 Americans, and quotas were set to ensure reliable and accurate representation of the total U.S. population ages 18 and over. The margin of error is +/- 3.1 percent.
Read the entire America THINKS survey.
