American Public Favors Safe Havens in Syria

These are some of the findings of a poll of 727 Americans, conducted March 3-7, 2012 by the Program on International Policy Attitudes

Americans on Solving the Medicare Shortfall

A policymaking simulation is an online process that puts citizens in the shoes of elected officials by simulating the process they go through in making policy decisions. Each simulation introduces a broader policy topic and then presents a series of modules that address a specific policy option that is currently under consideration in the current discourse. For each module, respondents: 1) receive a short briefing on a policy issue and the option or options for addressing it; 2) evaluate arguments for and against the policy options; and 3) finally, make their recommendation for what their elected officials should do.Given current policy crosscurrents, it is little wonder that even raising the subject of Medicare policy seems to open the door to anxiety among the public and among Medicare recipients. This consultation seeks to provide a framework that lets the public consider multiple possible changes that experts have evaluated and scored, without being locked into an “either/or” choice of keeping everything the same versus changing the nature of Medicare. DEVELOPMENT OF THE POLICYMAKING SIMULATION The present policymaking simulation includes eleven different options estimated to aid Medicare’s fiscal condition over the next 25 years, as the babyboomer generation passes through the program. These options selected were previously scored by the Congressional Budget Office (CBO), except for one scored by the Medicare Payment Advisory Commission or MEDPAC, another independent agency that advises Congress. They considered sixteen reform options which fell under four categories: Reducing Medicare’s Net Payments for Benefits Reducing Payments to Providers Increasing Revenues Controlling Costs in Other Way

The Hall of Mirrors Perceptions and Misperceptions in the Congressional Foreign Policy Process

Explores several factors related to an inconsistency in the voting record by the U.S. Congress on foreign policy issues, compared with the position taken by the public, administration officials, and leaders in business, labor, media, and education

Two-Thirds Favor President to Be Chosen Based on National Popular Vote

Two-thirds of American voters prefer for the US president to be chosen based on the national popular vote, according to a new survey consultation by the Program for Public Consultation at the University of Maryland and released today by the nonpartisan Voice of the People. However, two-thirds of Republicans (65%) would like to keep the current system for electing the president. This Compact has already been adopted in 15 states plus the District of Columbia, which brings the total of electoral votes currently to 196. It has also passed in one legislative chamber in eight states with a total of 75 electoral votes. If all of these eight states were to adopt the Compact, it would go into effect

Large Majorities Favor Congressional Proposals Limiting Negative Consequences of Criminal Records

In the innovative survey by the Program for Public Consultation (PPC) at the University of Maryland, respondents were given relevant background information for each proposal. They then evaluated a series of strongly stated arguments for and against each proposal before making their final recommendation. The briefing material and arguments were reviewed by experts representing the range of opinions on the issue to assure that the briefings were accurate and balanced and that the arguments were the strongest ones being made.Large majorities of American voters support reforms that would limit or remove barriers to economic opportunities, housing, and voting for people with criminal records. A representative sample of 2,487 American voters were given a detailed presentation of numerous proposed Congressional reforms that would restrict employers, licensing boards and public housing authorities from disqualifying people based on their criminal records. All of the proposed reforms received support from large bipartisan majorities. A proposal for automatically restoring the right to vote for people who have served a felony sentence also received majority support, though Republicans were divided. Additionally, bipartisan majorities favored both making it easier for those who were arrested but never convicted to have their record sealed, as well as automatically sealing records for people with non-violent drug offenses after a short period of time

Americans on Police Reform

A policymaking simulation is an online process that puts citizens in the shoes of elected officials by simulating the process they go through in making policy decisions. Each simulation introduces a broader policy topic and then presents a series of modules that address a specific policy option that is currently under consideration in the current discourse. For each module, respondents: 1) receive a short briefing on a policy issue and the option or options for addressing it; 2) evaluate arguments for and against the policy options; and 3) finally, make their recommendation for what their elected officials should do.For decades now, there have been periodic efforts to reform police practices and laws regarding the use of force, especially deadly force, by law enforcement officers. The recent deaths of George Floyd and Breonna Taylor and other incidents of law enforcement officers using deadly force have stimulated protest and demands for policing reforms. The U.S. House of Representatives recently passed the George Floyd Justice in Policing Act (H.R. 7120), sponsored by Rep. Karen Bass (D-CA), The JUSTICE Act (S. 3985), sponsored by Sen. Tim Scott (R-SC), failed to get cloture in the U.S. Senate, meaning the measure could not proceed for debate or a vote. . The provisions in these two bills continue to the basis for ongoing debates over police reform, including: ● when police officers should use deadly force; ● what types of force police officers should be able to use, such as chokeholds; ● the use of no-knock warrants; ● the standards by which officers are held accountable for their use of excessive force; ● whether racial bias among police is a problem to be addressed; and ● how much regulation there should be of military equipment transferred to the police. Both bills address these issues, to different extents. The most significant difference between the House bill and the Senate bill is how mandatory the proposed reforms are. The House bill would require that police departments and local governments implement new policies or be denied access to federal funding for police departments. The Senate bill would offer police departments new funding for training and data collection, and only in a few cases requires that police departments adopt new policies. The House bill also includes provisions to change the standards by which officers are criminally convicted and held civilly liable, which the Senate bill does not. To bring the American people a voice at the table of the current debate on this legislation, the Program for Public Consultation (PPC) has conducted an in-depth on-line survey of over 3,000 registered voters with a probability-based sample provided by Nielsen Scarborough. Unlike standard polls that rely on respondents’ existing impressions and information, PPC took respondents through a process called a ‘policymaking simulation’ that seeks to put respondents in the shoes of a policymaker. Respondents: ● are given a briefing on policy options under consideration ● evaluate strongly stated arguments both for and against each option ● make their final recommendation. The content of the process is thoroughly reviewed by experts across the spectrum of opinion on the policy options to ensure that the briefing is accurate and balanced and that the arguments are the strongest ones being made by proponents and opponents

Consulting the American People on the 2001/2003 Tax Cuts: A Study by the Program for Public Consultation and Knowledge Networks

These are the results of a poll conducted by The Program for Public Consultation on public opinion of 2013 U.S. proposed tax cuts. It is part of a series of in-depth consultations on issues relating to the American economy—including a major study, released in February 2011, on how the public would deal with the budget deficit, and a study on temporary payroll tax cuts for employees and employers (December 2011). Please contact PPC if you would like a detailed sample design

Large and Growing Majority Favors Permanent Paid Medical and Family Leave

A policymaking simulation is an online process that puts citizens in the shoes of elected officials by simulating the process they go through in making policy decisions. Each simulation introduces a broader policy topic and then presents a series of modules that address a specific policy option that is currently under consideration in the current discourse. For each module, respondents: 1) receive a short briefing on a policy issue and the option or options for addressing it; 2) evaluate arguments for and against the policy options; and 3) finally, make their recommendation for what their elected officials should do.While Congress passed legislation requiring temporary paid family and medical leave for those affected by the coronavirus, a new in-depth survey by the Program for Public Consultation at the University of Maryland (PPC) finds that two-thirds of Americans believe such paid leave should be permanent—fueled by a marked shift among Republican voters. In March, Congress passed a law providing two weeks of paid leave for people dealing with COVID or caring for someone who does, and 12 weeks at 2/3 pay for parents caring for children home from closed schools and childcare facilities. The new benefits are set to expire at the end of 2020

How the American Public Would Deal with the Budget Deficit

What would happen if Americans were to actually sit down and be presented a budget and given the opportunity to make choices and tradeoffs in a single framework? To answer this question, the Center on Policy Attitudes presented a representative sample of Americans with 31 of the major areas of the discretionary federal budget, as projected for the year 2015. Participants were given a chance to increase or decrease each item as they saw fit. Seventy-six percent reduced spending overall, with the average respondent making net cuts of $145.7 billion. By far the largest cuts were to defense spending (which constituted the majority of all cuts), followed by intelligence, military operations in Afghanistan and Iraq, and the federal highway system—all of which were cut by at least half of respondents. Some items were increased: especially job training, aid to higher education, and energy conservation and renewables

Americans on WMD Proliferation

The PIPA/Knowledge Network Poll in collaboration with CISS