UC Irvine Survey Finds Public Confidence High

Orange County’s quality of life is rated high, confidence in the economy is up and even faith in county government is on the rebound for the first time since the county’s bankruptcy four years ago, according to UC Irvine’s annual snapshot of the county’s mood.

So what has even survey directors puzzled is why crime shows up as the most important problem in a county where the crime rate has been dropping steadily for the past few years.

Crime worries topped the list for 30% of those interviewed. Last year, 24% said crime was the most important problem.

“People just don’t believe crime is going down,” said UC Irvine professor Mark Baldassare, who conducted the 17th Orange County Annual Survey. “We are not convinced we’re living in an era of greater security.”

By nearly every other measure, he said, this is a time of halcyon days in the county.

“This truly is a unique period,” Baldassare said. “I’ve never seen a time in which there are such consistently positive attitudes across the board.”

The survey was conducted over the first two weeks of September through random telephone interviews with 2,002 Orange County adults, twice the number ever polled before. It found that:

* Nine out of 10 residents say things are going well in Orange County.

* More than three-quarters of poll respondents say the county’s economy is good or excellent.

* Half of county residents report they are better off financially than they were a year ago. Only 15% say they are worse off than a year ago.