More than One-third of Registered Voters Are Unwilling to Spend $1 Per Month on Climate Change Policies
Photo Credit: Getty
The Competitive Enterprise Institute (CEI) released a new poll today, measuring public sentiment on energy issues and climate change. The poll, conducted by CRC Research, is an online survey of 1,200 registered voters nationwide April 15-18, 2021 with a 2.83 percent overall margin of error.
Overall, the poll finds Americans are almost evenly split on the direction of the country, with 50 percent of respondents saying the United States is headed in the right direction and 48 percent of respondents saying things have seriously gotten off on the wrong track. Two percent of respondents were unsure or refused to respond.
While a strong majority of respondents (67 percent) are either somewhat concerned or very concerned about climate change, when asked whether climate change was a factor in their 2020 election vote or not 53 percent of respondents said no, climate change was not a factor. Only six percent of respondents said it was the top issue they considered when voting in 2020.
When asked about willingness to spend out-of-pocket to mitigate climate change, 35 percent of respondents said they would not spend a dollar. Fifteen percent said they would spend up to $10 of their own money on climate change policies. The poll also found 53 percent of respondents would be somewhat or very unlikely to spend extra money to replace a gas-powered car with an electric vehicle.
“When Americans unexpectedly pay more for gas and utilities because of events like electric grid failures and attacks on our pipelines and with the summer driving season ready to start next week, it is little wonder few voters clamor for costly new regulations. There is a lesson here if politicians are willing to listen,” said CEI President and CEO Kent Lassman. “Americans recognize that the moment demands policies that lower regulatory barriers to foster economic resilience and to allow the space for an enduring recovery.”
“This poll shows once again that Americans are unwilling to pay for the left’s anti-energy policies,” said Director of CEI’s Center for Energy and Environment Myron Ebell. “The more people learn about the Biden-Harris Blackout Agenda, the less support there will be for spending trillions of taxpayer dollars for no measurable benefits.”