More than twice as many voters (47% to 20%) agree with the statement, “Utah should reduce taxes and reduce spending.”
That question was part of the statewide Utah Priorities Project, conducted in this gubernatorial election year by the non-partisan Utah Foundation. State taxes and government spending came in 4th on the top ten list of voter concerns.
Taxes and spending have consistently been among the major concerns of Utah votes since the Utah Priorities Project was first conducted in 2004. Taxes and spending ranked 5th 6th in the 2012 survey. Spending was 2nd and taxes 6th in 2010.
The research brief released today shows voters’ views of where state revenue should be spent differ from actual practice. Voters say as much as 22% of state tax money should go to law enforcement. The current state budget has about 7% of spending in that area. Voters say only 5% of spending should support transportation, while the actual figure is about 13%. Their top priorities, though, match actual spending more closely. Education, voters say, should get 47% of the state’s money, where the current budget allocate about 52%. Healthcare gets 28% of state revenue, while voters say the number should be about 25%.
