MPPS Spring 2012 data tables

Back to the Michigan Public Policy Survey Homepage Search all Spring 2012 data tables

Summary tables for questionnaire items from the Spring 2012 Wave of the MPPS Broken down by jurisdiction type, population size, and region of the state:

TABLE OF CONTENTS

Fiscal Health

  1. Good or Bad Times in the coming year?
    1. Better or Less Able to meet jurisdiction's needs this fiscal year than last
    2. Better or Less Able to meet jurisdiction's needs next fiscal year than this

Changes from the Last Fiscal Year to the Current Fiscal Year

    1. Change in jurisdiction's revenue from property taxes
    2. Change in jurisdiction's revenue from fees for services, licenses, transfers, etc.
    3. Change in amount of jurisdiction's amount of debt
    4. Change in jurisdiction's ability to repay its debt
    5. Change in amount of federal aid to jurisdiction
    6. Change in amount of state aid to jurisdiction
    7. Change in jurisdiction's tax delinquencies
    8. Change in jurisdiction's population
    9. Change in jurisdiction's amount of home foreclosures
    10. Change in jurisdiction's public safety needs
    11. Change in jurisdiction's infrastructure needs
    12. Change in jurisdiction's human service needs
    13. Change in jurisdiction's number of employees
    14. Change in jurisdiction's pay rates for employee wages and salaries
    15. Change in jurisdiction's cost of employee pensions
    16. Change in jurisdiction's cost of current employee health benefits
    17. Change in jurisdiction's cost of retired employee health benefits

Expected Changes from the Current Fiscal Year to the Next Fiscal Year

    1. Projected change in property tax rates
    2. Projected change in charges for fees, licenses, etc.
    3. Projected change in reliance on general fund balance
    4. Projected change in reliance on "rainy day" funds
    5. Projected change in amount of services provided
    6. Projected change in actual public safety spending
    7. Projected change in actual infrastructure spending
    8. Projected change in actual human services spending
    9. Projected change in funding for economic development programs
    10. Projected change in amount of debt
    11. Projected change in sale of public assets
    12. Projected change in privatizing or contracting out services
    13. Projected change in number and/or scope of interlocal agreements or other cost-sharing plans with other governments
    14. Projected change in jurisdiction's workforce hiring
    15. Projected change in jurisdiction's workforce layoffs
    16. Projected change in jurisdiction's filling vacant positions
    17. Projected change in jurisdiction's employee pay rates
    18. Projected change in jurisdiction's employees' share of premiums, deductibles and/or co-pays on health insurance
    19. Projected change in jurisdiction's employees' share of contributions to retirement funds
    20. Projected change in jurisdiction's retirees' share of premiums, deductibles and/or co-pays on health insurance

Employee wages and benefits

    1. Jurisdiction provides fringe benefit package(s) to new hires
    2. Jurisdiction provides fringe benefit package(s) to current employees
    3. Jurisdiction provides fringe benefit package(s) to current elected officials
    1. Jurisdiction offers retirement income benefits to new hires
    2. Jurisdiction offers retirement income benefits to current employees
    3. Jurisdiction offers retirement income benefits to retired employees
    4. Jurisdiction offers retirement income benefits to current elected officials
    5. Jurisdiction offers retirement income benefits to former elected officials
    1. Jurisdiction offers defined benefit plan only
    2. Jurisdiction offers defined contribution plan only
    3. Jurisdiction offers defined benefit plan for some employees, defined contribution plan for others
    4. Jurisdiction offers hybrid benefit plan
  1. Likelihood jurisdiction will introduce a defined contribution or hybrid plan in the next 12 months
    1. Jurisdiction offers health care or other retirement benefits to new hires
    2. Jurisdiction offers health care or other retirement benefits to current employees
    3. Jurisdiction offers health care or other retirement benefits to retired employees
    4. Jurisdiction offers health care or other retirement benefits to current elected officials
    5. Jurisdiction offers health care or other retirement benefits to former elected officials

Union Negotiations

Furloughs and Four-day work weeks

  1. Jurisdiction has employees who are members of a labor union
  2. Jurisdiction has negotiated with unions in last 12 months
    1. Outcome of negotiations on union employee pay
    2. Outcome of negotiations on union employee benefits
    3. Outcome of negotiations on union employee staffing levels
    4. Outcome of negotiations on union employee work rules
  3. Satisfaction with outcomes of negotiations with employee union(s)
  4. Likelihood that jurisdiction will seek concessions in next 12 months
  5. Jurisdiction’s union(s) have been an asset or liability to fiscal health in last 12 months
  6. Jurisdiction’s union(s) have been an asset or liability to overall performance in last 12 months
  7. Assessment of relationship between jurisdiction and its union(s)
    1. Jurisdiction utilized employee furloughs this year
    2. Jurisdiction utilized a four-day work week this year
    3. Jurisdiction utilized early retirement incentives or buyouts
    4. Jurisdiction reduced pay rates and/or benefits packages for new hires
    1. Likelihood that jurisdiction will utilize employee furloughs next year
    2. Likelihood that jurisdiction will utilize a four-day work week next year
    3. Likelihood that jurisdiction will utilize early retirement incentives or buyouts next year
    4. Likelihood that jurisdiction will reduce pay rates and/or benefits packages for new hires next year

Elimination of services

    1. Jurisdiction completely eliminated service(s) this year that are now no longer provided at all
    2. Jurisdiction completely eliminated service(s) this year that are now provided by another entity
    3. Jurisdiction did not have to completely eliminated service(s) this year
    1. Jurisdiction plans to completely eliminate service(s) in coming year and no longer provide it at all
    2. Jurisdiction plans to completely eliminate service(s) in coming year that will be provided by another entity
    3. Jurisdiction does not plan to completely eliminate service(s) in coming year

Budgeting processes

  1. Jurisdiction uses multi-year financial projections
  2. Jurisdiction does formal single year or multi-year budgeting
  3. Likelihood that jurisdiction will adopt formal multi-year budgeting next year

General Fund Balances

  1. Jurisdiction’s unreserved general fund balance as a percentage of general fund expenditures last year
  2. Assessment of level of jurisdiction’s unreserved general fund balance
  3. Jurisdiction’s cash flow as a fiscal health problem

Service Provision

    1. Citizen satisfaction with package of services provided
    2. Jurisdiction’s council/board satisfaction with package of services provided
    3. Business leaders’ satisfaction with package of services provided
    4. Respondent’s satisfaction with package of services provided
    1. Citizen preference between higher taxes and cuts to police services
    2. Citizen preference between higher taxes and cuts to fire services
    3. Citizen preference between higher taxes and cuts to parks/recreation/libraries
    4. Citizen preference between higher taxes and cuts to roads
    5. Citizen preference between higher taxes and cuts to public transportation/transit
    6. Citizen preference between higher taxes and cuts to economic development
    7. Citizen preference between higher taxes and cuts to utilities
    8. Citizen preference between higher taxes and cuts to general operations

Local Government Funding

    1. The current system will provide adequate funding to maintain services
    2. The current system will provide adequate funding to improve or add services
  1. Does the current system for funding local government need significant reform
    1. Importance of reforms to constitutional revenue sharing
    2. Importance of reforms to the Economic Vitality Incentive Program (EVIP)
    3. Importance of reforms to the Headlee Amendment
    4. Importance of reforms to Proposal A
    5. Importance of reforms to the Personal Property Tax (PPT)
    6. Importance of reforms to the sales tax
    7. Importance of reforms to the gas tax
    8. Importance of reforms to local income tax
    9. Importance of reforms to regional taxation

Personal Property Tax (PPT)

  1. Jurisdiction receives revenue from the Personal Property Tax (PPT)
    1. Agree or disagree that the PPT is difficult to administer
    2. Agree or disagree that revenue from PPT is not worth the costs to administer
    3. Agree or disagree that taxpayers accurately report taxable value
    4. Agree or disagree that personal property is audited frequently enough
    5. Agree or disagree that the PPT is a barrier to economic development
    6. Agree or disagree that would support PPT elimination contingent on full replacement
    7. Agree or disagree that would support PPT elimination contingent on majority replacement
    8. Agree or disagree that would trust state to follow through with future commitments to replace revenue
    9. Agree or disagree that the PPT is an important source of revenue
    1. Importance of Industrial PPT as revenue
    2. Importance of Commercial PPT as revenue
    3. Importance of Utility PPT as revenue
  2. PPT replacement revenue collection

Emergency Manager (EM) Law

  1. Familiarity with Emergency Managers legislation
  2. Effectiveness of Emergency Managers legislation for protecting jurisdictions’ fiscal health
    1. Support or opposition to allowing an Emergency Manager (EM) to reject, modify, or terminate collective bargaining agreements
    2. Support or opposition to allowing an Emergency Manager (EM) to set aside decision-making powers of local elected officials
    3. Support or opposition to allowing an Emergency Manager (EM) to recommend (with approval of the state) the sale, transfer, or lease of the local jurisdiction's assets
    4. Support or opposition to allowing an Emergency Manager (EM) to recommend (with approval of the state) collaboration or consolidation with other jurisdictions, or disincorporation of the local jurisdiction
    5. Support or opposition to allowing a current local official, such as a mayor or council member, to be appointed as an Emergency Manager (EM)
    6. Support or opposition to the Emergency Manager law (P.A.4 of 2011) overall

K-12 Schooling

Evaluating current events and political issues

    1. Local K-12 preparation for college
    2. Local K-12 preparation for regional job market
    3. Local K-12 preparation for jobs in the global economy
    1. Local students compared to others in the state on elementary school achievement
    2. Local students compared to others in the state on high school achievement
    3. Local students compared to others in the state on college enrollment
    1. Impact on local K-12 academic achievement by charter schools
    2. Impact on local K-12 academic achievement by the Michigan Merit Curriculum
    3. Impact on local K-12 academic achievement by teacher evaluation
    4. Impact on local K-12 academic achievement by virtual learning
    5. Impact on local K-12 academic achievement by No Child Left Behind
    6. Impact on local K-12 academic achievement by another school accountability system
  1. Familiarity with requirements of the Michigan Merit Curriculum
  2. State of Michigan going in right direction or on wrong track
  3. Jurisdiction going in right direction or on wrong track
  4. Governor Snyder’s job performance
  5. Michigan Legislature’s job performance
  6. Jurisdiction’s board or council’s job performance

« Back to Michigan Public Policy Survey Home