Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Public Opinion Survey topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
ETC Institute survey: Johnson County residents rate county services highly but express growing concern over taxes
Summary
An annual ETC Institute survey presented to the board shows Johnson County scores well above national averages for being a place to live and for many county services, while ratings dipped on value for taxes and related resource‑management perceptions.
Johnson County’s annual resident survey, presented Tuesday by Chris Tatham of ETC Institute, found the county remains highly rated as a place to live, raise children and work — scores that exceed national averages — even as some perceptions slipped on taxes and resource management.
Tatham, whose firm has surveyed Johnson County regularly since the 1980s, told commissioners the county’s overall ratings remain “among the highest in the nation” and that parks, libraries, emergency medical services and public works received particularly strong satisfaction marks. He emphasized the survey’s methodology: roughly 1,000 addresses per commission district were sampled with follow‑up via mail, text and email to yield 1,212 completed surveys and a margin of error of about ±3 percentage points.
But the survey also noted declines in some areas. Ratings for “value for taxes,” awareness of county programs and services, ease of travel and perceptions of property appraisal fairness all fell compared with past years. Tatham said such declines parallel national trends and may reflect broader political and economic concerns that affect residents’ perceptions even where county services remain strong.
On priorities, residents again rated health and human services and public safety as the county’s most critical roles. When asked where additional resources should go if available, respondents prioritized mental‑health services, aging services and homelessness programs.
Commissioners asked about the representativeness of written comments and benchmarking. Tatham said roughly half of respondents provide open‑ended comments and that those tend to be more negative or passionate; he also noted that national benchmark updates will be available in a few weeks and the county dashboard will be updated to allow district‑level comparisons.
Nut graf: The survey gives Johnson County leaders a mixed picture — strong performance scores across many services that nonetheless coexist with resident concerns about taxes, program awareness and some justice‑system perceptions — information commissioners said they would use while discussing budget priorities and strategic focus areas.
Ending: ETC Institute will post detailed benchmarks and update the county dashboard in the coming weeks; commissioners requested further comparisons to large counties and additional analysis for district‑level patterns.
