Civitas Poll: Voters soundly opposed to paying more for so-called Green Energy

May 7, 2013
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
CONTACT: Francis De Luca (919) 834-2099
Francis.DeLuca@NCCivitas.org

RALEIGH — North Carolinians oppose the state law requiring utility companies to purchase a percentage of their energy from so-called renewable energy sources by more than 3-to-1, according to a new Civitas Institute poll. Additionally, ratepayers strongly oppose the use of such energy sources as wind or solar if it means paying higher utility bills.

“North Carolinians may feel that using renewable energy sounds appealing — but they don’t want to be forced to pay higher prices for it,” said Civitas President Francis X. De Luca.

“Two-thirds of respondents oppose North Carolina’s current mandate requiring the purchase of more expensive renewable energy, while more than 60 percent don’t want to pay higher electricity bills to support the use of solar or wind power,” De Luca said.

“Asked if they would voluntarily pay more for electricity from renewable sources, 53 percent said ‘No!'” he added. “It is revealing that a majority would not even give lip service to paying more for so-called Green Energy.”

Legislation to freeze the state’s renewable energy mandate stalled in a House Committee, but a similar bill is currently moving through the Senate. The latest Civitas poll results suggest freezing or repealing the mandate would be a popular measure among North Carolina voters.

Results* from the Civitas Statewide Energy Survey are included below.

For crosstabs from these questions, click here.

Do you support or oppose the increased usage of renewable sources to generate electricity?

70%    Total Support
15%    Total Oppose

42%     Strongly Support
28%     Somewhat Support
6%       Somewhat Oppose
9%       Strongly Oppose
15%     Undecided/Don’t Know
1%       Refused

Do you support or oppose the existing state law that requires you to purchase a certain amount of renewable energy each month, even if it costs you more?

21%    Total Support
67%    Total Oppose

10%     Strongly Support
11%     Somewhat Support
18%     Somewhat Oppose
49%     Strongly Oppose
12%     Undecided/Don’t Know

How much more are you willing to spend on your monthly electricity bill in order to pay for more electricity derived from renewable sources?

21%     Up to $10
15%     Between $10-$24
5%       Between $25-$99
1%       $100 or more
53%     Not willing to pay more
4%       Don’t Know
1%       Refused

In your opinion, who should be responsible for paying for the higher costs associated with renewable energy?

4%       Taxpayers
12%     Power Company Customers
58%     Power Company Shareholders
11%     All of the above
2%       Other
7%       Nobody
6%       Don’t Know
1%       Refused

Would you be more or less likely to support candidates for the General Assembly who voted to repeal this existing state law, or would it make no difference?

21%    Total More Likely
16%    Total Less Likely

12%     Much More Likely
9%       Somewhat More Likely
6%       Somewhat Less Likely
10%     Much Less Likely
52%     No Difference
11%     Undecided/Refused

(SAMPLE A ONLY)
Should North Carolina Power customers pay higher electricity rates to support companies that produce electricity using solar power?

29%     Yes
64%     No
6%       Don’t Know
1%       Refused

(SAMPLE B ONLY)
Should North Carolina Power customers pay higher electricity rates to support companies that produce electricity using wind power?

33%     Yes
62%     No
5%       Don’t Know

(ASK ALL)
Would you voluntarily pay more to buy electricity for your home or business that was generated by sources such as solar and wind?

40%     Yes
53%     No
5%       Don’t Know
1%       Refused

We have been asking questions regarding renewable energy. Can you name the renewable energy source you consider the most efficient and cost effective to generate electricity for consumer use? (OPEN ENDED) (Prompt: And why would you say that?)

36%     Solar
24%     Wind/ Air
15%     Cost Effective/ Cheaper
13%     Abundance/ Availability/ Unlimited
8%       Efficient/ Works well
8%       Water/ Hydro Electric/ Hydro Power/ Tidal
6%       Reliable/ Dependable/ Consistent
6%       Environmentally Friendly/ Clean Source
5%       Natural Gas/ Fuel Energy/ Gas
3%       Easy/ Easy to create (Non-specific)
3%       Nuclear
2%       Best Source/ Better than other options (General)
2%       Renewable/ Reusable
1%       Geothermal
1%       Safe (Non-specific)
1%       Other
17%     None/ No opinion/ None are efficient or cost effective/ Don’t know enough to answer
10%     Don’t know
1%       Refused

*Because of rounding, subtotals may not equal 100 percent.

About the Poll:

This poll of 500 registered voters in North Carolina was conducted May 2, 4 and 5, 2013 by National Research, Inc. of Holmdel, NJ. All respondents were part of a fully representative sample of registered general election voters in North Carolina. For purposes of this study, voters interviewed had to have voted in at least one of the past two general elections (2010, 2012) or be newly registered to vote since November 3, 2012.

The confidence interval associated with a sample of this size is such that: 95 percent of the time, results from 600 interviews (registered voters) will be within +-4.36% of the “True Values.”

For more information on Civitas polling, see http://www.nccivitas.org/category/poll/.

More information on the Civitas Institute is available at www.nccivitas.org, or contact Jim Tynen at james.tynen@nccivitas.org or (919) 834-2099.