Voter support for environmental bond referenda

Abstract

Open space and recreation land protection can provide a variety of community benefits. Limited government resources, however, may preclude land acquisition and enhancement activities. State governments have thus turned to “bond referenda” as a mechanism to increase financial resource capacity to provide public goods. The purpose of this study is to explore two groups of factors (resident characteristics and land use types) related to voter support for an environmental bond in the state of Rhode Island, USA. A spatial regression model is used to explore these relationships. The results show that voting districts with high-density residential land use and a non-white population are more supportive of the environmental bond referendum, as are voting districts with more open space that is publicly accessible and that have recreational amenities. Voting districts with a high percentage of natural habitat land are less supportive of the bond referendum. The findings suggest government agencies should pay more attention to the equitable distribution of public goods and to providing more open space land that is public accessible.