Proposition 64
One-third of Orange County's Likely Voters Favor
Passage of Prop 64
"Limits On Private Enforcement of Unfair Business Competition
Laws Measure"
(October 27, 2004)
One-third of Orange County survey respondents
said they would support Proposition 64, the Unfair Business Practices
Act reform measure, according to the quarterly Orange County Business
Council/Cal State Fullerton Center for Public Policy survey that
included 409 respondents.
A total of 31 percent favored the proposition, 24
percent said no, and 44 percent stated they were undecided. Of those
surveyed, 66 percent indicated they had not read or heard about
the proposition.
“Prop. 64 is essential to California’s
economic recovery,” said Julie Puentes, executive vice president,
public affairs for the Orange County Business Council. “Virtually
no company in California is exempt from frivolous litigation under
the Unfair Business Practices Act. Existing law allows these suits
to be filed even when there is no client and no evidence that anyone
has been harmed or damaged. Companies can even be hit with multiple
suits.
“Small businesses, in particular, typically
settle out of court to avoid the higher costs of going to court.
Then they are forced to pass these costs along through higher prices
or by cutting jobs. The bottom line is that companies are choosing
to expand jobs or locate in other states in order to avoid frivolous
litigation – and this hurts employers, employees, consumers
and taxpayers. We’d better get real about the threat of frivolous
lawsuits.”
“The very high proportion of undecided respondents,
and the inevitable blitz of ads on this measure late in the campaign
essentially mean that this proposition is wide open as to the final
result,” said Phil Gianos, professor of political science
at CSUF. “Most voters will both learn about this measure and
make up their minds quite late.”
The Orange County Business Council is on record in
support of Prop. 64. Cal State Fullerton does not take positions
on ballot measures.
The current Orange County survey was conducted for
the CSUF Center for Public Policy/ Orange County Business Council
team by the Social Science Research Center at California State University,
Fullerton (SSRC). The SSRC Director is Gregory Robinson.
Telephone interviews were conducted utilizing Computer
Assisted Telephone Interviewing (CATI) equipment and software. The
CATI system is a sophisticated information-gathering protocol that
contributes to the accuracy of data and to preserving the random
nature of the sample.
A draft survey instrument was provided by the Center
for Public Policy and refined by the Social Science Research Center
for comprehensiveness, flow, length and factors that influence respondent
cooperation and interest. Sample design and technical assistance
with data analysis was provided by the SSRC.
Interviews were conducted Monday through Thursday
4-9 p.m. and on Saturday and Sunday from 2-8 p.m. between Sept.
30 and Oct. 20. Calculated conservatively, survey items to which
409 randomly selected respondents reply are associated with a confidence
interval of plus or minus 4.94 percent.
Contacts: |
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Julie Puentes, OCBC Public Affairs
(949) 794-7217
Phillip Gianos, CSUF Professor of Political
Science
657-278-4713 or (714) 267-4337
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The Orange County Business Council is the leading
business organization in Orange County, California. OCBC is a private-sector
alliance of companies and public-sector partners that represents
hundreds of local enterprises from small shops to giant multi-national
companies. OCBC provides a forum for businesses to join together,
often in conjunction with government and educational institutions,
to invest in the growth and prosperity of the fifth largest county
in America.
Cal State Fullerton’s Center for Public
Policy seeks to enhance public policy dialogues in the Orange County
community by encouraging faculty research on current local issues.
Analysis of Orange County infrastructure is a continuing interest,
with such focuses as coastal water cleanliness, transportation,
schools, sanitation and housing.
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