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.

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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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