LA Survey Archive | LSU Reilly Center for Media & Public Affairs

LA Survey Archive


Gain a sense of public opinion on trending issues in Louisiana through the reports of past years' LA Surveys, sponsored by the Reilly Center and produced by the Public Policy Research Lab at LSU. For more information on past and present projects conducted by the Public Policy Research Lab, check out their project page.

2017 Louisiana Survey

The 2017 Louisiana Survey is the sixteenth in an annual series sponsored by the Reilly Center for Media & Public Affairs at Louisiana State University’s Manship School of Mass Communication. In addition to the core barometers of public opinion included annually in the LA Survey, the 2017 LA Survey included measures of support for:

  • current fiscal reform proposals as well as potential changes to the state’s gasoline tax
  • support for changing the Taylor Opportunity Program for Students (TOPS)
  • public opinion on criminal justice reform proposals
  • beliefs about gender discrimination and equal pay
  • attitudes toward Medicaid expansion and the federal Affordable Care Act
  • opinions on a variety of social issues such as “religious-freedom” laws and rights of transgender individuals.

2016 Louisiana Survey

The 2016 Louisiana Survey is the fifteenth in an annual series sponsored by the Reilly Center for Media and Public Affairs at Louisiana State University’s Manship School of Mass Communication. Special topics in the 2016 LA Survey include:

  • measures of partisan polarization
  • public opinion of testing, the Common Core State Standards, and school reforms implemented during the Jindal Administration
  • support for changing the Taylor Opportunity Program for Students (TOPS)
  • beliefs about the causes and solutions for poverty
  • public opinion on raising the minimum wage in Louisiana
  • perceptions of race relations in Louisiana
  • attitudes toward public memorials to the Confederacy
  • opinions on a variety of social issues such as same sex marriage, religious freedom laws, abortion, and gun rights

2015 Louisiana Survey

The 2015 Louisiana Survey is the fourteenth in an annual series conducted by Louisiana State University’s Public Policy Research Lab (PPRL). Special topics covered by the 2015 LA Survey include:

  •  measures of public attitudes about current issues such as tax incentives for attracting businesses
  • the Common Core State Standards
  • cost control measures for the Taylor Opportunity Program for Students (TOPS)
  • Medicaid expansion under the federal Affordable Care Act
  • race relations and law enforcement
  • same-sex marriage
  • legalization and decriminalization of marijuana. 

2014 Louisiana Survey

The 2014 Louisiana Survey gathered feedback from LA residents on such topics as:

  • education and the Common Core
  • higher education
  • health care
  • social issues including race relations, crime and sentencing reform, same-sex marriage and civil unions
  • marijuana legalization and firearms restrictions
  • climate change

2013 Louisiana Survey

In addition to the regular measures used annually to track changes in public opinion through time, the 2013 Louisiana survey focused on special topics such as:

  • response to reforms in higher education
  • proposed TOPS reforms
  • healthcare reforms occurring on the national level
  • social issues including same-sex marriage, legalization of marijuana, and the legality of automatic weapons possession
  • climate change

2012 Louisiana Survey

The 2012 Louisiana Survey identified education, the economy, and crime rates as Louisiana residents' primary concerns in 2014. In addition to these issues, the survey measured public opinion on topics such as:

  • reforms for primary and secondary education
  • attracting new business and jobs to Louisiana
  • reforming Louisiana's public health care system
  • improving Louisiana roads, bridges, and other infrastructure
  • reducing high school drop out rates
  • reducing state government spending
  • not allowing any tax increases 
  • addressing challenges facing the state's public retirement plan
  • consolidating state colleges and universities

2011 Louisiana Survey

The 2011 Louisiana Survey revealed a decrease in the number of residents who reported confidence that the future of the state was heading in the right direction. Other topics measured in the 2011 Survey included:

  • perceptions that budget cuts were harming the state, and resident opinions as to what should and should not be cut
  • opinions on the possibility tax cuts and raises
  • higher education, especially on consolidating colleges and universities in response to spending cuts
  • TOPS reform
  • healthcare
  • public confidence in local seafood quality
  • perceptions of ethics and corruption in state government
  • the evolving Louisiana media landscape

2010 Louisiana Survey

The 2010 Louisiana Survey found an increase in the number of residents who reported concern that the state was headed in the wrong direction. Education, the economy, and healthcare were rated as the most pressing state issues. Other topics assessed by the survey included:

  • perceptions on job prospects and personal financial outlook in various regions around the state
  • the politics and potential solutions of the budget shortfall
  • tax raises and tax cuts, especially opinions on tax increases for certain products such as alcohol and tobacco
  • improvements to higher education, including cost and value assessments
  • concern that budget cuts may harm the quality of higher education in the state
  • ethics reform and perceptions of corruption
  • primary education
  • the evolving structure of the media in Louisiana

2009 Louisiana Survey

The 2009 Louisiana Survey demonstrated a continued decline in resident confidence in the economic prospects of the state. In addition to measuring concerns and opinions about the budget shortfall and tax situation in the state, the 2009 Survey focused on:

  • attitudes towards higher education, especially in light of state budget cuts
  • attitudes towards the benefits and availability of quality Pre-K education
  • opinions on creationism as a subject to be taught in public schools
  • perceptions of the outlook for personal finances
  • perceptions of state and national business conditions
  • effectiveness of LA government in attracting and encouraging businesses
  • healthcare
  • tax increases and tax cuts

2008 Louisiana Survey

The 2008 Louisiana Survey marked a definite shift, first measured in the 2007 Survey, from the intense focus on rebuilding that had characterized the state since hurricane Katrina; it also heralded some heightened optimism following the election of Governor Bobby Jindal. In addition to this optimism, the 2008 LA Survey found:

  • great expectations for the future of the state under its new leadership following the election of Governor Jindal
  • the strength of Louisiana business conditions amidst fears of recession
  • broad support for availability of quality Pre-K education
  • tax credits for parents with kids enrolled in private or religious schools
  • perceptions of corruption decline
  • concern about rising taxes
  • attitudes towards immigration
  • lack of awareness among residents of changes in the presidential primary system

2007 Louisiana Survey

The 2007 Louisiana Survey was the first to note the beginnings of a shift from the intense rebuilding focus that had characterized the state since hurricanes Katrina and Rita ravaged the southern regions of the state. Instead, focus shifted to ongoing issues both affected by the hurricanes and independent from them in the state in general, such as:

  • majority of Louisianans expressed the opinion that the state was heading in the wrong direction
  • relocation, voting, and issues for displaced Louisianans
  • ethics reform
  • attitudes towards insurance companies and insurance reform
  • uses for the Louisiana budget surplus

2006 Louisiana Survey (Fall)

The fall 2006 Louisiana Survey noted the beginning of a return to a "new normal" in public opinion following the devastation of hurricanes Katrina and Rita. The number of residents who reported optimism that the state was heading in the right direction increased from 2005, but still did not equal pre-hurricane levels. In addition, the 2006 LA Survey explored:

  • the re-emergence of dominance for pre-Katrina concerns such as education, healthcare, and crime in the state
  • an increase in number of residents noting climate change as their number one concern for the future of the state
  • disconcerting trends on perceptions of crime, corruption, and quality of life in the state
  • grades for Baton Rouge as compared with the rest of the state on major issues such as education and the economy

2006 Louisiana Survey (Spring)

The first survey conducted in the aftermath of hurricanes Katrina and Rita, the spring 2006 Louisiana Survey revealed that the catastrophic effects of the hurricanes in the summer of 2005 wiped out the incremental gains that the Survey had detected in resident optimism for the future of the state. Other aspects measured by the spring 2006 Survey included:

  • a perception that all Louisiana residents, regardless of socioeconomic status, were "in the same boat" following the hurricanes
  • the emergence of rebuilding as the most prominent problem facing the state, and the subsequent decline of confidence in the future of the state
  • falling grades of Louisiana overall as a place to live
  • spending priorities in the state 
  • budgetary splits
  • recognizing responsibilities for rebuilding
  • allocation of funds for rebuilding
  • perception of a longer duration for the recovery process
  • the role of the public in the rebuilding process
  • perceptions of Louisiana's image in the national media following the events surrounding the 2005 hurricanes
  • privacy vs. open access to electronic healthcare data
  • state mental health

2005 Louisiana Survey

Prior to the hurricanes in the second half of 2005, the 2005 Louisiana Survey revealed a slight uptick in residents who expressed the opinion that the state was heading in the right direction. In addition to this finding, the Survey also examined:

  • a rise in economic confidence among residents
  • grades for various areas of state government services
  • property taxes, homestead exemption, and the Stelly Plan
  • perceptions of waste in state government
  • economic development and Louisiana's image
  • healthcare and economic development incentives
  • perceptions of corruption

2004 Louisiana Survey

The second iteration of the Louisiana Survey, the 2004 Louisiana Survey found:

  • cautious optimism among residents concerning the future of the state
  • concern about the economy and jobs growth
  • healthcare quality and access
  • spending priorities and the arts paradox
  • perceptions of waste
  • dealing with the deficit by taxing gambling
  • property taxes and homestead exemption

2003 Louisiana Survey

The 2003 Louisiana Survey was the first in the series designed to establish benchmarks and assess progress and regressions in citizen assessments of state government services. In its inaugural report, the Louisiana Survey explored: 

  • perceptions on the most important problem facing the state
  • evaluations of state performance, including comparisons between LA and other southeast state
  • evaluations of personal, state, and national economic conditions
  • taxes and spending 
  • Issues facing the state, such as open primaries and coastal preservation and restoration
  • media use and attention to politics
  • Louisiana public schools and education reform
  • economic development and healthcare