Many think the John Wayne Airport alone can handle the county's air travel needs, and few want that airport closed in favor of a new airport at El Toro. More important, however, may be the fact that only one in four approves of the way county government has handled the issue. The local public schools cannot expect extra tax dollars from county residents, who remain reluctant to raise taxes to support the schools. Fewer than half say they would back a tax increase for their local schools, at a time when such increases need a two-thirds majority to pass. Moreover, most residents are unwilling to end the super-majority vote requirement to pass school bonds or tax increases.
Support falls short in all groups, including parents with public school children.
Thus, local schools will need to rely on funding from the state. Public concerns about traffic and growth are on the rise again. Traffic has jumped to the number-two spot on the list of the county's top problems, and has risen 10 points in just two years. Traffic and growth, which are highly intertwined as issues, now outnumber mentions of crime as the top worry among Orange County residents. For the first time in years, the number of people who want new freeways has risen.