DOCUMENT RESUME ED 362 429 SO 023 031 AUTHOR Weeks, Edward C.; And Others TITLE Citizen Participation in Policy Formation: A Review of Governor Roberts' Conversation with Oregon. INSTITUTION Oregon Univ., Eugene. Center for Advanced Technology in Education. REPORT NO ISBN-8-87114-179-5 PUB DATE 92 NOTE 92p.; Funding also received from the Northwest Area Foundation. AVAILABLE FROM Center for Advanced Technology in Education, College of Education, Eugene, OR 97403-1215. PUB TYPE Reports Research/Technical,(143) EDRS PRICE MF01/PC04 Plus Postage. DESCRIPTORS *Citizen Participation; Elementary Secondary Education; Government Role; Higher Education; Interaction; Mass Instruction; Participative Decision Making; *Policy Formation; *Public Opinion; School Taxes; Social Science Research; *State Government; Surveys; *Telecommunications IDENTIFIERS Ed Net; *Oregon; Roberts (Barbara) ABSTRACT This document presents the results of a survey of Oregon voters, polling those who did and those who did not participate in a series of meetings using the state's interactive telecommunications network, Ed-Net. The meetiAgs were part of a project in deliberative democracy called a Conversation with Oregon, launched by Governor Barbara Roberts to address a fiscal crisis in state government. Governor Roberts conducted 32 Ed-Net telecast sessions, reaching 10,000 randomly selected persistent voters in 900 local meetings throughout the state during November and early December. In the Conversation and Ed-Net meetings the Govenor discussed with voters appropriate levels of government services and how to pay for those services. The conversation and especially the Ed-Net meetings were an unprecedented effort to use modern, interactive communications technology to involve large numbers of citizens in the deliberative process of public policy meetings. This report describes the Conversation with Oregon, and documents the extent to which the Ed-Net Meetings succeeded in opening up constructive communication. The voter survey and analysis showed (1) the conversation succeeded in calling together a broad cross section of the state's most persistent voters; (2) the planning and operation of the Ed-Net meetings successfully involved many individuals and organizations in new roles; (3) the meetings significantly increased participants' grasp of basic facts about state finances; (4) persistent voters exhibited a skeptical attitude toward government and politicians that is not changed easily; and (5) though the fiscal crisis remains unresolved, the Conversation succeeded in opening a channel of communication between the governor and voters. (DK) VIr AAA AWN, RUEN OF GOVERNOR BER ItAL'Ak- U S D(PARTMENT Of EDUCATION Offoce or EdurAttonel Rale/00 and improvement EDUCATIONAL RESOURCES INFORMATION CENTER IERIC) 1his OOCurnant haS been reproduced as reoe,ved from the Person or ovpsnaahon ongmating .1 0 Minor changes have been made to rmptove reproducl,on clushty Pcants Olvieve or oon.ons stated ,n thos doCt.r meat CIO not neCeSsanly represent othcrat OE RI pOsition Or poficy PERMISSION TO REPRODUCE THIS M TERIAL HAS BEEN GRANTED BY e * TO THE EDUCATIONAL RESOURCES ; INFORMATION CENTER (ERIC)." ,4''y p rs,, h..... *.: '0.: ,, ,.,..1%.-,,, , I',*), .,";i\ 1 kf ,1 4s . ei V: .,........t:f...Sr ,cpe,- ,,*. . 4 T 111.4. ,... /1,1,1,, , ,. i ePt 4 , ,t..... c.41' -A, f %As. )*S'Ir' , ..1'4 \': e,4 't ,ik! ....q. ,:, ..... ''. ':":- Edward C. Weeks t.-.....",:,!,ig 401 :,i ...-7, .-!..!ciest. , .A V* :. A, , , rxto..,. ki.,.2; r ! 7 .,... -{:' Margaret Hallock 4 .-t ...., C 1 ,..1,60 4, r;t14-!;:i.. l'..' .s-4 lc... James B. Lemert ',pi, ... , ,, i., 1 Bruce McKinlay k vs sl UNIVERSITY 4,1ST COPY AVAILABLE OF OREGON Eugene, Oregon Citizen Participation in Policy Formation: A REVIEW OF GOVERNOR ROBERTS' CONVERSATION WITH OREGON Edward C. Weeks Margaret Ha flock James B. Lemert Bruce McKinlay UNIVERSITY OF OREGON Eugene, Oregon 1992 3 CI:IZEN PARTICIPATION IN POLICY FORMATION THE RESEARCH TEAM Bruce McKinlay, associate professor and director, This study was conducted by University of Oregon Center for Advanced Technology in Education. faculty experienced in research, administration, Developer of computer-based career information and policy making. Members worked as an informal, systems and research on information systems in interdisciplinary research team. education and social services. M. D. Gall, professor, College of Education. Edward C. Weeks, associate professor, Department Specialist in instructional methods, research of Planning, Public Policy and Management, design, and program evaluation. and director, graduate program in public affairs. Margaret Hal lock, professor and director, Labor Research director for Eugene City Council's Education and Research Center. Chancellor's Eugene Decisions citizen surveys and research liaison to the Conversation with Oregon for the policy. on social consequences of public State System of Higher Education. David Edwards, Jean Nelson, Akilino Susaia, Carl Hosticka, associate professor, Department of research assistants, Department of Planning, Planning, Public Policy and Management. Public Folicy and Management. Associate vice-president for statewide educa- Funding for data collection and report publication tional services. Member of the Oregon State for was provided by Office of the Vice-President Legislature. Research at the Universitf of Oregon and by the James B. Lemert, professor and director of graduate Northwest Area Foundation. Data were collected studies, School of Journalism. Author of books by MarStat, Incorporated. on mass media and public opinion and on news The Center for Advanced Technology in Education media performance in presidential campaigns, provided coordination and project management. including pioneering work in the scholarly use of exit polls. A CONVERSATION WITH OREGON iii PREFACE funds to initiate the pre-Conversation survey of This study was initiated by University of Oregon participants. The Northwest Area Foundation faculty members who recogMzed that the Conversa t ion followed through, on similarly short notice, with w ith Oregon provided a unique opportunity to examine funding for the post-Conversation survey and the two aspects of modem democracy, an expanded role for citizens in policy development and the place of crucial survey of nonparticipants. Recognizing the potential audience for a report of the Oregon interactive communications technology in strength- experience, the Northwest Area Foundation also ening public participation. provided funds for editing and printing this report. Several, organizations contributed to this project. The Conversation with Oregon obviously raises First, staff members in the governor's office assisted many questions, both political and technical, in obtaining random survey lists of persistent voters; beyond that technical role, they remained besides those addressed here. The data and other independent of the study. On short notice, the information acquired for this project are available university's vice-president for research provided for further research into those questions. 0 CITIZEN PARTICIPATION IN POLICY FORMATION iv CONTENTS Do Conversation Participants Believe the The Research Team ii Governor Heard What They Said? 19 Preface iii The Governor's State of the State Table of Contents iv 20 Speech List of Tables How Did the Conversation Affect the List of Figures vi Participants ? 21 Executive Summary vii What did Participants Learn? 22 Introduction 1 Changes in Opinions about Government Oregon's Tax Limitation (Measure 5) 1 22 and Politicians Responding to Measure 5 1 Changes in Opinion about Response to The Conversation with Oregon 2 Measure 5 23 Ed-Net Meetings: Overview 2 Civic Activation 23 Ed-Net Meetings: Facilities, Logistics, Postscript 25 and Agenda 3 Reaction to the Governor's Tax Reform 25 The News Environment 5 Reaction to the Special Legislative Events after the Ed-Net Meetings 6 26 Session Research Methods 8 26 Assessment of Institutional Performance Instrument Development 8 A Final Observation about the Survey Groups 9 Conversation with Oregon 27 Research Design 9 Observations and Conclusions 23 Data Collection and Sample Sizes 10 28 The Participants Results 11 29 The Ed-Net Meetings Who Attended Conversation 30 Increasing Knowledge Ed-Net Meetings? 11 30 Attitudes and Policy Developments Demographic Characteristics 11 A Communication Channel 31 Attitudes toward Government and Appendices Politicians 13 Appendix AA Conversation with Oregon Expectations of the Conversation with (Overview) 33 Oregon 14 Appendix BAbout Ed-Net 37 Support for and Knowledge about Appendix CEd-Net Meeting Information Measure 5 15 39 Materials How Did Participants Evaluate Ed-Net Appendix DReport Forms and Participant Meetings? 15 49 Questionnaires Logistical Arrangements 16 Appendix EConversation Questionnaire Facilitators 16 53 Summary Contribution of Other Participants 17 Appendix FGovernor's State of the State Content of Ed-Net Meetings 17 63 Address What Approaches Would Participants Take Appendix GTelephone Interview to Measure 5? 18 Questionnaires 71 6 A CONVERSATION WITH OREGON LIST OF TABLES Table 9 Knowledge before Ed-Net Meetings Table 1 Newspaper Articles that Describe the about the Portion of State Budget Conversation in Positive or Negative Going to Public Schools under Terms, by Type of Article 5 Measure 5 (75 percent), and Use Table 2 Articles in Metropolitan and of Lottery and Highway Money to Nonmetropolitan Newspapers that Deal with Measure 5 (No) 15 Describe the Conversation in Table 10 How Respondents Would Approach Positive or Negative Terms, by 19 Measure 5 Type of Article 6 Table 11 Ratings (0 to 10) of Chances the Table 3 Reason for Unfavorable Newspaper Conversation Would Lead to Greater Judgments about the Conversation 6 20 Government Efficiency Table 4 Interview Schedule for Survey Table 12 Knowledge about Percent of State Respondent Groups 10 Budget Going to Public Schools after Table 5 Demographic Characteristics of Ed-Net Measure 5, and Use of Lottery and Meeting Participants and Highway Money to Deal with Measure Nonparticipants 12 5: Before and After Conversation Table 6 Opinions about Government and Table 13 Changes in Respondents' Opinions Politicians before the Ed-Net about Government and Politicians 23 Meetings 13 Table 14 Percentage of Respondents Who Table 7 Views before the Ed-Net Meetings Engaged in Civic Activities Related to about the Conversation with Oregon .14 24 Measure 5 Table 8 Percent Who Voted for Tax Table 15 Comments about the Special Limitation (Measure 5) 15 Legislative Session 25 CITIZEN PARTICIPATION IN POLICY FORMATION vi LIST OF FIGURES Figure 7 Changes in Opinion about 4 Figure 1 Typical Ed-Net Meeting Agenda Governor's Job Performance 23 Figure 2 Participant Ratings of Ed-Net Figure 8 How Consistent is Governor's Tax Meeting Components 16 Plan with Respondent's Preference Figure 3 Perception of Other Participants' and with Respondent's View of Most Attitudes, Contributions, and Oregonian's Preference? 25 Information 17 Figure 9 Respondent's Evaluation of the Job Figure 4 Percentage of Respondents Who Performance of the Governor, Would Increase Efficiency, Reduce Legislature, State Representative, Services, or Restructure the Tax and News Media 26 System 18 Figure 10 Ratings of Governor's Performance: Figure 5 Percent Correctly Answering Question All Respondents 26 about the Proportion of State General Figure 11 How Likely the State Legislature Fund Revenue Ultimately Going to Will Develop a Tax Plan Acceptable Public Schools under Measure 5 22 to Respondent and Acceptable to Figure 6 Percent Correctly Answering Most Oregonians 27 Question about the Availability of Figure 12 Participants and Nonparticipants Lottery and Highway Funds to Opinions about the Conversation Balance the General Fund Budget 22 before and after the Special Session 27 vii A CONVERSATION WITH OREGON EXECUTIVE SUMMARY reform. The governor sought advice from voters On November 6, 1990, Oregon voters elected and promised to listen and respond to their Bai oara Roberts as governor. At the same time, opinions as she proceeded with changes in the they passed a property-tax limitation measure that delivery of government services and tax reform. shifts responsibility for funding public schools from the local property tax to the state General Fund 3. The meetings were designed to educate voters about state and local government, the Oregon without providing new revenue. tax structure, and the potential impact of To address the resulting fiscal crisis, Roberts Measure 5. Measure 5 and taxes are complicated launched a project in deliberative democracy, called topics, and there was confusion about them. a Conversation with Oregon. The centerpiece of The charts and other mw-erials as well as the the Conversation was a series of meetings that governor's presentation were informational in effectively used the state's interactive telecommun- nature. ications retwork, Ed-Net. Governor Roberts 4. The Ed-Net meetings were intended to engage conducted thirty-two Ed-Net telecast sessions, voters and encourage them to become active reaching 10,000 randomly selected persistent voters citizens on issues of public services and public in 900 local meetings throughout the state during finance. Ten thousand voters participated in November and early December 1991. During those these meetings. While this is a significant number Ed-Net meetings she discussed with voters in itself, those voters had the potential for appropriate levels of government services and how influencing far greater Lumbers. to pay for those services. Given these objectives, scientific sampling was The Conversation, and particularly the Ed-Net less important than participants' active contri- meetings, were an unprecedented effort to use butions to the Conversation. The meetings were modern, interactive communications technology not opinion polls or focus groupsthose can be to involve large numbers of citizens in the carried out in more efficient ways. Instead the deliberative process of public policy making. meetings initiated a citizen participation process. Small group discussion, for example, allowed This report describes the Conversation with participants to share opinions and learn from each Oregon and documents the extent to which the other. These were meetings to open up communi- Ed-Net meetings succeeded in opening up cation, not just to collect opinions. constructive communication. HIGHLIGHTS OF THE STUDY OBJECTIVES OF THE ED-NET MEETINGS Surveys of voters who participated and those The Ed-Net meetings had four objectives, which who did not, together with analysis by the research also shaped the design of this research. team, yields several important conclusions: 1. The meetings were designed to broaden the The Conversation succeeded in calling together discussion of taxes to include appropriate levels a broad cross section of the state's most of government services. The meetings were persistent voters. Participants brought with intended to move voters beyond their complaints them varied backgrounds and opinions. They about taxes to thinking about the connection differed from nonparticipants principally in their between taxes and government services. attitudes toward the Conversationthey were 2. The meetings were to inform the governor about more hopeful it could help solve the state's voter's views on government services and tax problems. CITIZEN PARTICIPATION IN POLICY FORMATION viii The planning and operation of the Ed-Net Measure 5, they strongly favored a combination meetings successfully involved many of government efficiency and tax reform. After the Ed-Net meetings and the governor's State of individuals and organizations in new roles. the State speech, persistent voters, including The 10,000 people who participated liked the those who had voted for Measure 5, were more Ed-Net meetings they attended, and most would inclined than they had been to think the attend another. Conversation would lead to improved efficiency Participants learned from the Ed-Net meeting. in state government. The Ed-Net meetings significantly increased Though tl-w fiscal crisis remains unresolved, participants' grasp of basic facts about state the Conversation succeeded in opening a finances. Participants felt nwre involved, and channel of communication between the they thought people learned from each other that governor and voters. There are clear signs and from the written material. the governor found the participants' ideas useful, Persistent voters exhibited a skeptical attitude and Conversation participants said the governor toward government and politicians, an attitude understood what they were saying. that is not changed easily. In approaching