18 May 2016
. Posted in Today At Utah Policy
Only 17% of Utahns want President Barack Obama to declare the Bears Ears area in Southeastern Utah as a national monument. That's according to a new UtahPolicy.com poll conducted by Dan Jones and Associates.
The survey found a plurality of Utah voters (36%) want Bears Ears left as-is, while 31% favor Rep. Rob Bishop's Public Lands Initiative, which proposes to make Bears Ears a national conservation area.
The survey from Dan Jones, Utah's premier public opinion pollster, stands in stark contrast to a poll from an activist group that showed an overwhelming number of Utahns want to see Bears Ears protected as a national monument. That survey has been described by critics as a "push poll," which is designed to elicit a predetermined outcome. The group's stated mission is to protect what they describe as "spiritually significant" areas.
The survey gave respondents three possible options for the future of the Bears Ears area:
Survey by Dan Jones & Associates, May 2-10, 2016. 588 registered voters. Margin of error +/-4.04%
President Barack Obama should designate roughly 1 million acres in the Bears Ears as a national monument
17%
Congress should pass, and Obama should sign, a bill by Representative Rob Bishop that would make Bears Ears a national conservation area, with some protections and local land control
31%
Nothing should be done, Bears Ears is fine as it is
36%
Don't know
16%
