Majority of Voters Support the Build Back Better Act and Want It Passed Now
By Anika Dandekar and Ethan Winter
Invest in America and Data for Progress conducted a survey of 1,392 likely voters from December 10 to 13, 2021 to test attitudes towards the Build Back Better Act, as passed by the House of Representatives on November 19th. Some of these questions were replicated from previous surveys. As we have previously found, multiple times, there is overwhelming support for the legislation and each of its provisions in the American electorate. We also continue to see that the package remains popular, even after voters are told how it is paid for and are presented with opposition arguments.
The Build Back Better Act is Becoming a Topic of Higher Salience
In our most recent polling, 31 percent of likely voters have heard “a lot” about the Build Back Better Act, while only 27 percent have heard “nothing at all” about the legislation. This is a dramatic increase from when we first asked this of voters in late September, where we saw only 15 percent say they heard “a lot” about the bill and 43 percent say they had heard “nothing at all.”
The Build Back Better Act Consistently Receives Voters’ Majority Support
In our most recent polling, likely voters support the Build Back Better Act by a +32-point margin. Over the last month of polling, support for the Build Back Better Act has been, on average, 63 percent, while opposition to the bill is, on average, 31 percent. Support never dipped below 60 percent over the four surveys it was tested within the last month and a half.
The Build Back Better Act Receives Majority Support when Pay-fors are Described
In our most recent polling, likely voters support the Build Back Better Act by a +32-point margin after describing how it will be paid for. Support for the Build Back Better Act after a description of the pay-fors has been, on average, 63 percent, while opposition to the bill is, on average, 31 percent over the last month and a half of polling.
Each Provision of the Build Back Better Act Receives Majority Support
As in our previous polling, we tested support for each provision of the Build Back Better Act. This time, we included each provisions’ price tags as well, based on the legislative text passed in the House of Representatives. Once again, we find that each provision of the Build Back Better Act receives majority support from voters.
Investing $150 billion dollars to increase quality and access to long-term care of seniors and people with disabilities is supported by a margin of +62 percentage points. Spending $35 billion to expand Medicare coverage to include hearing care receives a +58-point margin of support. The currently allocated $175 billion for housing assistance, preservation, and construction is supported by a majority of voters, with a margin of +37 percentage points. Investing $40 billion to make higher education and workforce development more affordable is also backed by +37-point margin. The $15 billion-dollar extension of the Earned Income Tax Credit receives majority support from voters, who back it by a margin of +34 percentage points. The largest piece of Build Back Better, the $555 billion to transition to clean energy and create American jobs, is backed by +33-point margin of support. The $205 billion dollars set aside in the legislation to guarantee four weeks of paid family and medical leave for all workers is also supported by a majority of voters, with a +32-point margin. With a +23-point margin, voters support investing $110 billion to create universal pre-k for all three and four year-olds. An investment of $270 billion to ensure that no family spends more than 7% of their income on childcare receives a +22-point margin of support. The $120 billion allocated to expand tax credits for people who get their insurance through the Affordable Care Act is supported by a majority of voters, with a +20-point margin. With a plus-nine point margin, a majority of voters support spending $130 billion to extend the Child Tax Credit for a year.
Voters Think Build Back Better’s Child Care Investments Will Strengthen the Economy
We wanted to compare public views of prominent politicians’ arguments regarding the allocated $270 billion for child care investments in the Build Back Better Act. Fifty-two percent of voters think these investments will get parents back to work and reduce prices for consumers. Majorities of self-identified Democrats (75 percent) and Independents (52 percent) agree with the statement that child care investments will strengthen the economy in these ways. Twenty-seven percent of Republicans think that the investments will help parents, labor participation, and consumer prices and 62 percent think the spending will burden childcare providers and limit choices.
Voters Say Build Back Better Ensures Vulnerable Groups Are Always Supported
We then tested voters' attitudes towards the social safety net that the Build Back Better would create. Among all likely voters, 54 percent believe the programs created by the legislation will support vulnerable groups like children, seniors, and people with disabilities, while only 38 percent believe the programs will create entitlement. Majorities of self-identified Democrats (81 percent) and Independents (55 percent) agree with the view that the legislation would support vulnerable groups. Twenty-six percent of Republicans also hold this view, but 64 percent of Republicans think the legislation will make Americans reliant on government support.
Voters Believe it is Urgent that Congress Pass Build Back Better
Finally, we sought out America’s sense of urgency in passing this legislation. A plurality of all likely voters (49 percent) say it is “urgent” that Congress pass Build Back Better. A majority of Democrats (78 percent) and a plurality of Independents (49 percent) say it is “urgent” that the bill is passed. Seventeen percent of Republicans also think it is “urgent” that Build Back Better is passed, while 71 percent say it is “not urgent.”
Toplines for this polling can be found here.
Anika Dandekar is a polling analyst at Data for Progress.
Ethan Winter (@EthanBWinter) is a senior analyst at Data for Progress.