LANSING – Two separate surveys, one of the general public in Michigan and a second of local officials in Michigan, find that both populations tend to trust local governments the most and the federal government the least.

But the survey of local officials found they trust local government far more than does the public, and that they trust federal government far less.

The surveys included the latest results from the State of the State Survey conducted by the Institute for Public Policy and Social Research at Michigan State University, and the latest results of a survey of local officials from the Center for Local, State and Urban Policy at the Gerald R. Ford School of Public Policy at the University of Michigan.

The SOSS study of the public was conducted of 1,013 interviews done from January 14 through March 4 and had a margin of error of 1.4 percent. The results of the CLOSUP survey of local officials was based on 1,513 responses received from local officials through a mailing from April 8 through June 9. The response represented a 43 percent response of individual officials and has an error rate of 1.9 percent.

In the SOSS survey of the public, 39 percent of those asked said they could trust local government officials most of the time. Another 39.7 percent said they felt they could trust local officials some of the time.

In contrast, just 18.8 percent felt that state government could be trusted most the time. Another 50.4 percent said state government could be trusted some of the time.

But just 14.8 percent felt that the federal government could be trusted most of the time, and 43.8 percent felt it could trusted some of the time.

In terms of those respondents who felt government could never be trusted, just 8.7 percent thought local government could almost never be trusted, 12.5 percent felt that way about state government, and 19.7 percent felt that way about the federal government.

While the overall pattern is repeated among local officials, according to the CLOSUP survey, the results are far more extreme.

Asked how they trusted other local governments – since Tom Ivacko of the UM center said the group did not want to ask if local government officials trusted themselves – 67 percent said they could trust other local governments almost all the time, while just 4 percent said they could almost never trust local governments.

But of the federal government, just 6 percent thought the federal government could be trusted most of the time and 59 percent though it could almost never be trusted.

Of state government, 19 percent of the officials said they could trust state government most the time, while 28 percent felt it almost could never be trusted.

Neither survey attempted to determine why the respondents felt the way they did. But both asked respondents if they trusted government to do “the right thing,” so Ivacko and Charles Ballard of the SOSS survey said the results would be somewhat subjective.

Partisan attitudes certainly play a role in the results, both Ballard and Ivacko said. And trust in government has declined as the economy has struggled.

Trust in local government, according to the SOSS survey, has consistently been higher than for state and federal government. Even so, it has shown a slight decline over the 20 years the survey has been conducted.

Trust in Michigan government declined markedly from 2002, when 36.2 percent felt it could be trusted most the time until 2002, when the state’s economy began slowing, at which point 25.9 percent felt it could be trusted most the time. Aside from some occasional upticks, trust in state government has continued to go down.

And aside from a spurt in trust following the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001, trust in the federal government has bounced up and down, but the overall trend has been down.

The CLOSUP survey has been conducted just twice, the first time in 2009, but the results show continuing distrust in federal government and growing trust in local government. In 2009, just 10 percent of those officials asked trusted the federal government.

Ballard of the SOSS survey said there was one significant demographic difference in the survey results: between whites and African Americans. Results between men and women were slightly different, but significantly so between white and black respondents.

Black respondents were far more trusting of federal government (though it was still a significant minority) and less trusting of local government.

Of local government, while 42 percent of whites felt it could be trusted most the time, just 23 percent of black respondents did. Of the federal government, while just 12 percent of white respondents felt it could be trusted most the time, 25 percent of black respondents did.

Ballard suggested the local government response from black participants could be explained in part because many of the respondents live in Detroit where local government functions have failed in many instances.

And the federal response may be in part because of the presence of President Barack Obama, Ballard said.

This story was provided by Gongwer News Service. To subscribe, click on Gongwer.Com