At any time, and especially in periods of economic crisis, it is important to consider the policy context for civic engagement. By changing laws and policies, the government can either enable or frustrate civic engagement. These consequences are too rarely weighed when Congress considers major legislation and perhaps a “civic impact statement” should accompany any federal legislation that is reported out of committee in the Congress. Such a statement could provide Members of Congress with information on how the changes in policy would affect volunteering, public dialogue, participation in civic groups, social and political trust and other indicators of civic health. At a minimum, it would prompt Congress to consider not just the economic, unfunded mandate, environmental, and other effects of legislation, but also the civic impacts.



Policy Proposals Tested:
•Offering every young person a chance to earn money toward college or advanced training if they complete a full year of national or community service
•Involving more than one million Americans in a national discussion of an important public issue and requiring Congress to respond to what the citizens say
•Requiring all high school students to do community service as part of their work for one or more courses
•Requiring high school students to pass a new test on civics or government
•Changing the law so that local citizens must take the lead in setting standards and choosing tests for students in their local schools
•Funding and promoting overseas service as a way of improving our relations with other countries
•Providing federal money to support secular nonprofit organizations that use volunteers
•Providing federal money to support faith-based organizations that use volunteers



In 2008 and again in 2009, we asked respondents their opinions of various policy changes that might enhance civic health in the United States. Many ideas were popular, although most were marginally less so in 2009 than in 2008 (a difference that might be caused by changes in survey methodology rather than real shifts in public opinion). The top choice in both years was to offer all young Americans the opportunity to earn money for college by devoting a year to national and community service. The Edward M. Kennedy Serve America Act, which Congress passed and President Obama signed into law earlier this year, takes a strong step in that direction, both by increasing the number of full-time and part-time national service positions from 75,000 to 250,000 over five years, and by increasing the value of the education award each national service participant receives at the end of their service. The second-most popular idea, a national deliberation on an important issue, has been seriously considered with respect to health care reform but has not yet been implemented. The three proposals involving secondary education have not been included in prominent federal legislation or executive branch policy.

One more idea was tested in both 2008 and 2009, but we changed the question enough to preclude direct comparison between the two years. In 2008 we asked about offering federal support to nonprofits, including faith-based organizations. A narrow majority of 51% favored this idea, 39% strongly. In 2009, we split the question into two items, one concerning federal aid for secular nonprofits, and the other concerning federal aid for faith-based groups. About 51% favored funding for secular nonprofits; 37% supported assistance to faith-based organizations. The latter is clearly more controversial and raises constitutional questions that Congress and previous Administrations have attempted to address through legislation and executive orders.