ALBANY – Legalize it.
Most New York voters favor legalizing marijuana, but by a slim 51-44 majority, according a new poll.
Quinnipiac University found the younger the voters, the higher they are on the idea, with 62 percent of 18- to 29-year-olds favoring legalization.
Meantime homeowners and businesses destroyed by Hurricane Sandy should rebuild to stricter building codes, according to 65 percent of voters – including 68 percent in the city and 67 percent on Long Island, the hardest hit regions.
Eight percent think destroyed structures shouldn’t be rebuilt at all, the Dec. 5-10 telephone survey of 1,302 voters found.
While 74 percent say they’re concerned about climate change and two thirds expect their community to be hit by a major storm in the next decade, only 45 percent think Sandy actually resulted from climate change. Half of voters didn’t – including 83 percent of Republicans.
Voters are split on fracking – and on Gov. Cuomo’s non-decision so far on the controversial issue.
The poll found 44 percent support drilling for natural gas upstate because of potential economic benefits while 42 percent are opposed for fear of environmental damage.
Most favor a tax on gas drilling companies (54-32 percent) and believe high-volume horizontal hydraulic fracturing will create jobs (78-15 percent), while half think the practice of fracturing shale with a pressurized chemical, water and sand mix to extract gas will damage the environment (50-17 percent).
On Cuomo, 26 percent say he’s “carefully evaluating the issue” while 25 percent accuse him of “dragging his feet.”
Four of every five voters favor raising the minimum wage (80-18), with strong support even among Republicans (61-38). And 43 percent even support an increase above the $8.50 an hour Cuomo and fellow Democrats have proposed.
Still, 49 percent think small businesses will reduce hiring if the minimum wage is raised to 44 percent who don’t.