Mainers down on economy Survey shows half feel worse off than in ’04

PORTLAND – Half of all Mainers say the economy is worse off than a year ago and think it will decline even more in the year ahead, according to a public opinion survey released Friday.

The survey by Critical Insights showed that 50 percent of the survey participants thought the economy was worse off now than a year ago, while 39 percent said it’s about the same and 10 percent said it’s better.

When asked what the economy would do in the next 12 months, 51 percent said it would worsen, 41 percent thought it would stay the same and 14 percent said it would get better. Six months ago, only 25 percent said the economy would get worse in the year ahead, and 30 percent thought it would improve.

For the survey, Critical Insights called 600 Mainers by telephone May 12-19 asking their opinions on a variety of topics. The survey had a margin off error of plus or minus 4 percentage points.

On Friday, the company released only the results pertaining to the economy.

Regarding job security, 54 percent of the respondents said they didn’t worry at all about their jobs, compared to 47 percent who didn’t worry at all last fall.

The poll also showed that Mainers are saving less money. Forty-nine percent of the participants said they are saving less money than a year ago, while 12 percent said they are saving more.