National Community Survey of Honolulu Residents (2020)

News Release from Honolulu Auditor, February, 2021

This is the twelfth National Community Survey of Honolulu residents conducted for the City and County of Honolulu. The National Community Survey (NCS) is a collaborative effort between the National Research Center and the International City/County Management Association. The survey and its administration are standardized to assure high quality research methods and directly comparable results across over 600 NCS communities. Great communities are partnerships of the government, private sector, community-based organizations, and residents; all geographically connected. In addition, an on-line version of the survey was available to all Honolulu residents and results of that survey is reported separately.

The NCS captures residents’ opinions within the three pillars of a community--Community Characteristics, Governance and Participation, and across eight facets of community--Safety, Mobility, Natural Environment, Built Environment, Economy, Recreation and Wellness, Education and Enrichment, and Community Engagement. The community survey is comprised of four reports: Community Livability, Trends over Time, Technical Appendices, and Supplemental Online Results.

The results from this year’s NCS indicate:

• Honolulu residents believe that the use of mail-in ballots for primary and general elections encourages voter participation and is reliable.

• Only a little more than half of Honolulu residents surveyed consider the city and county’s response to the COVID-19 pandemic to be effective.

• Protecting Honolulu’s water resources continues to be a high priority for Honolulu’s residents.

• While Honolulu residents continue to like the neighborhood as a place to live, they remain concerned that residential growth is not well-planned.

• Honolulu residents strongly support effort to protect and prepare infrastructure for climate change threats.

• About two-thirds of Honolulu residents find the overall quality of life in Honolulu as excellent or good which is an improvement since the last report in 2019.

We solicit inputs and any suggestions for improving this report. The 2020 National Community Survey is posted on our website at http://www.honolulu.gov/auditor.

Copies of these reports are also available by contacting the Office of the City Auditor….

read … Full Report (168 pgs)