June Sun, 1995
DIVORCE SETTLEMENTS IN NEW JERSEY REFORMS AND PERCEPTIONS
The New Jersey State Legislature is currently discussing a range of different reforms for divorce settlements. Two of the six possible reforms reviewed by state residents get overwhelming approval: 9-in-10 support giving both parents equal access to their children's records, and 8-in-10 approve of requiring divorcing parents to develop a parenting plan. Also, a majority of New Jerseyans approve of having penalties for parents who interfere with the visitation rights of the non-custodial parent (66%), including alimony as part of the custodial parent's income before deciding on the amount of child support payments (59%), and allowing alimony to be directly withdrawn from the non-custodial parent's paycheck (57%). Less than a majority — about 1-in-3 — state residents approve of automatically cutting off child support payments at age 18 even if the child is attending college.
June Sun, 1995
POSITIVE WHITMAN LEGISLATIVE RATINGS STABLE NEITHER PARTY HAS AN EARLY ADVANTAGE IN 1995 ASSEMBLY RACES
Governor Christie Whitman's positive job performance ratings remain stable at just above 50 percent. And positive ratings for the New Jersey State Legislature are consistent with a year ago with about 1-in-3 state residents giving excellent or good evaluations.
April Sun, 1995
PROFILE OF RELIGION IN NEW JERSEY
While New Jerseyans are almost unanimous in their belief in God, fewer residents — 2-in-3 — participate in organized religion by belonging to a church or synagogue. Even fewer residents are regularly involved in religious activities with about 4-in-10 reporting they attended a church or synagogue in the week prior to the survey.
March Sun, 1995
GARDEN STATE CONSUMER CONFIDENCE HIGHEST IN LAST FIVE YEARS MODEST GAINS IN PERSONAL ECONOMIC STATUS
New Jerseyans' optimism about the state's economic situation is the highest it's been in five years. Four-in-ten state residents say that economically the state is enjoying good times, which is a 13 percentage point increase from last year. This confidence in the state's economy is also reflected in a similar 13 percentage point increase from 43 percent in 1992 to 56 percent in the percentage of New Jerseyans who say it is a good time to purchase a major household item. In addition, 53 percent think now is a good time to buy a car, which is about the same as in 1992.