Between May 19 and June 2, 2022, the City of Boulder conducted a survey of 1,180 registered voters to assess community perspectives on climate change, city priorities, and the Climate Action Plan (CAP) Tax.

Climate Change Concerns

  • High Levels of Concern: 78% of respondents are either extremely or very worried about the impacts of climate change in Boulder.
  • Recognition of Local Impacts: 89% agree that recent climate-related events (e.g., floods, fires) demonstrate that climate change is real and negatively affecting the community.

City Priorities

When asked to rank city issues by importance:

  1. Addressing Climate Change (36%)
  2. Creating More Affordable Housing (21%)
  3. Preventing Crime (14%)
  4. Addressing Homelessness (13%)
  5. Transportation Projects (9%)
  6. Creating Good Jobs/Economy (6%)
  7. Addressing Drug Addiction (1%)

Familiarity with City Climate Programs

  • Awareness Levels: Only 11% of respondents are very familiar with the city's programs aimed at reducing emissions and increasing resilience to climate-related events.

Opinions on Climate Goals

The city has set the following climate goals:

  1. Reduce emissions by 70% by 2030
  2. Achieve carbon net-zero by 2035
  3. Become carbon-positive by 2040

Survey responses indicate:

  • 43% believe these goals are "just about right"
  • 36% feel they are "not aggressive enough"
  • 15% think they are "too aggressive"

Climate Action Plan Tax

Boulder's CAP Tax, established in 2006, is a dedicated funding source for climate initiatives, generating approximately $1.8 million annually through electricity usage charges on Xcel Energy bills.