After the mayor last week commented that he was considering fining drivers who give to panhandlers, Inweekly had Political Matrix conduct a telephone poll of 462 likely voters in the city of Pensacola. Over two-thirds were opposed to the city fining or prosecuting those providing money to the panhandlers from their car.
Do you think that those providing money to the panhandlers from their car should be fined or prosecuted?
| Responses: 462 | Total | % |
| Yes | 98 | 21.2 |
| No | 315 | 68.2 |
| No opinion | 49 | 10.6 |
However, almost the same percent admitted that the number of panhandlers bothered them.
Does it bother you that persons are panhandling in the intersections at certain locations in the city of Pensacola?
| Responses: 462 | Total | % |
| Yes | 308 | 66.7 |
| No | 111 | 24.0 |
| No opinon | 43 | 9.3 |
Almost half of those polled felt panhandling should be banned and illegal in all parts of the city and felt it had a negative impact on their day.
Do you think panhandling should be banned and illegal in all parts of the city of Pensacola or should there be certain areas where it is allowed?
Does the panhandling in the city of Pensacola effect you in a negative manner at any part of your day?
Responses: 462 | Total | % |
| Allowed in certain designated areas | 183 | 39.6 |
| Banned and made illegal in all of the city | 226 | 48.9 |
| Need more information | 53 | 11.5 |
| Responses: 462 | Total | % |
| Yes | 223 | 48.3 |
| No | 175 | 37.9 |
| Undecided | 64 | 13.9 |
Methodology:
The persons sampled were registered voters of the city of Pensacola with a voting score of 100 percent for the general election cycles. The voters were called using an Interactive Voice Response system during the hours of 5-7 p.m. on Thursday, March 21. The margin of error for the study was +/- 4.5 percent with a confidence level of 95 percent.
