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Government & Civic Participation
Many Sangamon County residents indicate
they volunteer or engage in other forms of
civic participation in the community. Four
measures of civic engagement in Sangamon
County are represented in the graph below.
The 2015 survey finds an increase in the
percent of individuals who express opinions
online and a decrease in the percent who
have donated money to charitable or
religious organizations. Monetary donations
to charitable organizations have been down
since the economic downturn in 2008 but
recent reports by the Giving USA Foundation
indicate charitable giving is beginning to
recover with donation rates now consistent
with pre-recession levels.1 It is unclear why
the most recent Sangamon County Citizen
Survey finds a decrease in charitable giving
among residents.
Forty-nine percent of Sangamon county
residents indicate they have volunteered
through or for a charitable or religious
organization within the last 12 months
(compared to 45 percent in 2013). The
percent of respondents who report having
volunteered in Sangamon County in the last
12 months is significantly higher than
reported state (26 percent)2 volunteer rates,
but on par with national (49 percent)3
volunteer rates. Younger Sangamon County
residents (18-24 year olds) are more likely to
express their opinion online (44%) and more
likely to volunteer for a charitable
organization (52%).
It is important to note that in self-report
measures like surveys, people tend to overreport their civic participation. However, we
would not expect changes in self-reporting to
be dependent on the year.
Four Ways Sangamon County Citizens Get Involved
26%
Expressed your opinion about an issue online
35%
45%
Volunteered through or for a charitable or
religious organization
49%
84%
Donated money to a charitable or religious
organization
72%
84%
Discussed politics with family or friends
84%
0%
2013 SCCS
1
20%
40%
60%
80%
2015 SCCS
Data is available at http://givingusa.org/
Data is available at http://www.volunteeringinamerica.gov/export.cfm
3
As reported by the NORC’s General Social Survey (GSS) in 2014. Data available at https://gssdataexplorer.norc.org/
2
100%