LINCOLN - The University of Nebraska released the insights into community section of the 2024 Nebraska Rural Poll in January showing declines in satisfaction with medical care services, senior centers and mental health services.

Satisfaction with retail shopping has generally declined over the past 20 years from a high of 47 percent to 31 percent in 2024.

Most rural Nebraskans are satisfied with basic community amenities, including libraries, churches, internet and education.

Housing is rated at 49 percent satisfaction. The cost of housing had a 21 percent satisfaction response.

Satisfaction with cellular phone service has increased from 49 percent in the first year on the survey in 2006 to 65 percent.

The report says people living in the state’s Panhandle are the regional group least likely to say their community has changed for the better. Only 19 percent say their community has changed for the better.

 

 

The demographic most likely to say the community has changed for the better is married or previously married, ages 19 to 49, with a four-year degree and working in food service or personal care occupations.

In southeast Nebraska, respondents were asked to predict changes in the next 10 years, 19 percent expect the community to get worse and 34 percent expect it to get better. The most optimistic region was the north central with 43 saying things will get better.

Residents of the southeast are most likely to rate their community as both friendly and supportive. Eight in 10 say their community is friendly.

Most rural Nebraskans disagree that their community is powerless to control its future.

The proportion saying their community has changed for the worse has remained steady across all 29 years of the survey averaging 21 percent. It reached a high of 31 percent in 2022.

 

https://ruralpoll.unl.edu/sites/unl.edu.ianr.alec.rural-poll/files/media/file/24%20Report%20-%20Community.pdf