Taveras tops new Brown poll; Chafee's revenue plan not popular

Here’s the short version of a new Brown University poll:

– Providence Mayor Angel Taveras has the best approval rating of any RI politician (59.8 percent, up from 51.7 percent in December), as he leads efforts to stave off bankruptcy in Rhode Island’s largest city. State Treasurer Gina Raimondo is close behind at 57.7 percent, up from 52 percent.

– The laggards in the poll include US Reprentative David Cicilline (15% approval) and Governor Lincoln Chafee (22.1 percent, down from 27.4 percent).

– Brown found “Rhode Island voters oppose most of” Chafee’s “proposals to raise additional state revenues to help balance the budget.”

A majority (53.7 percent) opposes cutting the annual $522,674 in aid to the state-run public television station Channel 36 and a strong majority (64.2 percent) did not want to increase the co-pays that low-income families pay for subsidized childcare, a cut that would save the state an estimated $275,000 per year.

Almost half of voters agree with ending state-subsidized dental care for low-income Rhode Islanders over the age of 21 (49.6 support/42.8 oppose), which would save the state an estimated $2.7 million per year.

– Most voters in RI, one of the nation’s most Catholic states, support the new policy by President Obama’s administration to “offer contraception services to women who work for religiously affiliated institutions.”

Brown says the survey is based on a random sample of 514 registered voters. It was conducted February 16-18, and has a 4.3 percent margin of error.