Poll shows voters favor selling Pa. state stores

HARRISBURG, Pa. (AP) — A new poll shows nine out of 10 Pennsylvania voters regard the state’s budget problems as serious and a majority favor selling the state liquor stores to help avert a multibillion-dollar shortfall.

The survey released Wednesday by Connecticut-based Quinnipiac University found 60 percent of voters view the situation as very serious and 33 percent think it is somewhat serious.

Two-thirds support a plan advocated by Republican Gov.-elect Tom Corbett to get the state out of the liquor and wine business, even though lawmakers have scuttled similar efforts in the past. Corbett says selling the state stores to private operators could generate $2 billion.

The poll of 1,584 voters was conducted in the week that ended Monday. It has a sampling error margin of plus or minus 2.5 percentage points.