Poll: NJ's Sandy recovery a wash out

Fewer than 4 in 10 New Jersey families severely impacted by superstorm Sandy think the state's recovery effort has been successful, according to a new poll from Monmouth University.

Tomorrow marks three years since superstorm Sandy turned upside down the lives of thousands of New Jerseyans and the most recent installment of Monmouth's survey of about 500 displaced households shows that nearly two-thirds believe they have been forgotten.

“In many hard hit residents’ opinions, the state has simply not done enough to adequately address their most pressing needs. Three years removed from Sandy, the state still receives more negative than positive marks for the job they’ve done in the recovery effort,” said Tim Tracey, project director for Monmouth’s Sandy Recovery Survey, in a statement accompanying the poll results.

More findings:

When asked to describe how satisfied they are with New Jersey's recovery, 6 percent said "very", 33 percent said "somewhat", while 27 percent and 34 percent said they were "somewhat" or "very" dissatisfied, respectfully. That's actually a minor improvement over last year, when 33 percent said they approved of the recovery's course.

Two out of every three responses reported that they were back living in their pre-Sandy homes, which is 7 percentage points higher than last year and 13 above what was measured in October 2013. However, 12 percent are now identifying themselves as "permanently displaced", meaning they expect to not return home. About one-fifth are still trying.

Not surprisingly, just 29 percent of residents who are still not home say the recovery is going well, compared to 43 percent of those who have returned home.

The Rehabilitation, Reconstruction, Elevation and Mitigation (RREM) program, the state's troubled homeowner rebuilding initiative, is getting better grades. About 55 percent in the program say that construction has at least started on their home, up from 16 percent last year and 64 percent of those who have finished RREM approve of the recovery, much higher than last year (41 percent).