What matters most to you? Every day, Manatee County works to improve the services, infrastructure, and quality of life that make our community a great place to live, work, and play. Now, we're asking for your input.

The Manatee County Community Survey is an independent, statistically valid survey designed to better understand residents' perspectives on quality of life, county services, community priorities and emerging issues. The results will help County leaders identify what we're doing well, where we can improve, and what issues matter most to the people we serve.

This marks the first year of what we intend to become an annual survey, allowing us to measure community sentiment over time and better evaluate the impact of County programs, services, and investments.

The inaugural Manatee County Community Survey will be conducted from Early September through late October. During this time, randomly selected residents may be contacted and invited to participate. Survey results are expected in December.

The survey will be independently conducted by the University of South Florida (USF) using accepted statistical research methods to ensure the results accurately reflect the views of Manatee County residents. Participants will be randomly selected and contacted by phone to participate in a survey lasting approximately 15 minutes. Because participants are scientifically selected, not everyone will receive an invitation to participate. This approach ensures the results are representative of our community as a whole.

Once the survey has been completed and analyzed, the results, expected in December, will be published here for you to review. The University of South Florida (USF) will present these findings to the Board of County Commissioners, where they will help inform future planning, improve County services, and support long-term decision-making. As this is our inaugural survey, the results will establish a valuable benchmark against which future surveys can be measured.