OBJECTIVES: To examine what type of air pollution mitigation policies and interventions California's San Joaquin Valley (SJV) residents are likely to support and the characteristics of those who approve them and the distributional equity of health-related quality-of-life (HRQoL).

METHODS: A cross-sectional online survey asked about self-protective behaviors, attitudes toward air pollution recommendations, and air quality information. The EuroQOL-5D-3L instrument was utilized to assess differentials in HRQoL distribution and favorability of policies. Combining principal component analysis and stepwise regression the study explored what policies and interventions are supported by SJV residents.

RESULTS: A total of 310 adults participated in the survey. People with asthma reported the lowest HRQoL with a health utility of U=0.747. Latent factors reported by SJV residents were concern for charge, expense, and car attributes for their interest in adopting electric vehicles (EV). A differential interest in the involvement of local and not-local organizations in regulating air quality for the region. Also, concern with what are the costs of air pollution and who pays for that cost of transforming practices. Socio-economic variables are significant predictors of those factors, and political views such as left-wing ideologies predicted favorability for policies that charge polluters to clean the air, control air pollution emissions, preserves public space, and interventions that reduce air pollution health symptoms and eases the burden on health. This study found that right wing ideology was a negative predictor for EV charge, EV car attributes and having local organizations intervening in air pollution emission control.

CONCLUSIONS: The information will help policy, decision-makers, and the health equity research community understand the reasons for differential responses to the mitigation efforts and help develop recommendations for improving air quality, behavior change, and climate change adaptation in the region.