Understanding Public Policy

• Public Policy is what government officials and citizens choose to do or not do about public problems, including laws, regulations, spending, and tax breaks.

Policy Elements

• Policy Inputs: Resources allocated to policy.
• Policy Output: Actions defined by quantifiable metrics.
• Policy Outcome: The impact or result of policy actions.
• Any level of government can engage in policy efforts.

Key Terms

• Government: Institutions and political processes, including Congress and the executive and legislative branches.
• Federalism: Multiple power structures within a government.
• Politics: The exercise of power.
• Policy Analysis: Examination of public policy components to identify problems, alternatives, and recommendations.

Contexts Influencing Policy

Social

• Population demographics affect policy decisions and social relations.
• Demographic and ideological shifts influence policy development, such as Social Security concerns with aging populations.

Economic

• Economic conditions like inflation and unemployment, budgetary politics, and the state of the economy affect policy.
• Economic decisions impact citizens, such as unemployment benefits decreasing in a strong economy.

Political

• The influence of major parties and interest groups and public faith in government affect policy.
• Public faith can fluctuate during events like war or scandal, potentially leading to political gridlock.

Governing

• Policy decision-making speed, separation of powers, and the need for consensus between Congress and the President all affect policy.
• Overlapping state and national government responsibilities affects governance.

Cultural

• Political culture, values, and beliefs affect policy.
• Individualism, property rights, and freedom, can be difficult issues to compromise on.

Reasons for Government Involvement

Political

• Government gets involved due to shifts in public opinion or actions.

Moral/Ethical

• Actions are taken based on moral or ethical considerations, even without public pressure.

Economic/Market Failures

• Government intervention is needed when private markets are inefficient.
• Monopolies/Oligopolies: Domination of markets by a few entities, allowing price control.
• Positive Externality: Third-party benefits from market interactions, such as scholarships and subsidies.
• Negative Externality: Third-party harm without compensation, such as pollution.
• Information Failure: Lack of information for buyers and sellers to make informed transactions.
• Inability to Provide for Public Good: When private markets cannot provide goods beneficial to all, like national defense.

Types of Goods

• Pure Private Good: Private goods without market failure.
• Toll Goods: Jointly consumed, exclusion is feasible.
• Common Pools: Cannot be jointly consumed, exclusion is not feasible.
• Pure Public Good: Jointly consumed, exclusion is not feasible.

Reasons to Study Public Policy

• Professional public service, citizen involvement, and influencing decision-making.

Policy Evaluation Criteria

• Effectiveness: Likelihood of a policy/program to work.
• Efficiency: Policy costs relative to societal benefits/maximizing government spending benefits.
• Equity: Fairness and impartiality of a policy choice.

Chapter 2

Policy Capacity

• Policy capacity refers to an entity's ability to develop, implement, and evaluate public policies effectively.

Federalism

• Federalism involves divided sovereignty between a central government and other units, such as states.

Dual Federalism

• Is when each level of government has distinct responsibilities with little integration.

Cooperative Federalism

• When there is increased collaboration between national and state governments.

Block Grants

• Block Grants are when federal dollars are transferred to states with substantial discretion in spending.

Categorical Grants

• Categorical Grants are when federal dollars are transferred to states for specific purposes.

Unfunded Mandates

• Unfunded Mandates are federal requirements placed on states without sufficient funds for implementation.

Separation of Powers

• Separation of Powers involves three branches sharing governing power.

Legislative Branch

• Has a bicameral Congress, including a Senate and House of Representatives.
• The Senate has the power of filibuster.

Executive Branch

• The Executive Branch is responsible for enforcing laws, including departments and agencies.
• The Office of the President is a "mini bureaucracy" that aids in policy development and implementation.

Cabinet-Level Departments

• Cabinet-Level Departments implement policy in specialized areas.

Independent Executive Agencies

• The Environmental Protection Agency has a focused policy area.

Independent Regulatory Commission (IRC)

• Commissioners are appointed by president and confirmed by the Senate for fixed terms, with responsibility over economic regulation.

Judicial Branch

• The Judicial Branch includes the Supreme Court, circuit courts, and district courts.
• The courts interpret policy decisions, often having the final say.

Informal Policy Actors

Public Opinion

• Public Opinion influences elected officials, especially on high-profile issues like abortion and gun control.

Interest Groups

• Interest Groups emerge as lobbyists, influencing policy.

Nonprofits

• Nonprofits provide services but are neither private businesses nor government-operated entities.

Media

• Media exercises freedom of speech, influencing policy.

Policy Subgovernments and Issue Networks

Subgovernments

• Policymaking occurs in less formal settings involving actors in specific areas like national defense.

Issue Networks

• Informal arrangements among policy actors in making public policy.

Iron Triangles vs. Issue Networks

Iron Triangles

• Exclusive, stable, small relationships that mutually benefit involved groups.

Issue Networks

• Open, changing, large networks that support public interests.

Chapter 3

Theories, Frameworks, Models

• Models can simplify, clarify, and identify crucial aspects of a policy.

Institutionalism

• Institutionalism examines the relationship between public policy and government, particularly the way governments are structured and their rules and legal powers.
• Structures and rules can make a big difference.
• Federalism is an example component.

Policy Process Model

• The Policy Process Model is a cycle with six stages.

Agenda Setting

• Agenda Setting defines how problems are perceived and get onto the political agenda.

Policy Formulation

• Policy Formulation involves designing policy goals.

Policy Legitimation

• Policy Legitimation involves mobilizing political support for policies; includes justification.

Policy Implementation

• Policy Implementation provides resources to put programs into effect within a bureaucracy.

Policy and Program Evaluation

• Policy and Program Evaluation measures the effects of policies.

Policy Change

• Policy Change modifies policy goals based on new information or political environment.

Rationalism (Rational Choice)

• Rationalism is a mode where policy is developed because of rational decisions, often value-driven.

Incremental Policy Making

• Incremental Policy Making involves building on past actions.

Group Theory

• Group Theory suggests that policy is the result of continuous struggle among organized interest groups.

Elite Theory

• Elite Theory emphasizes how the values and preferences of elites affect policy development, which differs from those of the public.

Multiple Streams Theory

• Multiple Streams Theory suggests that policymaking involves three streams merging, including problem stream (education, immigration), policy stream (solutions), and politics stream (politicians).

Punctuated Equilibrium

• Punctuated Equilibrium indicates dramatic policy change occurs when conditions are right, interspersed with long periods of stability.

Chapter 4

Policy Analysis

• Policy Analysis assesses alternatives; it is part science and part art.

Steps in Policy Analysis

• Define and analyze the problem
• Construct alternatives
• Choose an evaluation criteria
• Draw conclusions

Types of Policy Analysis

Scientific Approach

• Academics study policy to see truth through scientific methods.

Professional Approaches

• Studies used for professional reasons, analysts are committed to producing the best possible by looking at future trends and evaluations.

Political Approach

• Use rigorous methods, are committed to certain political policies and goals

Chapter 5

Problem Analysis

• First step on defining a problem in the policy process.

Operationalizing

• Requires understanding the problem’s magnitude using data.

Key Steps

• Understanding magnitude with statistics.
• Policy goals setting.

Defining Problems

• Involves understanding issue framing and agenda-setting.
• Issue framing - the practice in which policymakers and interest groups do whatever they can to set the policy agenda in their favor by defining problems their way.

Policy Intervention

• Actions by governments to influence economy conditions.

Distinguishing Symptoms and Root Cause:

• Finding and addressing the root cause is essential for effective policy analysis.

Finding Information

• Can be done through:
• Press
• Google
• Government Websites
• Journals
• Verifying sources

Constructing Alternatives

• Including but not limited to:
• Ration
• Tax and Spend
• Contracting out
• Market incentives
• Privatise
• Charge fee for service
• Education
• No action analysis

Methods for Research

• Surveys
• Hearing transcripts
• Minutes of meetings
• Passive collection
• Parallel situations
• Brainstorming

Chapter 6

Developing an Evaluation Framework

• Utilizes criteria like the Three E’s (effective, efficient, equitable)
• Political, administrative, and social feasibility.
• Assesses liberty.

Policy Evaluation Methods

Cost-Benefit Analysis

• Weighs costs and benefits.

Cost-Effectiveness Analysis

• Compares value of policy alternatives.

Risk Assessments

• Estimates societal risks.

Risk Evaluations

• Determine acceptable risk levels.

Risk Management

• Implements policies to manage risks.

Impacts and Decisions

Forecasting

• Predicts future states based on prior data.

Impact Assessment

• Assesses likely policy effects.

Implementation Analysis

• Examines implementation process.

Program Evaluation

• Focuses on results, not process.

Ethical Analysis

• Based on ethical principles.

Chapter 7

Key Aspects

• Policy capacity.
• Critical functions of government through economic stability.

Policy Tools

Fiscal Policy

• Using taxing and spending to influence economy.

Monetary Policy

• Controlling money.

Economic Goals

Economic Growth

• Increase in production (GDP).

Low Unemployment

• Full employment.

Low Inflation

• Maintaining low consumer price index (CPI).

Balance of Trade

• Export more than imports.

Deficit/Debt Management

• A term that describes the accumulating all deficits that the nation has run

Tools of Economic Policy

Fiscal Policy

• Taxing and spending to influence the economy.

Monetary Policy

• The Federal Reserve controls money circulation.

Regulation

• Government mandates impacting economic activity.

Incentives

• Motivates behaviors through rewards.

Support

• Public approval of government actions.

Tax Policy

• Government principles for taxes.

Tax Types

Regressive Tax

• Flat tax, same rate for all.

Progressive Tax

• Higher earners pay higher percentages.