THE DYNAMICS OF PUBLIC POLICY: A SYSTEMS MODEL

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Stages• Stages of public policy

• problem identification and definition • agenda setting• policy formulation• policy legitimation• policy implementation• policy change• policy evaluation

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Policy Process ModelPolicy Cycle

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Problem definition/Agenda setting

Policy formulation

Policy legitimation

Policy implementation

Policy change

Policy evaluation

feedback

Stage One: Identifying Problems

• There are always a lot of problems and they can be defined in different ways.

• Relatively few identified problems receive attention

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A political problem involves• A perception that something is wrong

• A belief that the problem can be ameliorated by public action

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Why Do Some Problems Receive Attention? • A. Problems-- that become an agenda item

• Issues that government officials and/or the public focus on (fuel economy, clean air, unemployment)

• Issues mandated by law and/or commonly monitored (annual reports to Congress, child vaccinations, education outcomes, international events)

• Focusing events: the attacks on 9/11 and Hurricane Katrina brought attention to America’s preparedness for disasters

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Politics and Participants• B. Politics

• Problem becomes focus of attention because of a change in administration—Romney versus Obama

• C. Because of the participants: Important people or groups are interested in the problem

• president and staff• congressional leadership• media• powerful interest groups• judiciary

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Four types of Issue Agendas

Agendas can be classified in four groups…

periodically recurring issues

sporadically recurring issues

crisis-based issues

new or “chosen” issues

Agendas as Political Power• Establishing the agenda means control over policy

• Political power can be used to alter the agenda

• Political power can be used to keep issues off the agenda

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Agenda Setting

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Problem stream

Policy stream

Political stream

Opportunity for agenda items

Policy Formulation begins with Problem Definition

•Can the problem or problems be defined?• What is the major problem or problems that need to be solved?

• Is there agreement on the basic problem or problems?

•More often than not, agreement is lacking or disputed.

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Stage Two: Policy Formulation• Define policy alternatives that can be debated.

• Who’s involved? Very fragmented in American system. • Members of Congress• Executive/Bureaucracy• Government Staffs • Interest groups• Judiciary

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Who designs or writes policies?• The public bureaucracy—government agencies

• Select committees

• Think tanks

• Interest groups—generally very important

• Members of Congress and their staffs

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How are Policy Options or Solutions vetted?

• Technical Feasibility/costs

• Consistency with community values

• Support from important groups

• Anticipation of future problems or constraints

• Debates between the political parties

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Example: Welfare Reform Problems Identified and Debated

• Increases in the number of unemployed people on welfare• Increases in the number of children born out-of-wedlock• Increases in parental abandonment• Increase in welfare costs

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Democratic Party Plan• Require work of able-bodied adults and make sure work

pays a decent wage• Improve child support enforcement• Set up programs to prevent unwanted pregnancies (sex

education)• Support work for adults with child care and health care

services• Create public service and subsidized jobs

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Republican Plan• Cap welfare spending• Turn welfare over to the states• Set lifetime limits on how long healthy adults can

receive welfare• Allow states to use strong sanctions to force change in

habits• Deny assistance to teens who become pregnant• Eliminate aid to legal immigrants

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Compromise: New Legislation Passed in 1996

• Caps spending on central welfare program--TANF• Turns welfare over to states, but sets guidelines• Requires supported work of healthy adults• Puts a lifetime limit on welfare enrollment • Requires both parents to accept responsibility for children• Funds abstinence sex education for teens• Denies welfare to most legal immigrants

• A compromise but one that gave the Republicans most of what they wanted.

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Stage Three: Policy Legitimation• Policy has a better chance of being implemented as

intended if it is considered to be legitimate

• It is legitimate if:

• Citizens agree that government action is required and appropriate—but there might be a lot of disagreement

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Stage Four: Policy Implementation• Activities that put policies into effect

• Passing the required laws

• Formulating rules and regulations

• Allocating a budget

• Setting deadlines

• Assigning enforcement or implementation authority

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Implementation Often Involves Delegation

• To carry out the policy agencies may delegate power to other government entities or even private subcontractors.

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Delegation of Authority Occurs when:

Government confers upon an administrative or private subcontractors rulemaking power that it could exercise itself.

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Limits on Discretion

• Administrative Procedures passed into law limit the authority of implementing agencies

• Congress and the executive branch establish oversight procedures and requirements

• Example: The food stamp program in Texas

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Presidential Oversight of Policy Implementation Includes

• Appointment Power• Budgetary Power• Reorganizations• Guidelines for Enforcement• Executive Orders• Required evaluations

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Congressional Oversight of Implementation Includes

Committee Hearings• Budgetary Power• Investigations (General Accounting Office)• Informal (phone calls, letters, etc.)• Enactment of a statute• Deadlines

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Stage Five: Evaluation of Change

• Different types of changes • direct vs. indirect• short-term vs. long-term

• Evaluation puts information back into the policy process—this is called feedback.

• Normally a policy has to be in effect for some time (even years) before its impact can be measured.

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Developing Evaluation Criteria:Some Examples

• Effectiveness, efficiency, fairness, political feasibility

• Are their unintended consequences

• Decide which criteria fit the problem(s)

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Evaluation may include • Measurement of Change

• Listing of positive and negative changes

• Listing of changes that still need to be accomplished

• Cost-Benefit Analysis: How much has change cost?

• What is the ethical impact of the law?

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Stage Six: Feedback• Information and data on impact of law or regulation is

communicated to government officials and public.

• Feedback plays a role in shaping amendments to exiting laws or the passage of new laws.

• This is the learning stage.

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Incrementalism• Since most policy problems are addressed in incremental

fashion –addressing part of the problem but not all of it-

• The feedback loop often results in the process starting over, often building on the laws that have been implemented.

• Sometimes the feedback process results in rejecting the old approach in favor of a new direction.

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Policy Process ModelPolicy Cycle

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Problem definition/Agenda setting

Policy formulation

Policy legitimation

Policy implementation

Policy change

Policy evaluation

feedback