American Public Policy An Introduction

by Cochran, Clarke E.; Mayer, Lawrence C.; Carr, T. R.; Cayer, N. Joseph

• ISBN13: 9780534603366
• ISBN10: 053460336X
• Format: Paperback
• Copyright: 2002-12-10
• Publisher: Wadsworth Publishing

Summary

AMERICAN PUBLIC POLICY is an introductory undergraduate text that engages students' interest with its unique emphasis on specific, substantive issues of public policy. This text analyzes American public policies in a historical context that allows students to evaluate, analyze, and debate whether established policies are successful or if alternative policies could better serve the American public. The discussion kindled by AMERICAN PUBLIC POLICY educates students on the practical methods of public policy analysis while allowing them to apply their knowledge to real life policies.

Table of Contents

Preface	xviii
Issues and Public Policy: An Introduction	1	(24)
Studying Public Policy	1	(2)
What Constitutes Public Policy?	1	(1)
Why Study Public Policy?	2	(1)
Defining Major Concepts	3	(8)
Policy Analysis	3	(1)
Categories of Public Policy	3	(3)
Models for Policy Analysis	6	(1)
Stages of Policy Development	7	(3)
Aspects of Policy Evaluation	10	(1)
The Contexts of Contemporary Public Policy	11	(9)
The Institutional Context	12	(1)
The Economic Context	13	(1)
The Demographic Context	14	(3)
The Ideological Context	17	(2)
The Cultural Context	19	(1)
Approaches Taken by This Book	20	(1)
Chapter Plan	20	(1)
National Focus	21	(1)
Comparative Information	21	(1)
Summary	21	(2)
Notes	23	(1)
Suggested Readings	24	(1)
Intergovernmental Policies: A New Federalism?	25	(18)
Issue Background: The Federal System	25	(4)
Issues in a Federal System	25	(2)
Participants in Intergovernmental Relations	27	(2)
Contemporary Policy: Intergovernmental Realities	29	(3)
Modern Intergovernmental Relations	29	(2)
Other Forms of Intergovernmental Interaction	31	(1)
Policy Evaluation: Changing Intergovernmental Relations	32	(6)
Administrative Problems	32	(2)
Monitoring	34	(1)
Finances	35	(1)
Unfunded Mandates	36	(1)
Structural Effects	37	(1)
Future Alternatives: Continuing Adaptation of the Intergovernmental System	38	(2)
Summary	40	(1)
Notes	40	(2)
Suggested Readings	42	(1)
The Economy: Changing Government-Business Relationships	43	(30)
Issue Background: Key Concepts in Economics	43	(9)
The Free-Enterprise System	44	(2)
History of Government's Role	46	(2)
Inflation and Recession	48	(1)
Microeconomic Approaches	49	(3)
Contemporary Policy: Case Studies in Economic Intervention	52	(8)
The Federal Trade Commission: Traditional Economic Regulation	52	(5)
Community Revitalization Issues: Merging Social and Economic Concerns	57	(2)
International Trade	59	(1)
Policy Evaluation: Encouraging Competition or Discouraging Innovation?	60	(6)
Deregulation	60	(1)
International Trade	61	(1)
Assistance to Business	62	(1)
Effects of Regulation	63	(1)
Changes in Regulation	64	(2)
Future Alternatives: Reforming the Relationship of Government and the Economy	66	(3)
Summary	69	(1)
Notes	70	(1)
Suggested Readings	71	(2)
Economic Issues: Taxing, Spending, and Budgeting	73	(27)
Issue Background: Concepts and Issues	73	(5)
Economic Policy Obstacles	74	(1)
Macroeconomic Approaches	75	(3)
Contemporary Policy: Approaches to Managing the Economy	78	(6)
Supply-Side Economics	79	(1)
Budget Deficits in the 1980s and 1990s	80	(3)
Tax Reform	83	(1)
Policy Evaluation: Success or Failure?	84	(9)
Social Orders	84	(1)
Inflation	85	(1)
Fiscal Policy	86	(3)
Federal Revenues and Spending	89	(1)
Fiscal Policy Evaluation	89	(3)
Defense Spending	92	(1)
Future Alternatives: Spending, Taxes, and the Deficit	93	(3)
Taxes	93	(1)
Other Future Issues	94	(2)
Summary	96	(1)
Notes	97	(1)
Suggested Readings	98	(2)
Energy and Environmental Policies: Policy Complacency	100	(43)
Energy Policy Issue Background: Complacency and Crisis	100	(5)
Traditional Energy Policy	100	(3)
Western Vulnerability: OPEC and the Arab Oil Embargo	103	(2)
Contemporary Policy: From Crisis to Complacency	105	(6)
Energy Problems Emerge	105	(1)
Global Dependence on Fossil Fuels	106	(1)
Energy Policy after 1973	107	(2)
Energy Policy after 1980	109	(2)
Policy Evaluation: Continued Fossil Fuel Dependence	111	(8)
Alternatives to Fossil Fuels	111	(2)
Nuclear Power	113	(4)
Political Impact of Continued Oil Dependence	117	(2)
Future Alternatives: Energy Policy Complacency	119	(1)
Environmental Policy	120	(1)
Issue Background: A Legacy of Environmental Abuse	121	(7)
Air Pollution	121	(3)
Water and Solid-Waste Pollution	124	(1)
Toxic and Hazardous Waste	125	(2)
Acid Rain	127	(1)
The Environmental Legacy	128	(1)
Contemporary Environmental Policy	128	(3)
Water-Pollution Policy	129	(1)
Air-Pollution Policy	129	(1)
The National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA)	130	(1)
Policy Evaluation: Searching for Direction	131	(2)
Current Policy Direction and Values	131	(1)
Reduced Public Concern	132	(1)
The Politics of Regulation	132	(1)
Enforcement Problems	133	(1)
Future Alternatives: Unresolved Policy Issues	133	(6)
International Treaties	133	(1)
Environmental Justice	134	(1)
Self-Regulation of the Market	134	(1)
Taxes and Legal Action	135	(1)
The Role of State Governments	136	(1)
Public Attitudes	137	(1)
Energy and the Environment	137	(2)
Summary	139	(1)
Notes	140	(1)
Suggested Readings	141	(2)
Crime and Criminal Justice: Dilemmas of Social Control	143	(54)
Issue Background: The Growth and Decline of Crime	145	(12)
The Extent of Crime	145	(4)
Reasons for Crime	149	(8)
Contemporary Policy: Constitutional Rights and the Deterrence of Crime	157	(10)
Confessions and the Right to Counsel	157	(3)
The Exclusionary Rule and Search and Seizure	160	(1)
Capital Punishment	161	(6)
Policy Evaluation: Flaws in the Criminal Justice System	167	(7)
Confessions and the Right to Counsel	167	(1)
The Exclusionary Rule and Search and Seizure	168	(1)
Capital Punishment	169	(3)
Conclusion: Crime and Criminal Procedure	172	(2)
Future Alternatives: Policy Options for Reducing Crime	174	(18)
Drug-Related Crimes	174	(2)
Violence against Women	176	(2)
Crimes of Violence and Gun Control	178	(8)
Decriminalization and Deterrence	186	(1)
Strengthening the Police	187	(1)
Penal Reform, Sentencing, and Recidivism	188	(2)
Limiting the Alternatives to Punishment	190	(2)
Summary	192	(2)
Notes	194	(2)
Suggested Readings	196	(1)
Income Support: Security, Work, or Dependence?	197	(46)
Issue Background: Responding to Poverty	197	(11)
Defining Poverty	197	(4)
How Many Poor?	201	(1)
Who Are the Poor?	202	(3)
The Causes of Poverty	205	(2)
The Welfare State	207	(1)
Contemporary Policy: Social Insurance Programs	208	(3)
Social Security	209	(1)
Unemployment Insurance	210	(1)
Policy Evaluation: Does Social Security Still Work?	211	(3)
Social Security Successes	211	(1)
The Social Security Dilemma	212	(1)
Is Social Security Fair?	213	(1)
Unemployment Compensation	214	(1)
Future Alternatives: The Difficulty of Social Security Reform	214	(4)
The Future of Social Security	214	(1)
Quick Fixes	215	(1)
Diversifying Social Security Investment	216	(1)
Privatizing Social Security	216	(1)
Pensions	217	(1)
Contemporary Policy: Public Assistance Programs	218	(7)
Cash Assistance Programs	219	(3)
In-Kind Benefits	222	(2)
Work/Employment Programs	224	(1)
Public Assistance Spending	224	(1)
Policy Evaluation: Public Assistance	225	(7)
Accomplishments of Public Assistance	225	(1)
Has Welfare Reform Worked?	226	(3)
TANF, Children, and Work: Evaluation and Re-authorization	229	(3)
Future Alternatives in Public Assistance: Children, Underclass, Homelessness, and Work	232	(6)
Children and Poverty	232	(2)
The Underclass	234	(1)
Housing Programs and Homelessness	235	(1)
Employment Issues	236	(2)
Conclusions	238	(1)
Summary	238	(1)
Notes	239	(2)
Suggested Readings	241	(2)
Health Care: Unlimited Needs, Limited Resources	243	(42)
Issue Background: The Health Care System and its Problems	243	(13)
The Structure of American Health Care	243	(2)
Paying for Health Care	245	(1)
Other Nations	246	(1)
How Healthy Is America?	247	(2)
Inequities in Access to Health Care	249	(2)
High Cost	251	(4)
Quality of Health Care	255	(1)
Contemporary Policy: Health Care for the Poor and Aged	256	(6)
Medicare	257	(2)
Medicaid	259	(2)
State Children's Health Insurance Program (SCHIP)	261	(1)
Other Federal Programs	261	(1)
Policy Evaluation: Health Care at the Crossroads	262	(5)
Medicare and Medicaid	263	(1)
Questioning the Structures of Health Care	264	(2)
Managed Care Backlash	266	(1)
Future Alternatives: Health Care Reform, Ethics, and Long-Term Care	267	(13)
The Failure of Universal Health Care and Future Prospects	268	(2)
The Promise of Incremental Reform	270	(1)
States and Health Care Reform	271	(2)
Medicare Reform	273	(3)
Ethical Issues	276	(1)
The Moral Dilemmas of Research and Technological Development	277	(1)
Long-Term Care	278	(2)
Summary	280	(2)
Notes	282	(1)
Suggested Readings	283	(2)
Education: Conflict in Policy Direction	285	(44)
Issue Background: Historical Perspectives and the Onset of Federal Involvement in Education	286	(5)
The Tradition of Free Public Education	286	(1)
The Tradition of Local Control	286	(1)
An Emerging Role for State Governments	287	(1)
Federal Involvement in Education	287	(1)
The Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965: Expanding the Federal Policy Role	287	(4)
The Federal Role in Higher Education	291	(1)
Contemporary Policy: Remedying Social Inequality Through Education	291	(6)
The Issue of Unequal Financial Resources	292	(3)
Equality in Education	295	(2)
Educational Inequality Outside the United States	297	(1)
Policy Evaluation: Educational Quality in the United States	297	(8)
Concern over Poor Student Achievement	298	(3)
Questioning Teacher Competency	301	(1)
Merit Pay and Master Teachers	302	(1)
Bilingual Education	303	(1)
Multiculturalism	304	(1)
Future Alternatives: Community Control, Private Schools, A Changing Federal Role, and Conflicting Priorities	305	(18)
Community Control and Decentralization	306	(1)
The Issue of Private Schools	307	(3)
Crisis in Education	310	(1)
Changing Priorities in Federal Education Policy	311	(1)
Education Priorities in the Twenty-First Century	312	(3)
Unresolved Education Issues: Teachers and Curriculum	315	(3)
Unresolved Education Issues: Structural Questions	318	(2)
Issues in Higher Education	320	(3)
Summary	323	(2)
Notes	325	(2)
Suggested Readings	327	(2)
Legal and Social Equality: The Struggle against Oppression and Bigotry	329	(47)
Issue Background: The Idea of Equality	330	(9)
Equality under Law	330	(4)
Equality of Opportunity	334	(3)
Equality of Material Well-Being	337	(2)
The Civil Rights Movement and Equality	339	(1)
Contemporary Policy: Strengthening Constitutional Guarantees of Equality	339	(16)
The Erosion of the Fourteenth Amendment	339	(1)
Ending Segregation	340	(1)
Enforcing Integration	341	(2)
The Struggle for Racial Balance in Employment and Higher Education	343	(4)
Equality and the Women's Movement	347	(4)
Bias against Homosexuals, the Handicapped, and Native Americans	351	(4)
Policy Evaluation: The Drive for Proportional Equality	355	(8)
Busing for Racial Balance	355	(2)
Retreat on Racial Preference Programs	357	(4)
Challenges to Racial Preference in Higher Education	361	(2)
Future Alternatives: The Changing Conception of Equality	363	(9)
The Debate over Affirmative Action	363	(6)
Race and Equality	369	(3)
Summary	372	(1)
Notes	373	(2)
Suggested Readings	375	(1)
Immigration Policy: The Barely Open Door	376	(25)
Issue Background: From an Open Door to Increasing Limits	376	(7)
The Open Door	376	(1)
Use of Quotas	377	(3)
Transition to a Preference System	380	(2)
Illegal Immigration	382	(1)
Contemporary Policy: Responding to Changing Immigration Dynamics	383	(5)
Policy Evaluation: Contrasting Perceptions	388	(6)
Current Policy Concerns	388	(1)
Economic Concerns	388	(2)
Impact on Public Services	390	(2)
Quality of Life	392	(2)
Future Alternatives: Openness or Restriction?	394	(2)
Summary	396	(1)
Notes	397	(2)
Suggested Readings	399	(2)
Foreign and Defense Policy: Security and Interests in a Dangerous World	401	(21)
Issue Background: Competing Approaches to Foreign Policy	401	(4)
Realism or Classical Diplomacy	401	(3)
The Balance of Power	404	(1)
The American Style in Foreign Policy: Wilsonian Idealism	405	(4)
Universal Justice and the Nuremburg Principle	406	(1)
Diplomacy, Force, and American Optimism	407	(1)
Collective Security and Institutional Solutions to World Conflict	408	(1)
Recent and Contemporary Policy: Cold War, Containment, and After	409	(3)
The Failure of Containment in Vietnam	410	(2)
The Search for a Comprehensive Peace in Palestine	412	(1)
Policy Evaluation: Realism Versus Idealism in the Middle East	412	(4)
Oil, U.S. Foreign Policy, and the Middle East	412	(1)
Palestinian Nationalism as a Just and Achievable Cause	413	(3)
American Options in the Region	416	(1)
Future Alternatives: Control of Terrorism	416	(3)
Defining Terrorism	416	(1)
Options for Confronting Terrorism	417	(2)
Summary	419	(1)
Notes	420	(1)
Suggested Readings	421	(1)
Private Morality and Public Policy: Family Values, Social Issues, and the Open Society	422	(44)
The Idea of the Open Society	422	(5)
The Emergence of Neo-Populism on the Right	422	(1)
The Open Society and the Tolerance of Diverse Public Ideas	423	(1)
Community and Family Values versus the Open Society	424	(2)
The Role of the Court and the Presumption of Constitutionality	426	(1)
Abortion, Birth Control, and the Law	427	(6)
The Moral Issue	432	(1)
The First Amendment and Public Morality: Suppressing Obscenity	433	(15)
Freedom of Speech	433	(3)
Protection against Insensitive Speech	436	(3)
Obscenity and the Law: The Roth Rule	439	(3)
The Conflict between Pornography and Public Morality	442	(6)
Conflict Over the Role of Religion in the United States	448	(12)
Freedom of and from Religion	449	(1)
The Establishment Clause	450	(4)
The Free Exercise Clause	454	(3)
Aid to Parochial Schools	457	(2)
Scientific Creationism and Secular Humanism	459	(1)
Family Values and Feminism	460	(2)
Summary	462	(1)
Notes	463	(1)
Suggested Readings	464	(2)
The Continuing Policy Debates: A Conclusion	466	(8)
Political Actors	466	(1)
Ideology, Demography, and Policy Stalemate	467	(3)
Pluralism	470	(1)
The Limits of Public Policy	471	(1)
``Problem'' and ``Solution''	472	(2)
Index	474