Tarlac State University

College of Education
Villa Lucinda Campus, Tarlac City

SSM8- SOCIO-CULTURAL ANTHROPOLOGY

POLICY MAKING
IN
NATIONS

(UNITED STATES)

Submitted To:
Mr. Douglas Ferrer
Professor

Submiited By:
Tumang, Riesel Elisan
3-B2
Policy making in Nations
The Architecture of American Politics
 Presidential Democracy
 Separation of Powers supported by a sophisticated system of checks and balances.
o Horizontally
o Vertically
 Judicial: Common law system
 Election system favors the development of 2 umbrella political parties instead of multiple
parties representing different positions of the ideological spectrum
Policy making in the United States
• Policy-making systems “make” most public policy.
-Networks of small, stable groups of people who control the operating decisions of
specific government agencies of specific programs. They are called systems because
they are predictable and involve a high level of interaction and feedback
-The people:
• Elected: President, Congressmen, Senators
• Unelected: Lobbyists, professional staff, and full time bureaucrats
Limited capabilities
 Difficulties making big changes
 Presidential Democracy -- decentralization
 Final decisions emerge from compromise, the result of pulling and pushing framed by
public and private interests.
 Unintended consequences are the norm.
How a bill becomes Law
Bills are introduced by members of the legislature but many of them are actually initially
drafted by executive branch officials.
1. Subcommittee:
- Decides whether to hold hearings on a bill that has been introduced.
- Sends markup bills to Committee
2. Committee:
- Further discusses
- Approves bill which goes then to chamber
3. Chambers
• Rules committee includes in Congress agenda
• Leadership informal discussions decides whether to include in Senates agenda.
4. Amendments (more or less germane); deal brokering; in the Senate maybe filibuster.
5. When approved Bill is passed to the other chamber. Alternatively both chambers can be
discussing it simultaneously.
If the language of the bill differs largely leaders of the committees engage meet in
conference to reconcile the language.
6. Bill is sent to the White House of action.
1. President signs within 10 days or it become law by default unless the session
finishes before the 10 days.
2. President vetos the bill. The whole bill. Can only be overcome by a 2/3 majority
vote in the chambers.

7. The bill goes back to the chambers for Authorization and Appropriation.
- Most Bills are funded for 2 years
- Some Bills (social security, food stamps are entitlement programs they must receive
funding)
Post-legislative process
 The law is published in the Federal Register
  Many agencies rules are subject to constant review.
 Agencies have enforcement duties.
 They also have judicial ones. In fact parties who feel the bill just passed does not serve
well their interest can use the regulars or administrative courts to challenge it.
Alternative paths
 Executive orders
 Direct ballots voted in states
Criticism of the regulatory process
 Undemocratic
 Failing to respond to majority demand
 Giving too much power to narrow interest groups
 Criticism to the moral and capacity of the bureaucracy
Types of policies and politics

Perceived Policy Benefit

Narrow Wide

Perceived Concentrated Interest Entrepreneurial

policy group politics
cost politics: (championed
CAFE by an
standards entrepreneur
such as Ralph
Nader or Ross
Perot)

Disperse Client Majoritarian

politics: politics (Health
Restrictions Care or Social
on imports, Security)
e.g.Canadian
lumber.

GLOSSARY
Bill- (law) a statute in draft before it becomes law.
Executive- someone who manages a government agency or department and a person who
administers the law.
Judicial- relating to the administration of justice or the function of a judge.
Law- legal documents setting forth rules governing a particular kind of activity.
Policy- a plan of action adopted by an individual or social group.
Policy Making- concerned with policy, not administration.
REFERENCES
www.uniassignment.com
www.unhistory.org/gov/11.asp