PPL Notes 1-25-12 Public Policy o Public policy is the action or inaction of government o The means to achieve them-

- the implementation o Have to legitimize policy and then implement them o Practices of agencies that implement the programs o Government The institutions and processes o Politics Exercise of power o Policy analysis Examination of components of policy o Lose power by making bad decisions o Social contexts Population older o Dink Double income no kids o Equal parternships Both spouses working o Political context o Political gridlock o Book, divided we govern Get more done in a divided government Better policy is developed Meet in the middle Politicians want their seats back o Why does government intervene? Political Moral and ethical Economical o Externalities Positive and negative Postives benefits the people (education) Negative (pollution) o Public and private goods o Information failure o Why do we study public policy Increase knowledge More informed arguments and analysis 1-27-12 Policy analysis

Institutional capacity Social acceptability Political feasibly Chapter 2 o Increase in complexity o Federalism Federal State Local o Evolutional process of federalism o Separation of power Checks and balances o Branches of government Legislative Executive Judicial 1-30-12 Sample size Cant have democracy without having uneducated individuals If you dont bring any solutions to the table and just point out the problem then you are part of the problem Study like minded individuals Interests groups o What do they do? Lobby, provide information, link between the individuals to the government, backing campaigns, influencing politicians, take legal steps to influence policy Policy subsystem o Clicks Keeps people in and other people out o Within the policy arena o Informal settings where policy is made o Sub governments, issue networks, iron triangles Sub governments Power players in the subsystem Issue networks When there is a issue for two groups to work on they come together and work together and when the issue dissolves the two groups go back away. Only work together on the common issue Iron triangle Consists of congress, interests groups, beucratic agencies Triangles hold very tight

Become institutionalized Clicks of government Money and policy in play o Political policy gridlock Constitutional design Divided government Public opinion Chapter 4 o Policy analysis How do we analyze policy Collect data turn it into information and make policy recommendations Normative perspectives One person thinks we should do this and another person thinks we should do that Look at the budget to find out their priority Anticipate the future The steps in the policy analysis 1.Define the and analysize the problem 2. Construct alternatives 3. Develop a criteria o Whats most important Equality, effectiveness, efficency 4. Access policy alternatives o Cant make rational decision because we dont have all the information available and dont know whats going to happen tomorrow o Bounded rational o When we construct alternatives have to understand the options out there 5. draw a conclusion

2-1-12 Chapter 4 o Types of policy analysis Scientific, political, and professional Scientific Ability to build theory Searching for truth to support our claim Limitations- highly abstract and too therotical Professional Goal and objective Like a business proposal

Limitations- too narrow Political Extremely biased because pushing a particular issue Limitations- too partisan o Think tank Group of people to solve particular issues Conduct policy studies Helps citizens to understand issues Can be biased o Policy study questions What methods were used to conduct analysis? Who is funding it? Does the researcher anything at state? Is there any potential bias? o Surveys, standardized tests, o Validity Is it accurate, come out saying the same thing o Reliability Means it can be repeated, consistency Chapter 5 o Steps of analysis The problem How do we describe a policy How do you define it, classify it Where do you start with research? Internet Databases Substidize, tax Regulatory policy Set up rations, require an outcome Means testing Privatize, make things public Bardock o Steps Define the problem Provide evidence of the problem Construct some alternatives Select some type of critera Project outcomes Confront the tradeoffs Decide on the policy Tell your story Have to do everything before you can tell a story

Outline o Title o Table of contents o Executive summary o Intro o Background o Contest o Policy options o Policy chosen o Evaluation

2-3-12 4 questions for policy o Who is the target population? o Who is the agency conducting it? o How can the government Ways to change behavior o Reward mechanicans o Cocersion Avenues for capacity building o If dont go to college, ged or high school education o Job will only satisfy you so much o Start looking in other areas How can we think creatively about policy alternatives o No action analysis How big a problem is it, if dont do anything about it Scenario writing When thinking avout alternatives you have to be creative Chapte 6 o Way to measure things? Effectiveness Efficency Equity Ethics o Institutional capacity o Feasibility o Methods (how of research) Economic Cost / benefit Easy to show the cost The benefit is more uncertain Weakness in this method

Cost effectiveness Risk assessments Forecasting Predicting the future Impact assessment Ethical analysis Program evaluation o Policy analysis and program evaluation 2-8-12 Outline of study o Purpose of study o Problem statement o Literature review o Research design o Findings and conclusion o Question 2-10-12 Theory o Helps us describe something o Helps us explain something o Provides predictability o If you have a good theory it holds constant when tested Paradigm Model o Conceptual models Independent and dependant variables o Simplifies things o Gives you more clarity o Help you identify important parts o Communicate with others o Explain and predict policy Models- (anything with theories use the DYE MODEL on BB) o Institutionalism Procedures are set up SOPs Because of structure and components it explains how and why things work o Policy process model p. 73 agenda setting consists of public voice, media when they fall off they die or continue through process legitimacy

o o o o o o o o

o public support o political support o organization component policy implementation policy and program evaluation Rationalism Incriminalism Group theory Elite theory Public choice Game theory Advocacy collation framework Multiple streams theory

2-13-12 Theories help us simplify o Help predict o Sometimes they overlap P.14 Rationalism o Achieves maximum social gail o Limitations to rationalism o Bounded rational o Barriers will often pop up o Cant get to rational decision making because what is rational to me is not rational to you o Dont have time or resources to go out and figure out limitations Incriminalism o Small changes o Can be tracked over time o Conservative model because it moves slowly o Limitations- whats an incrementalism o Utilitzed for explaining sunk costs Group theory o Influenced by groups with power o Have common goal or value system that brings them together o Bridge between the government and people o Buttom up Elite theory o Citizens are stupid and you elect person to make decisions for you o You go to the ballot box, other than that you have o Policy is the preference of the policy elite o Elite shape the policy of the masses o Top down

Group theory vs elite theory Externatlity o Positive or negative o When the government gets involved Game theory o Involves two or more rational actors o Lack of complete information o Tries to predict what one person will do Advocacy coalition framework ACL Multiple streams theory o 3 policy streams that occur o Problem stream o Politics stream Carries leaders, policy entrepreuers, academics, money people o Policy stream Ideas, alternatives o When there are shifts or influence change happens, when change streams merge, policy window opens where policies can be changed 2-20-12 Is walmart good for America? Frontline video Test Review 56 mc, 2 short answer o 4 -6 paragraphs, 1-2 paragraphs Economic policy Means test, how people qualify for welfare Unemployment Welfare Inflation Policy engagement in government 3e o Effecency, effectiveness, equality o Know very well Theories o Rational, group, elite, institutional, public choice Open markets Supply side economics Monetary policy, physical policy Government agencies responsible for making sure Congressional accounting office, budget office Federal reserve Entitlements vs. tax expendures Tax and spending falls under where

Internationalist or globalist vs. protectionist Trends and unemployment rates o For age groups o Younger higher Ethical analysis Cost effective analysis Risk assessment Program evaluations Political feasibility Administive feasibility Technical feasibility Synsitivity analysis When applied Trends of us economcy in last 10 years o Better or worse Federal budget o What expected in future o In next 5 years Policy analysis Get information through sources o Papers Literature reviews, brain storming Ways to get ideas Government provides direct payments called substidies o What they are, farm substities, what look like Apply concepts of tax and spending, substities, home rates for houses Substities and ration, tax incentives Liberal and conservative Supply and demand No action analysis Action or no action, how does that look Education policy o Standardized tests, what do o Quality of education, schools Think tanks, ngos Divided govern o What look like Issue networks Iron triangles Separation of powers Divided government Constitution Decentralization, centralization, policy grid lock

Rational decision making Systemic organized way That this and turn into that and give Data, information, giving to decision makers What is politics Who gets, what, when and how Federalism, dual and cooperative Interest groups affect policy o Support and money o Lobby Pluralism Why govern get involved in policy problems Positive and negative externalities Market failure Public and private goods 3 contexts of government/policy Question from the bardock book Policy theory or model dye chapter ESSAY o Dye Paper Proposal o 2 page paper proposal o Easy bib