Topic: Public Policy

Makers' Environment
1. The Political Environment
2. Political Culture
3. The Official Policy Makers
By: VIRGILIO G. DACILLO JR.
PA 510

Public Policy Makers'

Environment

Public Policy definitions

- it is a system of "courses of
action, regulatory measures, laws, and
funding priorities concerning a given topic
promulgated by a governmental entity or
its
representatives."Public
policyis
commonly embodied in "constitutions,
legislative acts, and judicial decisions,"
according to some scholars.

1. The Political Environment

- is the state, government and its
institutions and legislations and the
public and private stakeholders who
operate and interact with or influence that
system.

Political Environment
it involves governmentactionswhich
affects
theoperationsof
acompanyorbusiness. These actions
may be on local,regional, national or
international
level.Business
ownersandmanagerspayclose
attention
to
the
politicalenvironmenttogaugehow
government actions will affect their
company.

 the stability of the political environment

and government will impact on the
prioritisation of mental health policy in
relation to other policies, the funding
available to mental health and the time
frames
in
which
policies
and
programmes can be realized.

 Political environment also includes the

political culture that is "widely held
views, beliefs and attitudes concerning
what governments should try to do and
how they should operate and the
relationship between the citizen and the
government."

2. Political Culture
- is defined by theInternational
Encyclopedia of the Social Sciencesas the
"set of attitudes, beliefs and sentiments
that give order and meaning to
apoliticalprocess and which provide the
underlying assumptions and rules that
govern behavior in the political system".
- It encompasses both the
political ideals and operating norms of
apolity (political organization).

PoliticalCulture
- is thus the manifestation of the
psychological and subjective dimensions of
politics.
- is the product of both the
history of a political system and the
histories of the members. Thus it is rooted
equally in public events and private
experience.

PoliticalCulture
- Political culture includes population
participation and involvement in the
electoral process and the level of
government acceptance by the population.
This is of particular importance in
countries where democratic processes are
emerging.
- by philosopy the term political
culture was brought into political science
to promote the American political system.

3. The Official Policy Makers

Policy Makeris a rapid assessment
method for analyzing and managing the
politics of publicpolicy. Politics affects all
aspects of publicpolicy-- what gets on the
agenda, who supports an issue, who
opposes an issue, whether an issue
receives official approval, and whether the
officialpolicyis implemented.

A legislator (or lawmaker) is a person who writes and

passes laws, especially someone who is a member of
a legislature. Legislators are usually politicians and
are often elected by the people of the state.
Legislatures may be supra-national (for example, the
European Parliament), national (for example, the
United States Congress), regional (for example, the
National Assembly for Wales), or local (for example,
local authorities).
Legislators are elected officials to develop laws for
local, state, or the federal governments. They often
give speeches to the media to keep the public
informed or address certain issues. Legislators
include members of the U.S. Congress; state
senators and representatives; and city, county, and
township commissioners and council members.

What Legislators Do
1. Develop bills? drafts of laws that they want their
fellow legislators to approve
2. Draft or approve policies, regulations, budgets,
and programs
3. Seek funding for projects and programs in their
district
4. Serve on committees, panels, and study groups
for special policy issues
5. Listen to and address the concerns of people
they represent

Work Environment
The working conditions of legislators
vary by position and level of
government. While some legislators
work only a few hours a week, others
work long hours and have stressful
schedules. Some travel frequently for
work.

Some overviews;
In any society, governmental entities enact
laws, make policies, and allocate resources.
This is true at all levels.
Public policy can be generally defined as a
system of laws, regulatory measures, courses
of action, and funding priorities concerning a
given topic promulgated by a governmental
entity or its representatives.
Public policyis commonly embodied in
constitutions, legislative acts, and judicial
decisions.

 Individuals and groups often attempt to

shape public policy through education,
advocacy, or mobilization of interest
groups. But it is reasonable to assume
that the process always involves efforts
by competing interest groups to
influence policy makers in their favor.

 A major aspect of public policy is law. In

a general sense, the law includes specific
legislation and more broadly defined
provisions
of
constitutional
or
international law. Likewise, legislation
identifies areas in which research grants
can be funded and often determines the
amount of funding allocated. Thus, it is
not surprising that public policy debates
occur over proposed legislation and
funding.

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