Including key research articles from specialists in the field, this volume provides an introduction and critical insights into the most important debates surrounding the governance of contemporary China. The material will enable readers to understand how China is ruled, how participation and protest are regulated by the authorities, and the relationship between the Central state and its local agencies. Spanning the most important areas of the subject, the chosen articles explore the study of Chinese politics, the nature of the Chinese political system, the policy-making process, the nature of the local state, participation and protest, and authoritarian resilience or democratization.Professor Saich's collection brings together essential reading for students of China, those who are interested in comparative politics and the general reader who wants a coherent introduction about how China is ruled. 33 Articles, dating from 1992 to 2013 Contributors include: D.S.G. Goodman, M. Manion, A.C. Mertha, A.J. Nathan, B. Naughton, K.J. O'Brien, J. C. Oi, E.J. Perry, V. Shih, L.L. Tsai

One important tradition in political science conceives of the Civil War in the United States serving as the functional equivalent of the English and French Revolutions, bringing with it the victory of liberal democratic industrialism over aristocratic agriculturalism. From this perspective, the Civil War is notable for its impact on the American state. Surprisingly however, little attention has been paid to the distinguishing features of this historic rupture in American politics. Through primary source research and the re-analysis of the rich historical literature about the antebellum era and the causes of the Civil War, Lawrence A. Anderson explores the relationship between federalism and the movement for secession in the United States during the pre-civil war era. Focusing primarily on South Carolina, Anderson carefully revisits theory on institutional analysis of political development to expose what caused secession in the United States.

"Managing the Fiscal Metropolis: The Financial Policies, Practices, and Health of Suburban Municipalities" is an important book. This first comprehensive analysis of the financial condition, management, and policy making of local governments in a metropolitan region offers local governments currently dealing with the Great Recession a better understanding of what affects them financially and how to operate with less revenue.

Hendrick's groundbreaking study covers 264 Chicago suburban municipalities from the late 1990s to the present. In it she identifies and describes the primary factors and events that affect municipal financial decisions and financial conditions, explores the strategies these governments use to manage financial conditions and solve financial problems, and looks at the impact of contextual factors and stresses on government financial decisions. "Managing the Fiscal Metropolis" offers new evidence about the role of contextual factors -- including other local governments -- in the financial condition of municipalities and how municipal financial decisions and practices alter these effects. The wide economic and social diversity of the municipalities studied make its findings relevant on a national scale.

Cultural heritage and illicit trafficking in the Middle East are two key topics of our time. The book sheds light on both aspects, and identifies the need to democratize cultural heritage, by giving greater control to local communities. It also investigates the link between local hotbeds of conflict and violence in countries such as Syria and Iraq, as well as war economics, transnational criminal networks and the politics of deliberate destruction and theft of cultural heritage. Finally, the chapters analyze the impact of non-violent and violent non-state actors, fragile states, forced migration, environmental degradation, as well as how local and international institutions have reacted to the dramatic events which the region and its inhabitants have experienced in recent years

Despite a centralized formal structure, Chinese politics and policy-making have long been marked by substantial degrees of regional and local variation and experimentation. These trends have, if anything, intensified as China s reform matures. Though often remarked upon, the politicsof policy formation, diffusion, and implementation at the subnational level have not previously been comprehensively described, let alone satisfactorily explained.

Based on extensive fieldwork, this book explores how policies diffuse across China today, the mechanisms through which local governments actually arrive at specific solutions, and the implications for China s political development and stability in the years ahead. The chapters examine how local-level institutions solve governance challenges, such as rural development, enterprise reform, and social service provision. Focusing on diverse policy areas that include land use, state-owned enterprise reform, and house churches, the contributors all address the same overarching question: how do local policymakers innovate in each issue area to address a governance challenges and how, if at all, do these innovations diffuse into national politics.

As a study of local governance in China today, this book will appeal to both students and scholars of Chinese politics, comparative politics, governance and development studies, and also to policy-makers interested in authoritarianism and governance."

Offering new insights into the political economy of contemporary India, this book considers how and why unequal patterns of economic growth have taken shape within the context of a democratic and decentralising political system, and how this has impacted upon the processes of economic development.

Three decades after the Civil War-amidst a resurgent patriotic fervor, a new Christian Awakening and an enveloping modernization promising heretofore unimagined heights of prosperity and well-being-a new generation of Americans in rural Nelson and Washington Counties, Kentucky, were experiencing what Lincoln in their fathers' war had promised: a new birth of freedom. Before them they saw the ancient vision of Zion, America as the new Promised Land, the Christian Republic, the Shining City on a Hill, shedding its light of prosperity and freedom on all. Their destiny and calling, they had no doubt, was to secure liberty and its blessings for themselves and posterity. This was the Vision and the hope that united them as a people and as a crusading army at home and abroad, inspiring a multitude of social and political reforms and drawing them into the Great War of 1914-1918. It is this story that Visions of Zion tells-of dreams that united and divided, that lifted up and brought low-a story of a drive for everlasting peace that led to war and that finally ends with the collapse of Zion and fading of all those wondrous dreams of a better world.

This book shows how specific historical events and societal forces within Nigeria transcend the choices its political leaders have made to influence the course of the state's political development. Kalu N. Kalu describes a variety of factors that have contributed to the challenges facing state-building and political institutions in Nigeria. Chief among them are the nature of interest aggregation, the dynamics of conflict, and the patterns of state intervention in matters dealing with secularism, distributive politics, economy, security, and autonomy. Kalu succeeds in constructing a more organic concept of political development in Nigeria by creating a model based on rentier politics that captures the critical relationship between state power and economy. By doing so, he goes beyond current scholarship about Nigeria and demonstrates the need for a restructuring of its institutions, offering insight into an enduring narrative that continues to shape Nigerian politics.

Municipal Shared Services and Consolidation provides a comprehensive and clear review of the theories and practices of structuring and managing complex local government services. Intended for both students and practitioners, this volume in the Public Solutions Handbook Series addresses concepts and processes of shaping collaborative arrangements in public service with goals of effectiveness and efficiency in mind. The Handbook begins with a review of theories of shared services and consolidation, highlighting conceptual foundations, practical barriers, and cultural considerations related to these efforts. Specific, practical advice follows, highlighting the processes of creating, implementing, and managing shared services and consolidation agreements. Municipal Shared Services and Consolidation is exceptionally well written and is amplified by examples, cases, illustrations, and a comprehensive bibliography.

Although local neighborhood associations are found in many countries, Japan s are distinguished by their ubiquity, scope of activities, and very high participation rates, making them important for the study of society and politics. Most Japanese belong to one local neighborhood association or another, making them Japan s most numerous civil society organization, and one that powerfully shapes governance outcomes in the country. And, they also often blur the state-society boundary, making them theoretically intriguing.

Neighborhood Associations and Local Governance in Japan draws on a unique and novel body of empirical data derived from the first national survey of neighborhood associations carried out in 2007 and provides a multifaceted empirical portrait of Japan s neighborhood associations. It examines how local associational structures affect the quality of local governance, and thus the quality of life for Japan s citizens and residents, and illuminates the way in which these ambiguous associations can help us refine civil society theory and show how they contribute to governance. As well as outlining the key features of neighbourhood associations, the book goes on to examine in detail the way in which neighbourhood associations contribute to governance, in terms of social capital, networks with other community organizations, social service provision, cooperation with local governments and political participation.

This book will be welcomed by students and scholars of Japanese politics, Japanese society, anthropology, urban studies as well as those interested in social capital and civil society. "

Urban Governance Under the Ottomans focuses on one of the most pressing topics in this field, namely the question why cities formerly known for their multiethnic and multi- religious composition became increasingly marked by conflict in the 19th century. This collection of essays represents the result of an intense process of discussion among many of the authors, who have been invited to combine theoretical considerations on the question sketched above, with concrete case studies based upon original archival research. From Istanbul to Aleppo, and from the Balkans to Jerusalem, what emerges from the book is a renewed image of the imperial and local mechanisms of coexistence, and of their limits and occasional dissolution in times of change and crisis. Raising questions of governance and changes therein, as well as epistemological questions regarding what has often been termed 'cosmopolitanism', this book calls for a closer investigation of incidents of both peaceful coexistence, as well as episodes of violence and conflict. A useful addition to existing literature, this book will be of interest to scholars and researchers in the fields of Urban Studies, History and Middle Eastern Studies.

First published in 1969, this book is concerned with the processes of policy-making in local government. The authors address themselves to the basic challenge of planning in a democracy and consider issues such as how those elected to exercise choice on our behalf can preserve and expand their capacity to choose discriminatingly, when the sheer complexity of the issues facing them tends all the time to make them increasingly dependent on the skills and judgements of their professional advisers. This question is explored in relation to the many different, yet interdependent, aspects of the planning process which impinge on any local community - with particular reference to the planning of housing, transport, education, and shopping, of land use and local government finance. The book is the outcome of a four-year program of research during which a mixed team of operational research and social scientists was given a unique opportunity to observe the ways in which decisions were made and plans formulated in one particular city- Coventry. It covers both political and professional aspects of local government in 1960s Great Britain and has had important implications for urban governments throughout the world.

Regulation has become a front-page topic recently, often referenced by politicians in conjunction with the current state of the U.S. economy. Yet despite regulation's increased presence in current politics and media, The Politics of Regulatory Reform argues that the regulatory process and its influence on the economy is misunderstood by the general public as well as by many politicians. In this book, two experienced regulation scholars confront questions relevant to both academic scholars and those with a general interest in ascertaining the effects and importance of regulation. How does regulation impact the economy? What roles do politicians play in making regulatory decisions? Why do politicians enact laws that require regulations and then try to hamper agencies abilities to issue those same regulations? The authors answer these questions and untangle the misperceptions behind regulation by using an area of regulatory policy that has been underutilized until now. Rather than focusing on the federal government, Shapiro and Borie-Holtz have gathered a unique dataset on the regulatory process and output in the United States. They use state-specific data from twenty-eight states, as well as a series of case studies on regulatory reform, to question widespread impressions and ideas about the regulatory process. The result is an incisive and comprehensive study of the relationship between politics and regulation that also encompasses the effects of regulation and the reasons why regulatory reforms are enacted.

Policy Work in Canada is an in-depth study into the levels of analytical capacity found within the federal and provincial governments as well as the non-governmental sector. By focusing on the individuals who craft public policy in Canada, this collection of eighteen chapters broadens and deepens our understanding of policy development in Canada. The contributors to this volume empirically examine such topics as: the inherent characteristics of sophisticated policy analysis, the constraints that influence the outcome or style of analysis, the influence of policy analysis on democratic debate and lessons that can be learned from different jurisdictions within and outside of Canada. Policy Work in Canada provides a pathway for academics and public mangers alike to meet the challenges involved in crafting more nuanced and sophisticated public policy head-on.

These volumes provide an essential comprehensive work of reference for the annual municipal elections that took place each November in the 83 County Boroughs of England and Wales between 1919 and 1938. They also provide an extensive and detailed analysis of municipal politics in the same period, both in terms of the individual boroughs and of aggregate patterns of political behaviour. Being annual, these local election results give the clearest and most authoritative record of how political opinion changed between general elections, especially useful for research into the longer gaps such as 1924-29 and 1935-45, or crisis periods such as 1929-31. They also illuminate the impact of fringe parties such as the Communist Party and the British Union of Fascists, and also such questions as the role of women in politics, the significance of religious and ethnic differentiation and the connection between occupational and class divisions and party allegiance. Analysis at the ward level is particularly useful for socio-spatial studies. A major work of reference, County Borough Elections in England and Wales, 1919-1938 is indispensable for university libraries and local and national record offices. Each volume has approximately 700 pages.

This book, first published in 1979, examines the economic lives of municipal governments. Local government provides a great deal of services, all of which must be paid for. The sources of these revenues are analysed here, in three sections: bonding and debt; taxation; and other, miscellaneous sources of revenue. The bibliographic entries stretch back into the nineteenth century, and see a large postwar increase as the financial problems of municipal corporations grew alongside the growth of the suburbs.

Originally published in 1987, this title reviews and evaluates the methodologies suitable for highway evaluation, along with the UK transport supplementary grant and TPP (Transport Policies and Programme) system. Examples of current UK practice are briefly described, with more details being given of the technique of priority ranking used in the case study area of the West Midlands. Multi criteria approaches are reviewed in chapter two. Chapter three looks at the choice of highway data input in the light of those available, and the practical structure of factorial analysis applied to the case study area. The book covers following issues: computer structure and requirements; highway problem data; referencing methods; site definition; and weighting methods. The results from this study are described and then analysed by classical factorial analysis. The implications of the technique for the TPP preparation process, for the derivation of priorities, and the highway evaluation process as a whole are given. Specific techniques, such as factorial analysis, bridge problem and bus aid ranking, highway capacity calculations and sensitivity testing, as well as the computer programs used (March and COBA) are described in greater detail in the appendices.

In City on the Line, former Baltimore budget director Andrew Kleine asks why the way government does its most important job - deciding how to spend taxpayer dollars - hasn't changed in hundreds of years. Parts memoir, manifesto, and manual, this book tells the story of Baltimore's radical departure from traditional line item budgeting to a focus on outcomes like better schools, safer streets, and stronger neighborhoods-during one of the most tumultuous decades in the city's history. Elected officials, executives, and citizens alike will be equipped to transform budgets in their city, state, or any other mission-driven organization.

Medicaid is the largest grant-in-aid program in the United States. Reform in this area, therefore, provides a unique opportunity to study the intersection between federal and state policy making in an area recently characterized by substantial uncertainty deriving from the lingering effects of the Great Recession, ongoing debate over the federal budget, and implementation of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act. Invariably states reform the way health care is delivered, regulated, and financed within broader parameters established by federal statutes and regulations. It is critical therefore that effective strategies be put into place if both current and future health and long-term care reform efforts are to have their greatest chances at success. Rhode Island is the first state to receive permission to operate its entire Medicaid program under a global cap. As a consequence, it has entered the national consciousness as a key data point potentially supporting the block grant approach to Medicaid reform. In this book, Edward Alan Miller identifies factors that either facilitated or impeded the design and implementation of Rhode Island's Global Consumer Choice Compact Medicaid Waiver in order to draw broader lessons for the Medicaid block grant debate and health and long-term care reform more generally. Evidence gathered from archival sources and in-depth interviews with key stakeholders exposes the role that provider capacity has played in the implementation process, including adult day care, assisted living, home maker, and other home- and community-based services. The impact of the Global Waiver on the nursing home sector is examined as well, in addition to new authority to obtain federal matching dollars for previously state-only funded programs. By providing a sophisticated understanding of factors enhancing or impeding state health reform, this book will contribute to improvements in the development and administration of policy development at both the state- and federal-levels.

American cities experienced an extraordinary surge in downtown development during the 1970s and 1980s. Pro-growth advocates in urban government and the business community believed that the construction of office buildings, hotels, convention centers, and sports complexes would generate jobs and tax revenue while revitalizing stagnant local economies. But neighborhood groups soon became disgruntled with the unanticipated costs and unfulfilled promises of rapid expansion, and grassroots opposition erupted in cities throughout the United States. Through an insightful comparison of effective protest in San Francisco and ineffective protest in Washington, D.C., Stephen McGovern examines how citizens -- even those lacking financial resources -- have sought to control their own urban environments. McGovern interviews nearly one hundred business activists, government officials, and business leaders, exploring the influence of political culture and individual citizens' perceptions of a particular development issue. McGovern offers a compelling explanation of why some battles against city hall succeed while so many others fail.

Power to the People examines the first session of the Nebraska Unicameral Legislature, in 1937, to determine whether the Legislature's structure and rules reflected populism, progressivism, or simply a variant of liberal democracy. The book considers the notion that the one-house, nonpartisan legislature adopted by Nebraska's citizens is a reflection of the desire for "the people," rather than the elites, to control government. Building on the work of the new institutionalism and applying the principles of social choice, Power to the People argues that the structure and procedures of an institution affect its product as well as the philosophies on which it is founded.

First Published in 1931, The Development of Local Government presents a comprehensive account of the most important questions related to various aspects of local government. William A. Robson gives us an illuminating history and survey of facts about crucial themes like the municipal structure; the function of local authorities; public health administration; the danger of centralization; conflict of town and country; expansion of cities; need for reconstruction; cultural aspects of civic life; and employment of women in the municipal service. This book is a must read for students and researchers of public administration, political studies, and governance studies.

Known by mobsters as the man who couldn t be bought Brendan Byrne pioneered New Jersey into a new era when he won the state s gubernatorial election by a landslide in the wake of political corruption scandals. A former prosecutor and New Jersey Superior Court Judge, Byrne was soon condemned as one term Byrne, the inept politician who few thought would risk the humiliation of standing for a second term. Yet Byrne surprised both friend and foe alike by pulling off the state s most remarkable political comeback. He won re-election despite his stubborn defiance of the state s political bosses by enacting the first income tax and rejecting the deal-making and back-slapping that had long been a staple of New Jersey politics. By the time Byrne left office after eight turbulent years, he had also left behind a record that few, if any, of his political descendants could match. Among his numerous accomplishments: overseeing the preservation of the Pinelands; salvaging the floundering plan to develop the Meadowlands and the New Jersey Sports Complex; implementing casino gambling in Atlantic City; and overhauling the state s failing commuter bus and rail network through the creation of a modern, efficient transit system. In his career as a political leader, Byrne dealt with colorful mobsters, political bosses, and the power-brokers of his time. Along the way he has continually demonstrated his special quirks and quick wit while forging his own unique path to enact lasting change and a luminous legacy."

The sudden emergence of the Trump nation surprised nearly everyone. Journalists, pundits, political consultants, academics were nearly all caught off guard. When Trump won in 2016, his ascendancy was widely viewed as a fluke, an aberration-the result of Russian meddling, interference by Comey, a weak candidate. But time showed it was not a fluke, but the rise of a movement-angry, militant, revanchist, and unabashedly authoritarian.How did this happen? Twilight of the American State offers as its unique contribution, a sweeping exploration of the role played by law and legal institutions in preparing the grounds for this rebellious movement. The controversial argument is that, viewed as a legal matter, the American state is not just a liberal democracy, as most Americans believe. Rather, the American state is composed of an uneasy and unstable combination of different versions of the state-liberal democratic, administered, neoliberal, and dissociative. Each of these of these versions arose through its own law, and legal institutions. Each emerged at different times historically. Each was prompted by deficits in the prior versions. Each has survived displacement by succeeding versions. All remain active in the contemporary moment-creating the political-legal dysfunction America confronts today. Pierre J. Schlag maps out a big picture view of the tribulations of the American state. The book abjures conventional academic frameworks (sterile), sets aside prescriptions for quick fixes (won't work), dispenses with lamentations about polarization (whistling in the wind), and bypasses historical celebrations of the American Spirit (useless sentimentalism).

Pennsylvania Elections provides a systematic and thorough analysis of every statewide election in Pennsylvania since 1950. The five chapters are divided between U.S. Senate elections, gubernatorial contests, statewide row offices, and presidential campaigns. Each of the 106 elections that have taken place since 1950 is analyzed within the context of the 67 counties in the Commonwealth and John J. Kennedy discusses the candidates and issues which have shaped Pennsylvania for more than a half-century. By combining quantitative political science, political history, and political geography, this book will both pique the interest of those interested in the state's politics and serve as a reference source for future scholars.