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Books > Social sciences > Politics & government > Local government
In an era of federal deficits and struggling municipalities, states have emerged as the most significant governmental actors. But state governments face the major challenge of fiscal planning in the midst of economic change. Roy Bahl and William Duncombe tackle this challenge head-on. Using New York as a case study, they identify looming dangers for state revenue and expenditure planning. Bahl and Duncombe begin with the premise that one cannot separate an evaluation of fiscal performance from an evaluation of economic performance. Accordingly, they describe and analyze the patterns of population, employment, and personal income growth. Following this is a study of state and local government finances in New York since 1970 and a recounting of the fiscal adjustments that were taken in the face of slower and then faster growth in the economy. The authors conclude that based on current conditions, the state and its local governments are in for fiscal belt-tightening. They note that the state should take a comprehensive view in planning the development and retrenchment of its government sector. The book is thought-provoking, exhaustively researched, and sensibly written. Its lessons are applicable everywhere and should be read by all those seeking a route through the tangled thicket of government policy for economic growth.
Before the interstates, Main Street America was the small town's commercial spine and served as the linchpin for community social solidarity. Yet, during the past three decades, a series of economic downturns has left many of the great small cities barely viable. American Hometown Renewal is the first book to combine administrative, budgetary, and economic analysis to examine the economic and fiscal plight currently facing America's small towns. Featuring a blend of theory, applications, and case studies, it provides a comprehensive, single-source textbook covering the key issues facing small town officials in today's uncertain economy. Written by a former public manager, university professor, and consultant to numerous small towns in the Heartland, this book demonstrates the ways in which contemporary small towns throughout the nation are facing economic challenges brought about by the financial shocks that began in 2008. Each chapter explores a theme related to small town revival and provides a related tool or technique to enable small town officials to meet the challenges of the 21st Century. Encouraging local small town officials to look at the economic orbit of communities in a similar manner as a town's budget or a family's personal wealth, examining its specific competitive advantages in terms of relative assets to those of competing communities, this book provides the reader with step-by-step instructions on how to conduct an asset inventory and apply key asset tools to devise a strategy for overcoming the challenges and constraints imposed upon spatially-fixed communities. American Hometown Renewal is an essential primer for students studying city management, economic community development, and city planning, and will be a trusted handbook for city managers, geographers, city planners, urban or rural sociologists, political scientists, and regional microeconomists.
Filling a crucial gap in research on the presidency and presidential communication, "Within These Walls" goes beyond the study of presidential speeches and examines the organizational structure, systems of information flow, and communication styles in the administrations of Franklin Roosevelt through Ronald Reagan. Focusing principally on the post-Watergate presidents, this book illustrates that a primary dimension of presidential communication is not that which is spoken during public addresses but that which takes place between the chief executive and his senior staff. Patricia Witherspoon's exhaustive research includes archival material from the Ford and Carter presidential libraries as well as information obtained from interviews with President Ford and several former senior aides in the Ford, Carter, and Reagan White Houses. Applying organizational theory to her study of the modern presidency, Witherspoon reveals that the White House, as we know it today, began its evolution into a modern organization during the FDR administration. It shares a variety of characteristics common to other organizations, including formal and emergent structures, formal and informal systems of information flow, and decision-making processes and managerial and communication styles selected and/or assumed by the organizational leader (the president). Students and scholars of political communication, political science, history, management and public policy, or any informed reader concerned with the modern presidency will find "Within These Walls" a source of valuable insight.
Public Sector Reform in South Africa 1994-2021 is an examination of specific public sector reforms in three core Public Administration areas in the democratic South Africa: political-administrative relationships, the delegation of authority to senior managers and performance management. Comprehensively spanning a critical period from 1994 to the current day, this collection constitutes the first systematic study of public sector reform in the gamut of the democratic era in the country. The author traces developments of policy following a rapid political shift, shedding light on previously unexplored evolving structures and systems. The Public Policy and Governance series brings together the best in international research on policy and governance issues. Books within the series are authored and edited by experts in the field and present new and insightful research on a range of policy and governance issues across the globe.
This invaluable collection of information provides an in-depth guide to the regional dimension of the politics and economy of this vast and complex country. Incomparable in its coverage, which includes a detailed chronology for India as a whole, a bibliography, contact details for leading officials, and an historical account and economic survey for each of the twenty-nine states and seven territories, it supplies the reader with a more complete understanding of India as a whole.
The chapters in this anthology combine discussion of two currently hot' topics in public administration--privatization and entrepreneurship. . . . Perhaps the most attractive aspect of this book is that it is not merely an unbridled emotional paean to privatization and entrepreneurship but an objective introduction to these issues. The editor selects an array of essays that address not only theory and practice but also the pragmatic issues and problems associated with implementing these new policy initiatives. This book would be a welcome addition to libraries wishing to remain current with the expanding literature on privatization and entrepreneurship. "Choice" Privatization encompasses the many ways in which the private sector assumes functions that were previously the province of government. These may range from the sale of state enterprises to contracts with private firms to provide governmental services. In each case, services which were once subsidized to some extent by the government are instead offered by the private sector at prices reflecting their actual cost. This collection of original essays by internationally recognized scholars in economics, government, and management, provides a readable, state of the art discussion of the promises and problems of privatization. In addition to synthesizing current data and experiences in the field of private entrepreneurship, this collection of articles breaks new ground by suggesting innovative areas for private activity in the public sector.
Journalists have thoroughly documented David Duke's rise to prominence in Louisiana politics, but until now, few intensive analyses of the Duke phenomenon have been undertaken. This new collection identifies the significant junctures of Duke's political career, from its earliest beginnings to his recent campaigns for Governor, the Senate, and the Presidency. Through a variety of methods and approaches, the contributors to this work advance our understanding of what made this former Klansman a significant political force, and of how and why he very nearly succeeded in his attempts to gain higher office. The authors contend that the racial overtones of the 1950s and 1960s, both explicit and implicit, have returned in the 1990s in a more subtle, polished, and somehow socially acceptable way. They argue convincingly that changes in electoral politics throughout the South provide the structural basis for this "rebirth" of racially charged political campaigns. Even as messenger supplanted message in the rise of David Duke, however, one simple observation remained true: The politics of the South - and Louisiana in particular - remain rooted at least partly in, as V.O. Key phrased it, "the Negro question". The first work to study Duke and the politics of race entirely from a rigorous political science perspective, this collection makes a considerable contribution to our understanding of Duke's popularity, his constituencies, and the reasons for both his successes and his failures.
From their experience in nonprofit operations and their understanding of the realities of urban politics, the editors of this wide-ranging volume and their contributors dig into issues seldom explored in the literature. They study the role of nonprofits in local governing coalitions, the potential of nonprofits to replace social welfare programs, their efforts to restructure key elements of the local political process, and the unanticipated internal impacts of the changing roles of nonprofit organizations in the urban community. The result is a compelling argument that to understand life in contemporary American cities, we must take into account the expanding role of nonprofit organizations, their response to increased service demands, and their participation in common efforts to direct policy choices. Hula, Jackson-Elmoore, and their panel of scholars, researchers, and close observers of urban policymaking focus on the delivery of social services to illustrate the complex and important set of roles that nonprofits have assumed. As social programs are cut at all levels of government, it is often believed that nonprofits can and should take up the slack and restore at least some portion of the cutbacks in such services. They examine how some nonprofit organizations have taken a proactive stance in this regard by implementing efforts that do not simply react to political and social change, but attempt to initiate and guide it instead. They attempt to change the political environment in which they operate, and the result has been to change the face of local politics in many jurisdictions. Each chapter of their book explores these expanding and emerging roles. Themes and focuses vary, which in turn reflects the variation and complexity within the nonprofit sector itself. At the same time, each chapter presents an emerging political or policy role now being played by today's nonprofits and voluntary associations, and a theoretical context in which such activities and behavior can best be understood. Scholars and advanced students in public administration, economics, and nonprofit management, as well as executive-level nonprofit managers, will find here an important update on what is happening in their special worlds, and the knowledge they need to make sense of it.
This work is a detailed description of the use of Box Jenkins time-series analysis techniques--including autoregressive-integrated moving average (ARIMA) modeling--to test two hypotheses relating economic conditions to presidential popularity. . . . Lanoue's model shows the two hypotheses to be interrelated. Rising inflation rates have a negative effect on presidential popularity; falling inflation rates have no impact. These negative impacts are present only for Democratic administrations. Recession--as measured by declining real disposable income--leads to a decline in presidential popularity. Recovery from recession leads to a return in popularity. . . . Despite the clarity of the writing and the separation of the methodological details from most of the substantive discussions, this work is most appropriate for advanced undergraduates, graduate, and research collections. Annals of the American Academy Presidential popularity has been much discussed in recent years. This analysis deals with questions raised by the differing patterns of public approval experienced by the last six U.S. presidents, starting with John Kennedy's administration (Camelot) and concluding with a look at Ronald Reagan, who has often been termed the Teflon President. Lanoue begins with an overview of economics and politics as they relate to presidential popularity. He presents the research design and discusses the methodology involved, expecially the use of the Box-Jenkins approach. The results of his analysis are presented in two sections. The first, Inflation and Popularity, presents a model of presidential popularity as it relates to inflation. Specifically, it argues that voters evaluate the economic performances of different parties' presidents in different ways. The second section, Income and Popularity, takes an initial look at symmetry and income, and then presents two approaches to the analysis of asymmetry. This Asymmetric Hypothesis states that the electorate punishes the president and his party for hard times, but fails to reward them when economic conditions improve. The concluding chapter analyzes whether asymmetry is psychological or situational, and considers partisan effects in a chapter subtitled Bad News for Democrats. A final section on macroeconomic policy deals with maximizing popularity through changes in economic priorities.
Deeply influenced by Enlightenment writers from Naples and France, Vincenzo Cuoco (1770-1823) was forced into exile for his involvement in the failed Neapolitan revolution of 1799. Living in Milan, he wrote what became one of the nineteenth century's most important treatises on political revolution. In his Historical Essay on the Neapolitan Revolution of 1799, Cuoco synthesized the work of Machiavelli, Vico, and Enlightenment philosophers to offer an explanation for why and how revolutions succeed or fail. A major influence on political thought during the unification of Italy, the Historical Essay was also an inspiration to twentieth-century thinkers such as Benedetto Croce and Antonio Gramsci. This critical edition, featuring an authoritative translation, introduction, and annotations, finally makes Cuoco's work fully accessible to an English-speaking audience.
From the first "Cheese Day" in 1874 to the "Great Limburger War" of 1935, author Duane H. Freitag peers into the nooks and crannies of the tumultuous political history of Green County, Wisconsin. In this previously untold story, Freitag pulls back the curtain to uncover how the Swiss immigrants who settled in southern Wisconsin influenced Green County politics from 1845 to 1945. Buffeted by wars, dairy industry economics, murders, epidemics, the temperance movement, and LaFollette progressivism, this immigrant group was heavily involved in each major election, asserting their political will in candidates and through the polls. In addition to exploring the politics of the region, Freitag also discusses what caused shifts in Wisconsin's political winds throughout this period by placing Green County elections against the larger context of political landscape of the United States as a whole. In doing so, he examines the history of America and demonstrates how Swiss immigrants and other Wisconsin cultural groups responded to the events that shaped the nation. From the abolition of slavery to prohibition, the Great Depression, and concerns about America's involvement in two world wars, "Sauerkraut, Suspenders, and the Swiss" demonstrates the remarkable story of Wisconsin-and American-politics.
This continuation of a classic serves as a valuable research and reference tool for those seeking basic biographical information about American governors, and students wishing to do statistical analysis of voting trends in gubernatorial elections. Arranged alphabetically by name of state, the book contains brief biographical data on governors, including date of birth, birth place, residence, occupation, party affiliation, date and age at death, and date and age on assuming office. A second set of tables for each state includes election statistics by party for all gubernatorial elections.
This case study of a small town is the basis for a sweeping and broad analysis of the character of American politics and fills an important void in the literature when many of our national leaders are the product of small towns. This text for students in state and local government, urban government, and political sociology uses various methodological strategies and in-depth interviews with elites and average citizens to test nationwide data about the American political scene today and provides an incisive analysis of local political culture, electoral behavior, and socio-economic factors behind community leadership.
Public opinion polls consistently reveal the lack of confidence, disillusionment, and mistrust that citizens feel toward government. Daniels and his contributors believe that the relationship between citizens and their governments can be changed by facilitating greater citizen collaboration with government, particularly through local sustainable programs. As the case studies show, often sustainable community programs are created through grassroots movements that are initiated and managed by citizens themselves, bringing them in contact with their local elected and appointed officials. Unlike traditional programs that are administered by local officials on behalf of their citizens, once sustainable community programs are created, citizens administer their own programs in collaboration with local officials. The case studies look at a variety of sustainable programs, primarily in the United States, that help to deal with issues such as recycling, transportation, microcredit, site redevelopment, pollution, health care, and hunger. "Creating Sustainable Community Programs" is the first book on sustainable programs that is intended for an audience of public administration scholars, researchers, and students as well as practitioners who are searching for ways to change the relationship between citizens and their governments.
This study explores the idea voiced by journalist Henry McDonald that the Protestant, Unionist and Loyalist tribes of Ulster are '...the least fashionable community in Western Europe'. A cast of contributors including prominent politicians, academics, journalists and artists explore the reasons informing public perceptions attached to this community.
The dynastic centre and the provinces were linked by agents and ritual occasions. This book includes contributions by specialists examining these connections in late imperial China, early modern Europe, and the Ottoman empire, suggesting important revisions and an agenda for comparison. This title is available online in its entirety in Open Access
Governing Rural England provides a new perspective on the process of state formation in modern England. It begins by identifying the complex ideological, cultural, and institutional influences which shaped the political provincialism of later Hanoverian England. In contrast to traditional accounts, which emphasized the ineffective, even oligarchic, character of the administration of rural England, David Eastwood demonstrates its effectiveness and capacity to adapt, and uncovers the complex interplay between central and local institutions which lay at the heart of the late Hanoverian polity. By examining key areas of policy (poor law administration, police, crime and punishment) Dr Eastwood explains the ways in which new principles of public administration combined with rapid social change to create a profound crisis in English local government in the second quarter of the nineteenth century. The resolution of this crisis led to a diminution in the role and power of traditional governing elites in rural England. This complex reconfiguration of authority within the English state had a profound influence on the developing political culture and institutional framework of modern Britain.
In the years leading up to the Crash of 2008, Iceland had been triumphed in world business media as an economic miracle. Its new breed of Viking Capitalism had become rock stars of the global finance driven economy, even while it was testing the foundations of Europe's financial system. Eirikur Bergmann applies Postcolonial analysis to explain the paradigmatic case of Iceland's fantastical boom, bust and rapid recovery after the Crash. His critical approach to the claims of the financialization advocates relates the questions of the national economy and globalisation to current trends in Europe and the World.
The focus of this book is to provide an introduction to the issues and procedures central to local government collective bargaining. There are many books which explain private sector labor relations but there are few books available which provide information pertinent to local governments. Consolidating the elements critical to public sector labor relations and collective bargaining, this book is written for public managers and employees. It defines terms, explains procedures, and provides examples of the legislation governing the mechanics of local government labor relations. Ideal as a supplemental book for courses in public personnel management and labor relations, it is also an important resource for local government administrators serving cities, counties, and school districts.
This book begins the comparative study of U.S. urban development during the first half of the 19th century. Breathtaking in its comprehensiveness, its survey and comparisons of early urban politics is without parallel. The study is based on a thorough examination of fifteen cities--Albany, Baltimore, Boston, Brooklyn, Buffalo, Charleston, Cincinnati, Louisville, New Orleans, New York, Philadelphia, Pittsburgh, Providence, St. Louis, and Washington. This group of cities--the fifteen largest in 1850--provides a good mix of northern and southern, eastern and western, old and new, and fast- and slow-growing urban centers. This volume deals with the city as a corporate entity and contains chapters on urban governmental structures, government finance, politics and elections, urban political leadership, the city plan and city planning, intergovernmental relations, and urban mercantilism.
This book is the first comprehensive, full-scale treatment of the politics, law, and economics with regard to the policies and policy instruments for budget stabilization at the local level. It examines budget stabilization in the United States from the 1910s to 2010 (from adoption of public budgeting in this country through the Great Recession). In addition, it provides details on the methods and results of empirical tests of the effects of budget stabilization instruments on government operations, key/basic services provision, and some other aspects of social and economic life at the local level, including full-purpose governments (county, metro city, municipality, township, and village) as well as special (single-) purpose governments (like school districts and transportation districts). This book dissects an important and pressing issue in public financial administration, analyzes a lesson that has been in the learning process, especially in the United States, and identifies theoretical threads for scholarly refinement, which will be put into specific contexts of policy design and implementation. This book will be of interest to scholars in political science, economics, public choice and in public administration, where it will also appeal to policy-makers. |
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