Some of the best writings on public budgeting and finance can be found in the journals that ASPA publishes or sponsors. For this volume editor Irene Rubin has brought together the best of these articles - emerging classics that address the most important theoretical and practical problems underlying public budgeting.The anthology is organized topically rather than historically, with an effort to delineate the issues needed to understand some of the more recent controversies in the field. Rubin's introductory essay and section openers frame the key issues and provide historical context for each article. The collection begins with descriptions of what public budgeting is, where it comes from, and what it is for. It moves on to the relationship between budget processes and outcomes, constraints on budgeting, the legal context in which it operates, and adaptations to those constraints such as contracting out.The book concludes with a discussion of the ethics and norms that underlie budgeting in a democracy. Throughout the anthology, the emphasis is on areas of disagreement and debate, so students can get involved and explore different viewpoints.

Some of the best writings on public budgeting and finance can be found in the journals that ASPA publishes or sponsors. For this volume editor Irene Rubin has brought together the best of these articles - emerging classics that address the most important theoretical and practical problems underlying public budgeting.The anthology is organized topically rather than historically, with an effort to delineate the issues needed to understand some of the more recent controversies in the field. Rubin's introductory essay and section openers frame the key issues and provide historical context for each article. The collection begins with descriptions of what public budgeting is, where it comes from, and what it is for. It moves on to the relationship between budget processes and outcomes, constraints on budgeting, the legal context in which it operates, and adaptations to those constraints such as contracting out.The book concludes with a discussion of the ethics and norms that underlie budgeting in a democracy. Throughout the anthology, the emphasis is on areas of disagreement and debate, so students can get involved and explore different viewpoints.

Using in-depth qualitative interviews, authors Herbert J. Rubin and Irene S. Rubin have researched topics ranging from community redevelopment programs to the politics of budgeting and been energized by the depth, thoroughness, and credibility of what was revealed. They describe in-depth qualitative interviewing from beginning to end, from its underlying philosophy and assumptions to project design, analysis and write up. "This book is exactly what I was looking for in that it covers interviewing and analysis in depth."-Daphne John, Oberlin College "Students leave this book fully informed of the nuances and complexity of interviewing as well as excited about the promise interview research findings offer."-Hannah Britton, University of Kansas "The authors' focus on the reflective process, question development, and procedural steps associated with qualitative research is rich and thorough."-Tracy M. Lara, Kent State University

In this timely new book, one of America's most respected public administration analysts focuses her attention on how government tried and eventually succeeded in balancing the US federal budget in 1998. With characteristic insight and a lively narrative, Rubin describes the successive efforts of Congress and the administration over seventeen years to shape a process that would encourage balance and the reactions of federal agencies to the pressure. The story of the damage done to agencies as they dealt with reductions and how long it took to recover is told here for the first time. This book asks and answers such crucial questions such as: Did Washington prioritize wisely, trimming back programs in a rational and efficient manner, or did it cut what was easy to cut or what was politically attractive to the party in power? The true drama of politics on Capitol Hill is rendered more vividly by Rubin's own experience working in Washington, D.C., and her personal interviews with the players involved. Most important, the story that Rubin tells in this book is ongoing, as the Bush administration and Republicans face the consequences of their huge tax cuts while funding the war on terrorism and seeking to restore confidence in a shaken economy.

Offering case studies of financial management in numerous American cities over a period of enormous growth and change, Irene Rubin explores the historical context of municipal budgeting in the United States and the political environment that conditions reform and problem solving at the local level.