Policy Analysis

Policy Analysis
Critically analyze a recently enacted (Florida, Georgia or Alabama) state policy. This should be something you have seen show up in the news, an issue you are interested in, or a policy that could have direct impact on your life. It can be anything so long as it has been voted on by your state’s legislative branch, has been approved by the executive office, and has been signed into law. To make your work a little easier, you’ll likely want to choose something that has had media/public attention and is a broad enough issue that you can find scholarly sources to provide background information. Some examples of state issues include: fracking, legalization of medical marijuana, mental health services, state budget and spending, etc.
In this analysis you should:
Establish the history of the issue
Identify the major policy concepts/contexts
Identify the stakeholders
Review the development and implementation of the policy (what was the policymaking process?)
Evaluate the effectiveness of the policy and its ability to meet stated goals (if possible)
Provide an analysis with recommendations for improving or modifying the policy (be sure to include your recommendations for adjustments, expansion or alternatives)
Situate your analysis in the contemporary policy literature.
Make sure you draw from the text and relevant PA journals. A list of good online journals are available at http://apus.libguides.com/c.php?g=240999 You should incorporate at least 5 scholarly journal sources.

*Your essay will be automatically uploaded to Turnitin.com and an originality report will be generated for you.

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At least one source must come from:
Kraft, Michael and Scott Furlong. (2015) Public Policy: Politics, Analysis, and Alternatives. Sage Press.

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This week we consider the next step in the process: developing evaluative criteria. We will also identify some of the laws and methods used in evaluation.

Evaluative Criteria

There are three primary evaluative criteria and five other criteria outlined in our course text. They are: 1) effectiveness – which concerns how well a policy achieves its goal; 2) efficiency – which concerns the cost of a policy in relation to its expected benefits; 3) equity – which concerns the level of fairness in the distribution of costs and benefits in society; 4) ethics – which concerns the impacts on cultural norms; 5) political feasibility – which concerns the level of acceptance of a proposed policy by elected officials; 6) social acceptability – which concerns the level of public acceptance and support of a proposed policy; 7) administrative feasibility – which concerns the ability to implement a proposed policy; and, 8) technical feasibility – which concerns the availability and reliability of the technology needed to implement a proposed policy.

The Government Performance and Results Act (GPRA)

The Government Performance and Results Act (GPRA) was originally enacted in 1993 to improve federal bureaucracy performance. The GPRA requires executive branch agencies to engage in performance management tasks, such as setting goals, measuring results, and reporting their progress to Congress. In order to comply with the GPRA, these agencies need to produce multi-year strategic plans, annual performance reports, and conduct gap analyses of projects.

In 2010, the GPRA was updated by Congress. Now it creates a more defined framework by better connecting plans, programs, and performance information. The new law requires quarterly instead of annual reporting to increase the use of performance information in program decision-making.
The intent of the law is to change behaviors in the executive branch by creating a more fact-based, decision-making framework to implement programs that will be more results oriented.
To better understand the Government Performance and Results Act, please look over the slideshow outlining the legislation. The Congressional Research Service wrote an assessment of the changes. Please read this report as well.

Cost Benefit Analysis

Cost-benefit analysis is often conducted to determine which policy option to adopt. Essentially, it measures the gains and losses in terms of dollars of each course of action to determine which is most fiscally optimal. The authors advocate that students always ask about the underlying assumptions in a cost-benefit analysis as this is the most vulnerable part of this model. As such, please read the 2001 article by Robert Cross and Susan Brodt entitled “How Assumptions of Consensus Undermine Decision Making” to get a better appreciation for the importance of assumptions in public policy making.

Delphi Method

The authors cited the Delphi method as a way to estimate future conditions, to develop scenarios, and to monitor trends. As this is an important aspect of graduate research, please read the 2007 article by Chia-Chien Hsu and Brian Sandford entitled “The Delphi Technique: Making Sense of Consensus.”

Impact Assessments

The authors discuss impact assessments, claiming that the purpose is for analysts to systematically examine the effects than may occur from taking a certain action. However, there is much more to impact assessments. As such, please read the Internet report entitled “What is Impact Assessment?” on the Convention on Biology Diversity (based in Canada).

Policy Implementation

The authors discuss implementation analysis and program evaluation. How policies are actually implemented has a lot to do with the people who do it. Michael Lipsky coined the term “Street-Level Bureaucracy” with a paper he presented in September 1969 to the American Political Science Association to highlight this key aspect of policy implementation. As this paper is a classic in the public administration field, please read the referenced original version.

Sometimes people value the way a policy decision is made more than its outcome. This is especially true of neighbors in a homeowner association (HOA). Indeed, when I arrived into my new neighborhood, I was appointed to be first president of the HOA by the property developer as there was a major feud on-going between the property owners and the property developer over the neighborhood unpaved roads. When I called for the first association meeting, many of the neighbors were visibly upset at not having the opportunity to vote for president. During our first meeting, it was one of the very first issues raised. We conducted a vote at the end of the meeting in which I was officially voted in as the first president. The result that I was to be president was the same, but the process by which I got there was significantly different than expected.

Conclusion

This week we discussed evaluation criteria and methods to conduct evaluations.