Carl E. Van Horn

The Policy Implementation Process: A Conceptual Framework

Political scientists have turned their attention to the study of public policy with increasing frequency. The topics with which they deal and the methodologies they employ reflect the diversity of their interests. The disparate character of the public policy literature complicates the task of defining the scope of policy analysis and bringing order to the concerns of policy analysts. Some order can be achieved by utilizing a model of the policy delivery system, which facilitates an organization of the policy literature (see Figure 1 ).1 Moreover, it identifies relationships among the diverse concerns of policy analysts, directs attention to the determinants of-and the consequences of-public policy, and gives emphasis to the

An evaluation of state‐subsidized, firm‐based training

State‐subsidized, firm‐based training is an increasingly popular strategy used by state governments in the USA to encourage the economic growth of firms by upgrading the skills of employees. In 1999, 47 of the 50 states provided cash‐assistance totalling

Explaining Benefit Distribution in CETA Programs

600 million to employers to assist them in upgrading the skills of current or new employees. A comprehensive two‐year evaluation of one of the larger programs in the USA, the State of New Jerseys Workforce Development Partnership Program, concludes that such programs can help businesses remain competitive, contribute to the states tax base and offer expanded employment opportunities for firm employees. As governments and private companies throughout the world search for the most effective ways to encourage economic growth, state‐subsidized, firm‐based training programs can form an important element of successful strategies for human and economic development.

Fear and Loathing on Capitol Hill: The 99th Congress and Economic Policy

This article describes and analyzes the distribution of benefits to individuals from CETA programs, using data from a three-year study of CETA in 32 research sites. The data show that the poor and women receive increasingly fewer benefits from CETA. Nonwhites experience higher enrollment under CETA than under noncategorical programs. The poor, women, and nonwhites obtain fewer benefits from public service employment programs than from training and work experience programs. Economic conditions provide only a partial explanation of service patterns. Program design choices, administrator attitudes, and national policy and actions are also important. Some changes are recommended in methods of analyzing the need for employment and training programs.

Politics and Public Policy

The first session of the 99th Congress was a year of wrenching institutional and political realignment. Facing monstrous structural budget deficits in excess of

Policy implementation in the Federal system

200 billion a year, Congress struggled to adjust its distributive urges to the unpleasant realities of a redistributive era. Unlike previous budget crises that were caused by economic events beyond Congresss control, the current problem was created by an unwillingness to raise sufficient revenues to pay for the nations defense and social program commitments. Frustration, gridlock, and partisan warfare eventually ended in surrender to the Executive Branch: a balanced-budget act was adopted that could radically alter Congresss power of the purse.