Lawrence C. Walters

Putting More Public in Policy Analysis

A persistent criticism of policy analysis is that it undermines basic democratic institutions and processes by replacing public participation with expert analysis. Many decision makers shun broader participation because of the complexity of an issue or the cost, uncertainty, and delay often associated with public involvement. This article presents a model for the systematic inclusion of public input into relatively complex public policy decisions. It outlines two determinants of success in public participation efforts: the purpose for public involvement and the nature of the issue; furthermore, it applies the model to two issues in recent Utah history that have involved public participation. Using these principles, decision makers should be able to design and implement public participation strategies that both inform the public about substantive policy questions and improve the quality of the final decision.

Modeling Public Decision Preferences Using Context-Specific Value Hierarchies

Although a universal hierarchy of public values has proven elusive, the literature in individual-level values suggests that decision makers do organize their personal values into hierarchies based on context. Through analysis of public values and public decision preferences gathered in a pilot study of city-level public administrators (n = 182), we use an empirical approach to identify context-relevant public values for five different decision contexts. We then demonstrate multiple possible approaches to modeling individual- and community-level policy preferences based on value hierarchies derived from the individual-level data. We find that the predictions based on value hierarchies are better than would be predicted in the absence of such hierarchies, and that these differences are statistically significant. These findings suggest that while creating a universal hierarchy of values remains challenging, context-relevant public value hierarchies at smaller units of analysis may be useful in describing, predicting, and explaining the decisions of public administrators.

Public policy analysis: The next generation of theory

Abstract Many criticisms of micro-economics as a theoretical foundation for public policy analysis have emerged in recent years. Relatively few of these criticisms attempt to provide an alternative theoretical foundation, however. This paper examines four such attempts in the work of socio-economists, public discourse advocates, the “public ideas” work at Harvard and the pragmatic liberalism of Charles Anderson. All four agree on the importance of values in public policy. Other commonalities and disparities between the approaches are discussed. Three sources of individual values are identified. The implications for resolving value conflicts and the appropriate role for policy analysis are considered, along with the kind of predictive power which should be expected from theories underlying policy analysis.

The Effect of Local Option Sales Taxes on Local Sales

Because retail sales taxes generate substantial revenue for many local governments, public officials contemplating differential local option tax rates must carefully assess the potential impacts of such decisions on purchasing decisions. The authors use a unique pooled time series to examine these impacts and apply a methodology that permits an analysis of the effects on purchasing decisions of sales tax rate differences across numerous consumer goods. The results indicate that the response to sales tax rate differences depends on the general characteristics of the goods being purchased. A unique variable that controls for the distance to the next significant alternative for making a purchase also provides key insights. The observed significance for this variable and its interaction with tax rates has significant public policy implications.

Alternative Financing Models for Transportation: A Case Study of Land Taxation in Utah

Recent events have highlighted the consequences of inadequate attention to infrastructure funding. Current funding strategies focus on fuel taxes, transfers from general funds, user fees, toll roads, congestion pricing, and using technology to enhance the fee structure of the current system. This article examines another alternative, a property tax focused on the value of land, known as land tax. A land tax would be economically efficient, in that it would not distort economic decision making. The authors review the feasibility of implementing a land tax and the revenue that could be raised from this tax. They conclude that a land tax is administratively feasible and that it could generate significant revenue to help fund much-needed infrastructure.

Managing Wicked Environmental Problems

In chapter 1, we briefly mentioned some historical factors that may contribute to the transformation of complicated problems into wicked problems. These include broad, structural socioeconomic and demographic changes and also more immediate triggering events that polarize public debate and shift the political dynamics of environmental management dilemmas. Here we explore these themes in more detail. We also present and discuss three take-home lessons for public managers. We suggest that a public manager facing a wicked problem should (1) stop looking for the perfect solution; (2) seek instead a satisficingresponse; and (3) consider applying the iterative, analytic, adaptive, participatory process described in this book (particularly in chapters 6– 9).

The Public Values of Political Preference

One of the traditionally central characteristics of public administration is its political neutrality. This article examines the connections between public service values and political preferences including party affiliation (Republican/Democrat), ideology (conservative/liberal), and presidential candidate preference (Romney/Obama). The study reports the results of a national survey (n = 1541) that elicits citizen expectations of government and party affiliation, ideological preference, and presidential candidate preference. Using regression analysis and multidimensional scaling, the article explores the empirical connections between public values and political preferences—and the ways in which the value structures of people with different political preferences differ in fundamental ways.

The Implications of Utility and Telecommunications Deregulation for Local Finance

LOCAL AND STATE governments are not bashful about imposing taxes on the three largest regulated utility groups in the United States: gas, electric, and telecommunications. When compared to other industries, utilities are responsible for a disproportionate share of subnational taxes. The National Council on Competition and the Electric Industry estimates that state and local governments collect taxes on gas, electric, and telecommunications utilities that are generally double the rate imposed on other industries (Deloitte and Touche 1996).1 In addition to direct taxation, many local governments benefit from owning one or more of the utilities operating within their jurisdictions. The majority of the electric utilities operating in the United States are owned by cities, and the profits from many of these utilities are often used wholly or in part to fund general government functions, giving governments an opportunity to reduce their reliance on more traditional tax dollars. The “opportunity” to tax utilities has been, to a substantial degree, a function of their regulated status. Historically, utilities were granted an exclusive franchise to provide vital services within a jurisdiction. Along with their franchise status came an expectation that they would be taxed. As Phillips (1993) The Implications of Utility and Telecommunications Deregulation for Local Finance

Risk and Uncertainty in Environmental Management

When it comes to environmental conflict, what makes some decisions more difficult than others? For example, the state of California routinely experiences thousands of wildfires each year, hundreds of which are the natural result of lightning strikes. If these naturally occurring phenomena are so common, what makes decisions related to the management of these situations so challenging?

Public Values and Political Preference

One of the traditionally central characteristics of public administration is its political neutrality. However, despite the proliferation of research on the values of public servants, no empirical ...