Discuss the below:
Kelly
Influence of interest groups on public policy
https://www.publicintegrity.org/2000/09/05/3272/commentary-lawsuit-against-clean-air-act-members-congress (Links to an external site.)
One way interest groups influence public policy is simply with the reputation their group (or members) displays. There are many different ways this can be done but typically these are institutional groups such as the church (178). This website is an article is about the interest group, House Committee on Energy and Commerce and their hand in a victory in court against the Clean Air Act. Although there is some conflict in this article as whether or not these lobbyists' actions were ethical, it shows that well known lobbyists can have great influence on decision making. These men made it a point to have their prestigious law firms posted on the briefs they prepared, a way of trying to show their influence to the cause. Peters describes this as "their actions are legitimated through the prestige of the institution" (178).
https://www.whitehouse.gov/photos-and-video/video/limiting-influence-special-interests#transcript (Links to an external site.)
This website has the remarks by President Obama about the Disclose Act. This act would force corporate political advertisers to disclose where they get their funding during the time when their special interests were campaigning. Although this is generally not about the process of public policy I felt like it is a good example of limiting interest groups of their influence and to what extent the limit has impact. Peters discusses this idea when he states how important access to the political process and influence is to interest groups and when limited conflict between the two can arise (170-171). Ideas of corporatism are also within this example. Corporatism restricts the number on interest groups involved in the policy process (171).
https://www.c-span.org/video/?65467-1/policy-media-strategies (Links to an external site.)
One of the most powerful ways interest groups influence public policy is going straight to the public. Interest groups go out to neighborhoods and businesses or hold forums to spread the word on the topic at hand. Another popular way with interest groups to reach the public is with marches. Protests are also used by interest groups to get their point across. These actions are in Peters' book where he states that things causing conflict, such as the possibility with protests or marches, are what will bring light to policy needs and potential solutions (174-175). The website is a video on C-Span on how interest groups and politicians try to get support from the public.
Websites Discussion
Topics: Influence of interest groups on public policy & Government regulation of business
Website #1 presents a government agency's tool developed to assist the public in dealing with business related regulation.
https://www.sba.gov/category/navigation-structure/starting-managing-business/starting-business/business-law-regulations (Links to an external site.)
The Small Business Administration has a comprehensive website designed to educate and assist prospective and current small business owners, entrepreneurs and the public with insightful information related to starting and maintaining a small business. In addition, the site provides guidance and tools to find, interpret, navigate and take advantage of government regulations. The uninitiated can be overwhelmed by the seemingly infinite amount of laws and regulations. With that in mind, the SBA website can be very useful to small business entrepreneurs to learn and take advantage government programs. Some of the tools provided in the site are contract writing, business plan writing, and how to apply for a small business loans. . In essence, the SBA website can be a useful resource to facilitate navigation through the challenges associated with starting a small business.
Website discusses the positive side of government regulation of business
https://www.governmentisgood.com/articles.php?aid=21&p=2 (Links to an external site.)
The Government Is Good website has defenders of the public sector point out the benefits enjoyed by our society associated with government regulations. Some of these benefits far exceed the costs to most businesses. Although some of these policies may have a negative impact on some businesses' profits and growth, they establish order and provide direction toward having a better society. For instance, environmental regulations ensure drinkable water and breathable air for all of us. Another illustration encompasses consumer and workplace regulations that protect millions of people from harm. Lastly, minimum wage laws help raise families out of poverty. In essence, and in most cases government regulation has allowed American society to be safer and healthier, and has created greater economic security and economic equality.
Website presents an article that briefly intertwines the influence of interest groups on public policy and touches on the government regulation of business.
https://www.economist.com/node/21547789 (Links to an external site.) Over-Regulated America, The Economist, February 18, 2012
The Economist magazine is a comprehensive source of various opinions on diverse subject areas, including interest groups and government regulation. The author of the article argues that regulations have become too complex and outlines that regulations must be kept simple because they are more cost effective to the government and the public. However, the article presents that the complexity we find in American laws is driven by to two factors; lawmakers and lobbyists. In one hand, lawmakers want to enact laws to cover every situation. On the other hand, lobbyists serve as the strategists for special interest groups by seeking special favors. Peters (170) shares that special interest groups just look at a narrower and more specific view of the overall regulation or law. In essence, the author's vision endorses simpler regulation in order to allow regulators ensure the laws are followed.
Julio, Alloe
Key Ideas
1- Problems of Administrative Structure: United States (Peters, pages 137-139)
According to Peters (138) there is a wide array of types of organizations in the United States bureaucracy. Among them, the Department of Defense stands out due to its size and organizational structure. The DoD composition of a military and a civilian workforce can be a clear representation of bureaucratic and political administrative structures. The military workforce tends to be representative of a more political approach. This is because military members have short term positions within various DoD agencies in order to network for their next assignment. In addition, since the military workforce takes a more nomadic approach because they have term limits to their assignments. In contrast, the civilian workforce tends to follow a more bureaucratic structure by providing a more sedentary workforce. This provides a sense of constancy to the department. Both workforces support the same objective, but their responsibilities vary in nature.
Bureaucracy and Interest Groups (Peters, pages 169-171)
Peters (169) opens this section establishing that the decisions stemming from the conflict between "...the demands of interest groups and the role of bureaucracy..." as a cornerstone of government. In other words, intervention by bureaucrats is essential for the government to function. Interest groups intervene in the decision-making process to instigate and point government servants toward their group goals. Lobbyists tend to be skilled operators representing special interest groups. They have the tools and know-how of the legislative process in order to gather support from government servants. Their goal is generally to make cater to their special interest group by influencing slight changes to bills prior to becoming law. These changes to laws tend to benefit the special interest group represented.
A recent example of special interest groups in the news are some of the communities following Colorado's legalization of marijuana. This has led to an energized debate of the pros and cons of marijuana legalization in many states. The debates are generally composed of new tax revenue, the cost of regulation, enforcement, and public safety.
3- Competition among Agencies (Peters, pages 202-204)
Another intriguing concept presented by Peters (203) is that of bureaucratic competition. Peters argues that this type of competition may affect government performance and/or lack of coherence. Agencies generally have to compete or meet goals set by their directorate or manager. Ultimately, many government agencies need to justify their existence and/or demonstrate their need for money for future budgets. As a continuation of the example of the legalization of marijuana, there are a handful of government agencies competing and arguing for their own interests. For instance, the tax department seeks to get money out of taxes generated by the new cash crop. Law enforcement is going to be concerned as to how many plants of marijuana are a legal amount to have in the backyard of a house or how to measure the level of sobriety when operating a motor vehicle. These are outcomes of when marijuana becomes legalized in the local area. Agencies, with varying objectives, find themselves competing for position in order to gain budgetary visibility to address and fund the issues associated with legalizing marijuana.
Response
The discussion of the key idea on Bureaucracy in the public sector is well developed with a consistent flow of ideas. The discussion present a cross-cutting point of view of the issues surrounding the public sector. The economic part and the role of the competition of the existing agencies happen to dictate the development in the public sector. Despite the smooth flow of key ideas and development of the point in an independent manner, there are some minor problems that prevent the trust of the reader.
The argument draws it references from the class text but fails to give the in-text citation making the entire argument subject to doubts. The citation techniques such as APA and MLA are not used to support the argument that are borrowed from the text and other academic sources. However, the flow of the idea happens to be perfect for more example used from the real world scenario. Generally, the argument forms a good discussion that seeks to inform and enlighten.
B. Debra
2 Key Ideas
1- Organization by area served, Peters, location 3184-3270
Organization by area served varies greatly between countries and tends to be divided by the degree of centralization (2010, Loc 3184). Peters identifies two options for addressing the challenge or managing territories; these include controlling policy implementation through the central government and implementation through administrative means. Implementation and control of policies through centralization takes the form of intermediary representatives, commonly referred to as prefects. The prefectoral systems tend to be more common in France, Italy, and Japan (2010, Loc 3196). The more decentralized version of policy implementation is commonly found in the United States as well as other countries. This can be seen through state and local government enforcing national policies; however there are challenges with this type of governance as well. These challenges include the way that policies are interpreted, the way they are implemented, and to some extent if they will be implemented (2010, Loc 3233).
Peters also discusses how decentralization can also be viewed as a challenge by the public due to the increased size of government, increased expenditures, and/or limited services. Interestingly, the decentralization of government seems to be intended to more efficiently support the areas served, even if the impression is quite the opposite (2010, Loc 3270). The decentralization is also intended to better support the cultural differences amongst the public, but this again may not always be interpreted to be the most effective or efficient.
2- Social movements and the bureaucracy, Peters, location 4506-4518
Social movements are discussed in terms of their similarities and differences as interest groups. These types of interest groups vary from conventional interest groups in that they tend to be short-lived, focusing on a single issue; focus on social, non-economic issues; and are less stable and institutionalized (2010, Loc 4506). These groups also differ in that they do not tend to interact directly with the government. Not all social movements follow the differences previously identified. Peters recognizes the environmental movement with some interest groups that behavior conventionally and have remained relevant over a longer period of time (2010, Loc 4518). Similarly, it would seem that there are some gender equality rights interest groups which would fall into this same category.
3- The possession of managerial skills, Peters, location 4832-4882
Peters distinguishes managerial skills as more relevant to public bureaucrats rather than politicians due to the need to manage governmental departments (2010, Loc 4832). Although specific skills are not identified, bureaucrats tend to require strong managerial skills over their programs and organizations as they are held accountable by politicians and the public at large. The accountability of these bureaucrats is often difficult to measure because most do not produce, but rather provide a service (2010, Loc 4857).
Changes in assessing performance within the public sector have unfortunately lead to some challenges. Responses to these challenges have been "directed at producing better internal management and enhanced capacity for control from the center" (2010, Loc 4869). Finally, Peters notes that other challenges exist due to public and private sector collaborations to provide services (2010, Loc 4882). This seems to be a double-edged sword situation though because as government organization face reduced budgets, this public-private sector collaboration is one of the primary ways to continue offering certain services.
Response
The argument presented in the discussion of the key idea with that aim of elaborating the issues in the text. It is evident that the topic might be confusing but still you were on track developing three key ideas. The citation that was used is widely represented in order to maintain the acknowledgement of the source of the information. However, the class text has not been widely sued in the development of the argument. Furthermore, the flow of the ideas from one part of the key idea and between the sentences depict an in-depth understanding of the public policy.
Moreover, the order of the topics is instrumental in summing up all the points with the evaluation of the managerial skills. Management skill are considered important in the development of the decision in the public sector. Also, the excellent use of the examples makes the argument more elaborative and self-explanatory especially for a layman. Generally, the presented argument adds value to the understanding text learned in class room scenario.