CHAPTER 18 - Domestic Policy

Transcription

1 CHAPTER 18 - Dmestic Plicy OVERVIEW Dmestic plicy cnsists f all gvernment prgrams and regulatins that directly affect thse living within a cuntry. Scial plicy cnsists f prgrams designed t help thse thught t be in need f gvernment assistance. In the United States, a majr cncern is seeking t balance the needs f the yung and the elderly. Prgrams fr the elderly are financed lavishly; thse fr children are nt. Demcrats tend t want t spend mre n scial and educatinal plicy and they usually favr mre regulatin. Republicans typically think gvernment spends and regulates t much. Bth, hwever, tend t agree when it is clear what the public desires and fr which it is willing t vte. OUTLINE I. Types f Public Plicy - Dmestic plicy cnsists f all gvernment prgrams and regulatins that directly affect thse living within a cuntry. These plicies cme abut as the result f a cmplex prcess knwn as the plicy-making rund. It cnsists f several stages. A. Stages f Plicy Making The first stage is agenda setting, making an issue visible enugh that imprtant plitical leaders take it seriusly. The secnd stage is plicy deliberatin, the debate and discussin ver issues placed n the plicy agenda. The third is plicy enactment, the passage f a law by public fficials. The furth is plicy implementatin, the translatin f the law int an actual set f gvernment prgrams r regulatins. The final stage ccurs when businesses and individuals feel the effects f the plicy. II. Scial Plicy - Scial plicy cnsists f prgrams designed t help thse thught t be in need f gvernment assistance. - Peple may be thught t be in need f help because they are ld, infirm, yung, disabled, unemplyed, r pr, r sme cmbinatin f these. In the United States, a majr cncern is seeking t balance the needs f the yung and the elderly. A. Scial Insurance fr Senir Citizens As the ppulatin has aged, gvernment has expanded prgrams t meet the retirement incme and medical needs f the elderly. 1. Origins and Develpment f Scial Insurance Prgrams During the Great Depressin when pverty amng the elderly was particularly acute, President Franklin Rsevelt appinted an advisry cmmittee t cnsider the prblem. The cmmittee recmmended a prgram f scial insurance. Under the prgram, peple wuld make cntributins t a fund during the years they were emplyed and receive mnetary benefits when they retired. Cngress enacted the prgram in 1935 with the Scial Security Act which created a brad range f scial prgrams.

2 Initially, the Scial Security prgram csts the gvernment very little. Gradually, the prgram expanded in bth the number f peple cvered and the length f their retirement. In 1965, Cngress enacted Medicare, which prvided scial security recipients a brad range f medical benefits. In 1972, Cngress gave senir citizens a large increase in their mnthly Scial Security check and indexed this amunt t the cst f living. Because these prgrams are based n the insurance principle that peple pay int the prgram and expect benefits later, a retiree des nt have t be needy t receive benefits. But Scial Security differs frm a true insurance prgram in ne majr respect: it perates at a lss. Frm the beginning, Scial Security has given mst peple mre in benefits than they cntributed in their Scial Security tax. This is pssible due t three factrs. First, the number f wrkers, and hence the mnetary cntributins int the system, has grwn. Secnd, wrkers tday prduce mre and earn mre than their predecessrs, meaning mre mney is available. Third, wrkers tday pay a higher percentage f their earnings in Scial Security taxes than their predecessrs did. Unfrtunately, all three f these factrs are disappearing, s unless smething is changed, the Scial Security fund is expected t be running a deficit by the time tday s cllege sphmres are 50 years f age. 2. Plitics f Scial Insurance Scial Security is a sacred cw. Pliticians d nt dare tamper with it. i. The Risks f Change t Scial Security In 1981, President Reagan suggested placing limits n the grwth f scial security. Sme claim that the Republican lss f the Senate tw years later was due t this suggestin. Only nce, in 1983, did Cngress make significant cuts in Scial Security benefits. Since then, n majr cuts have been suggested by leaders f Cngress r presidential candidates f the majr parties. ii. Cmplexities f Medicare The csts f Medicare have increased rapidly since Althugh Cngress has tried t take steps t prevent increases in these csts, increases cntinue. The kind f steps needed t really lwer csts wuld be plitically unwise fr pliticians. iii. The Influence f Senir Citizens Senir citizens have clut due t their tendency t vte mre than the average vter. They als are mre plitically active and jin rganizatins that lbby fr their interests. The American Assciatin fr Retired Persns (AARP) is the largest interest grup in the United States.

3 iv. Brad Supprt Yung peple are supprtive f Scial Security, t. The brad supprt fr Scial Security is because (a) mst peple hpe t benefit frm it smeday, (b) it relieves yung peple f sme f the burden f caring fr their parents, and (c) it is viewed as deserving (the insurance factr). III. Public Assistance t Pr Families - Neither plitical party is strngly cmmitted t expanding prgrams fr pr families. N assciatin cmparable t the AARP defends the interests f pr families with children. A. Origins and Develpment f Public Assistance Prgrams Public assistance cnsists f prgrams that prvide lw-incme husehlds with limited incme and access t essential gds and services. These safety net prgrams include the fllwing: 1. Temprary Assistance fr Needy Families (TANF) Cngress passed this prgram in 1996, giving the respnsibility t the states with sme guidelines that states must fllw. It replaced the Aid t Families with Dependent Children (AFDC) prgram created in Knwn as the welfare prgram, it was plitically unppular. 2. Fd Stamps Cngress created this prgram in the 1970s. It gives stamps t peple wh qualify, which can be used t purchase fd. 3. Earned Incme Tax Credit (EITC) This prgram returns the taxes paid t thse wh have little incme as a way f helping the wrking pr. One wh fills ut a tax return can receive an EITC reimbursement even if n taxes have been paid. 4. Supplemental Security Incme (SSI) This prgram prvides disabled peple f lw incme with incme assistance. 5. Rent Subsidies 6. Medicaid This plicy helps lw-incme families pay their rent, prvided they select designated husing. Established in 1965, this prgram pays fr medical services fr the pr. Tday, ver ne-furth f all Medicaid csts cver the medical expenditures f lw-incme senir citizens. 7. State Children s Health Insurance Prgram SCHIP cvers health insurance fr children in lw- incme families nt pr enugh t be eligible fr Medicaid. B. Limitatins f Public Assistance Prgrams The actual gvernment expenditures fr prgrams t help pr families are nly ne-tenth f what is spent n the elderly. Furthermre, prgrams fr pr families are mre restrictive than prgrams fr senir citizens. Six factrs explain this:

4 1. Fewer Cash Benefits - The elderly get much mre f their aid in cash, which mst peple prefer. 2. Less Indexatin - Less f the aid t pr families is indexed t adjust with inflatin. 3. Assistance, Nt Insurance - Unlike Scial Security, prgrams fr families with children are nt paid ut f an insurance fund. 4. State, Nt Natinal, Prgrams - Fr all the majr prgrams fr pr families (except EITC), eligibility rules and benefit levels vary frm state t state. Scial Security, hwever, is a natinal prgram. 5. Benefits Cannt Supplement Incme - Prgrams fr pr families with children substitute fr ther incme; they d nt supplement it. Yet fr senir citizens, benefits supplement the recipients wn resurces. C. Plitics f Public Assistance Prgrams fr pr families with children are prly funded and restrictively designed because, unlike the elderly, children d nt exercise direct plitical pwer. 1. Plicy Debate Plicy experts disagree as t the cause f the increasing pverty rate. Liberals say the cause is the gvernment nt prviding enugh assistance fr the pr. Cnservatives say the cause is cultural, specifically a mentality encuraged by welfare, in which yung peple are encuraged t place shrt-term pleasures ahead f lng-term gals. Finally, scilgist William J. Wilsn attributes increasing pverty t the decline f unskilled jbs. 2. Grup Organizatin Unlike the elderly, children have n large grup t speak n their behalf. Rather, many small cmpeting grups take stances as varied as the alternative explanatins fr rising pverty rates. On the liberal side is the Children s Defense Fund. On the cnservative side is the Family Research Cuncil. 3. Public Opinin The general public wavers between liberal and cnservative explanatins fr rising pverty rates. 4. Plitical Parties Parties, like the public, waver n the issue. Demcrats tend t take a liberal psitin and Republicans a cnservative psitin, but leaders in bth parties ften search fr the middle grund. IV. Educatin Plicy - Histrically, Americans have supprted a large, well-financed educatinal system. - Thugh still strng, the cmmitment has waned smewhat in recent years. A. Lcal Cntrl Respnsibility fr educatin is divided amng lcal schl bards, state departments f educatin, and the federal Department f Educatin, but the

5 bulk f cntrl ver educatin plicy remains at the state and lcal levels. Tday, 95 percent f the cst f public educatin is paid fr ut f state and lcal budgets, each cntributing abut half. B. Cntemprary Issues in Educatin Plicy The traditinal cmmitment t public schls is slipping. Financial supprt has increased nly slightly ver the past 25 years. In additin, students aren t learning as much. Liberals and cnservatives disagree as t why. Liberals say is it a matter f t few resurces. Cnservatives say the prblem is in hw the schls are run. Critics ffer tw cntrasting slutins. Sme, like President Clintn, advcate natinal standards. Others think the slutin is in allwing parents their chice f which schls their children will attend (the vucher system). It remains t be seen if the Supreme Curt will declare vuchers uncnstitutinal. C. Plitics f Educatin In recent years, the tw majr parties have begun t disagree ver several educatinal issues. Republicans tend t favr revamping the entire schl system. Demcrats, wh have been supprted by the Natinal Educatin Assciatin and the American Teachers Federatin, reject this ntin. Fr all the current discntent, Americans still think schls are crucial fr achieving the American dream. Hence, bipartisan supprt shuld cntinue. V. Regulatry Plicy A. The Rise f Federal Regulatin Gvernment regulatin cnsists f rules and standards that cntrl ecnmic, scial, and plitical activities. In the United States the basis fr regulatin is fund in prtins f the Cnstitutin such as the cmmerce clause. The first natinal independent agency created t regulate an industry was the Interstate Cmmerce Cmmissin (1887). Since then, Cngress has basically gne n, since the New Deal with the Supreme Curt s blessing, t regulate numerus activities. Several majr regulatry laws were passed during the Prgressive Era. Many mre were created during the New Deal. The third wave f regulatry innvatin tk place during the 1960s and 1970s as part f the Great Sciety. The mst imprtant f the new agencies frmed was the Envirnmental Prtectin Agency (EPA). B. Justificatins fr Regulatin Schlars have identified three brad types f circumstances in which they find gvernment regulatin mst easily justified. 1. Natural Mnply In a situatin knwn as a natural mnply, a public service is best prvided by a single cmpany. Regulatin f such a cmpany is a must t prevent unnecessarily high prices.

6 2. Negative Externalities The gvernment may als regulate t prevent r adjust fr externalities, cnsequences f activities that d nt directly affect thse engaged in them, such as air pllutin. 3. Incmplete Infrmatin Regulatins are used t prtect thse wh cannt be expected t be well infrmed, mst ntably cnsumers. Cnsumers, fr example, cannt knw all abut pharmaceutical prducts. Hence the need fr an agency like the Fd and Drug Administratin (FDA). C. The Plitics f Regulatin When and hw regulatin takes place is a plitical decisin. 1. Cngress Smetimes regulatins are created as a reactin t a well-publicized incident r disaster. Cngress passes such regulatins as a way f telling the public it is ding smething abut the incident. Of curse, sme peple, n matter hw bvius the need fr regulatin, will bject. T deflect such criticism, Cngress assigns the making f the regulatins t smene in the executive branch, engaging in what is knwn as blame avidance. The language f the law assigning the regulatry pwer t an agency may be vague due t the need fr flexibility, but als s that Cngress can seek t please everyne. In rare cases, Cngress will include a hammer, a harsh penalty, in case legislative gals are nt met. 2. Agency Discretin Althugh agencies ften have discretin in deciding hw t execute their mandates, there exists a zne f acceptance, a range within which Cngress will accept that whatever an agency decides is the crrect interpretatin f the statutes. 3. Curts The curts are ften called upn t interpret statutes, which, if the laws are vague, give them wide discretin as t the statutes meaning. D. Deregulatin Because regulatins may suppress gds cnsumers want and because regulating can be expensive, Cngress has intrduced in many areas plicies f deregulatin, the remval f gvernment rules that nce gverned an industry. Perhaps the mst celebrated deregulatin ccurred within the airline industry. While this was viewed primarily as a success, sme regulatins f airlines will cntinue because the public will always expect gvernment t act in respnse t crises and disasters.