Kategoria BISAC: Political Science >> American Government - State

The referendum first became established with voter ratification of the Massachusetts Constitution in 1780. Other types were adopted in the nineteenth century, largely through the efforts of Progressives and Populists seeking to authorize voters to utilize the initiative-referendum and protest referendum. Certain referenda, particularly on adoption or amendment of constitutions and local government charters, are well established and non-controversial. Other referenda, the general initiative-referendum and the protest referendum, have been controversial since their inception. Zimmerman...

Founded in 1900, the National Civic Federation (NCF), a broad-based, nongovernmental social and policy reform organization, emerged throughout the Progressive Era as one of the nation's most powerful policy research and lobbying groups. Amidst the strong demand by rank-and-file Americans for economic and social reform, the NCF proposed that the government begin to assume a more prominent role in managing the nation's economy and providing for the needs of the country's weakest and most vulnerable citizens. The organization constructed broad-based coalitions of business leaders, labor...

Alexander examines interest group involvement in direct democracy. The tools of direct democracy--initiative, referendum, and recall--were initially created to delimit the power of economic interest groups and curb the power of political machines. Today, however, many believe that direct democracy has become a tool dominated by economic interests and that ballot contests have emboldened moneyed interests, rather than stemming their power. This unanticipated consequence of direct democracy has been coined the Populist Paradox.

Through two case studies, Alexander examines how debilitating...

Counties generally fulfill three service roles: traditional or state-mandated; local or municipal; and regional or urban. Benton has written the first scholarly treatment of county governments as providers of all three of these types of services, dispelling the notion that counties are mere providers of services they are mandated to perform by their state governments. County governments in the United States have become increasingly important as service providers over the past several decades, vis-a-vis municipalities and townships. These services change over time and vary from region to...

While the gambling industry is indisputably large and powerful, it has received little attention from political scientists. Utilizing a variety of perspectives and techniques, von Herrmann analyzes gambling's recent expansion, finding public attitudes have been shaped both by government policies and the industry's attempts to create a family-friendly image.

Von Herrmann examines the politics of state and federal gambling policy, particularly policies relating to casinos and state lotteries. She considers gambling policy from a variety of perspectives, including the politics of...

Zimmerman places in perspective the important roles played by interstate compacts and interstate administrative agreements in the governance systems of the United States. Compacts are identified and classified by type. Particular emphasis is placed on federal government promotion of compacts, including the U.S. Congress enactment of federal-state compacts in which the federal government joins member states as partners to achieve stated goals.

Formal and informal interstate administrative agreements have increased in number dramatically during the past six decades and relate to...

Budgeting is a central activity in state government, and annual or biennial appropriations are the most important recurring decisions made by state legislatures. Gubernatorial recommendations reflect state agency program needs and portray the policy priorities of the chief executive. Legislative appropriations determine which agency programs, gubernatorial policy initiatives and legislative constituencies receive financial support. Budget execution decisions by state agencies determine how the policy decisions of the governor and legislature are actually implemented. In short, state...

Texas politicians are a lively, sometimes controversial, always entertaining breed, and the ways they have chosen to put themselves and their messages before the public are equally as interesting. Anything and everything that can be printed with a candidate's name, image, and slogan--from buttons and bumper stickers to chewing gum, pocket knives, and plastic pickles--is likely to turn up in a Texas political campaign. Though many consider these items ephemeral, collectors value political memorabilia as a fascinating "sound bite" record of the candidates and issues that engaged the voting...

In the decades since Latinas began to hold public office in the United States in the late 1950s, they have blazed new trails in public life, bringing fresh perspectives, leadership styles, and policy agendas to the business of governing cities, counties, states, and the nation. As of 2004, Latinas occupied 27.4 percent of the more than 6,000 elected and appointed local, state, and national positions filled by Hispanic officeholders. The greatest number of these Latina officeholders reside in Texas, where nearly six hundred women occupy posts from municipal offices, school boards, and...

This book examines the evolution of federal disaster relief policy, assesses problems with current policy, and provides an understanding of the issues likely to be involved in future deliberations about federal policy. While examining its formulation, May describes this policy making in two different political environments: the charged atmosphere immediately following the catastrophe and, secondly, the calm between catastrophes. Local, state, and federal government conflicts are illustrated in a case study of Mount St. Helens; intergovernmental partnerships in this arena are discussed in...

A comprehensive reference work which provides a way to access research on urban politics and policy in the United States. Experts in the field guide readers through major controversies, while evaluating and assessing the subfields of urban politics and policy. Each chapter follows the same basic organization with topics such as methodological and theoretical issues, current states of the field, and directions for future research.

For students, this work provides a starting place to guide them to the most important works in a particular subfield and a context to place their...

Politics, by its nature, is a contentious arena. Suburbia, on the other hand, has long presented the image of a relatively serene, harmonious, and homogenous social context. Until recently little attention has been paid to whatever might be the distinctive qualities of the suburban political scene. Yet, as this collection of essays makes apparent, suburbia is as volatile a political environment as any other. The suburban political sphere is truly a contested terrain, and this volume effectively shows the links between suburban political realities and our collective economic and social...

This up-to-date collection of essays addresses key elements of the law and politics of voting rights: the Supreme Court's jurisprudence, the impact of the Voting Rights Act, and the opportunities for enhanced minority representation posed by alternative electoral systems. This volume, comprised of contributions by leading legal and political science practitioners in the field of voting rights, will be a valuable resource to experienced researchers and newcomers to the field. It includes current assessments of the intricacies of the Supreme Court's decisions, current research on the impact...

During recessions state government fiscal crises are widespread, as states find their revenues inadequate to meet their expenditure demands. This volume shows that state fiscal crises have only one significant cause: revenue downturns associated with recessions. Other analysts have argued that fiscal crises are the result of an interaction of many complex causes, including inadequate tax bases, increasing expenditure demands, and limits placed on state governments by voters. This analysis examines these other factors and shows that while they present significant challenges to state...

The debate over states' rights versus federalism in America is one that has raged since our country's founding. Arguments over the interpretation of the Constitution and the meaning of power and its distribution among the states' governments echoes in governmental chambers even today. Students can trace the history and development of issues surrounding this debate, as well as the reactions to them, through this unique and comprehensive collection of over 65 primary documents. Court cases, opinion pieces, speeches and many other documents bring to life the controversies surrounding the...

How did the alliance between labor and the Democratic Party develop after the First World War? What role does Evansville play in an examination of this alliance? What was the impact of the alliance on U.S politics and society? These are some of the questions that Samuel W. White tackles in his book Fragile Alliances: Labor and Politics in Evansville, Indiana, 1919-1955.

Focusing on Evansville, Indiana, as a case study, White challenges traditional assumptions in the field, such as the following: labor has one political voice; labor is monolithic in electoral politics;...