POLS Exam 3 Review – Flashcards

adequacy and equity.

involves the ABSOLUTE AMOUNT of EQUAL funding provided to students in school districts

involves DIFFERENCES in funding between school districts - UNEQUAL

court rules that the difference in funding levels from one school district to another were so severe that they violate the equal protection clauses of both the United States and California state constitutions. Replaced local property tax-based funding for education with state income tax-based funding.

-The federal gov't is somewhat involved in public education, look at common core, no child left behind, federal department of education, states flagships schools like us, a large portion of responsibility falls on the states but the fed gov't does have an input -Public education, public health, higher education, emergency management, homeland security (NIMS), police powers, environmental regulation, working conditions. -Prevention and control of disease are major state and local responsibilities Responsible for vast network of roads, highways, waterways, airports, dams, bridges

The federal government's share in financing K-12 education has INCREASED over time but it is still LOW The influence of the federal government has INCREASED considerably, however, particularly because the requirements of the No Child Left Behind Act of 2002, a reauthorization of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act. The Act emerged from a reform movement pushing for changes to increase the quality of education, but controversy has developed over the impact of the federal regulations. State funding of higher education is UNSTABLE, rising during periods of economic growth and falling during periods of economic decline Some public colleges and universities can often raise tuition to make up for lost state revenues, but these tuition increases mean that the burden of paying for higher education shifts to students and their parents "State money is distributed according to many formulas, but the trend is toward giving more money to poorer communities to equalize education spending" funding: states spend 8-15% of their budgets on higher education. K-12 Education funding = 35% of all state and local government expenditures. spending on public elementary and secondary schools: 41.7% from local governments, 46.7% from state governments, 9.6% from federal government. We have far fewer school districts now than in 1952 due to consolidation (combining of districts).

main role is to provide performance based grants. Does NOT actually administer education, that is done at the local level. Distributes financial aid to agencies, programs and students. Collects data on american schools and oversees research and reporting to congress. Ensure equal access to education. The basic unit for public elementary and secondary education in the US is the local school districts. In all districts, voters elect a board of education (nonpartisan) that sets the school tax rate, appoints a superintendent of schools and other personnel, hires teachers, and runs the schools from kindergarten through grade 12

testing that determine whether or not students are able to advance grade wise. advocates: raise education quality and ensure accountability opponents: unlikely to have any impact, unfair/misleading measure of learning. fear: "teaching the test"

Requires states to design STATE STANDARDS and ANNUALLY TEST elementary school children to determine whether they are making adequate progress toward achieving those standards. Policy makers and educators still struggle with how best to fund and implement the standardized testing requirements. HAS BEEN GUTTED. Set funding from federal government, you must have standardized tests in order to receive grants. Salaries for teachers, funding for schools, teachers "teaching" to the test. Ends up leaving children behind*. Students lag behind and instead of being helped they are moved out of the class. Too much pressure to make the grades in order to get the money

Money provided by the government to parents for payment of their children tuition in a public or private school of their choice. Opponents criticize this system for the negative impact it may have on school reform. Their main contention is that vouchers will badly injur financially struggling public schools by diverting much-need money. Also would promote "skimming", meaning higher-achieving students would opt out of public schools, leaving behind students who struggle academically and have discipline problems. Opponents of vouchers for religious schools argue that such an arrangement violates the constitutional separation of church and state.

A publicly funded alternative to standard public schools in some states, initiated when individuals or groups receive charters; charter schools must meet state standards. They are the fastest growing form of choice in K-12 education. They are intended to interject the competition of the marketplace into elementary and secondary education. They have more flexibility to hire and fire teachers and are not subject to the collective bargaining arrangements. Supporters contend that most charter schools enroll students with academic and family problems who are poorly served by traditional public schools. Helped decrease dropout rate in TEXAS. proponents: in reducing state and local regulation, teacher quality, innovative education programs, argue they enroll those with needs that are under-served by public education opponents: no concrete evidence that charter schools increase student achievement compared to traditional public schooling, huge variance in quality.

A public school offering special instruction and programs not available elsewhere, designed to attract a more diverse student body from throughout a school district

a. Increased during the last few decades, often at two or three times the rate of inflation. Professors salaries have not kept pace with tuition increase. b. State funding of higher education is unstable, rising during periods of economic growth and falling during periods of economic decline c. Some public colleges and universities can often raise tuition to make up for lost revenues, but these tuition increases mean that the burden of paying for higher education shifts to students and their parents d. Increased in 2003 since the cap was taken off -Cannot be rasised 1% above inflation

a. Federal government b. Funded from state budget 8-15% c. States are now making major efforts to expand their programs of student aid d. Provide need-based financial assistance in the form of loans and grants, and student with the greatest financial need at the higher-cost institution are eligible for the most aid Permanent University Fund and Higher Education Assistance Fund Community colleges are also funded by property taxes within the community

sovereign wealth fund created by states of Texas to fund public higher education. Only for flagship universities. ex: A&M and UT. Money comes from public donors, not limited to the government, large portions of Texas' comes from oil and gas industry (i.e. why tamu has oil wells)

gives money to other public universities. (non-flagship) ex: Texas tech community colleges are fined by property taxes within the community

A federal welfare reform law that replaced Aid to Families with dependent children, the 60-year old assistant program for poor families with children. This 1996 law strengthened work requirements for recipients, limited the time that families can receive benefits and gave states flexibility to develop service programs supporting work, marriage, and self-sufficiency. Has a two-year consecutive time limit and five-year lifetime time limits on benefits were sorely tested by the recession that began in 2008. Unemployment benefits are paid for by taxes the federal and state governments levy on employees, which are placed in a state trust fund. If states are not able to cover all of their obligations they can borrow from the federal trust fund but states must repay those loans. 1. It imposes new restrictions on families receiving cash assistance. Welfare is not longer an entitlement for families in financial need. Adults in the family must work soon after they begin getting benefits, and families may no longer receive benefits indefinitely. Can receive cash assistance for only 5 years. 2. Expanded the goals of welfare policy. Instead of trying to make it possible for women to care for children rather than work, the program now aims to help parents, most of whom are women, find jobs. Teen parents receiving cash benefits are discouraged from setting up their own households and are required to attend school and live at home with their parents. States are encouraged to adopt programs that promote marriage and avoid out of wedlock births. 3. States were given greater flexibility in designing and administering welfare policies. States now receive block grants from the federal government and may use these grants to support a wide variety of programs; they need not spend most of their welfare dollars on monthly cash payments to families.

adopted in 1965. Designed as a program to enable states to fund health care for people who were poor and received public assistance. Eligibility has been expanded to include low-income children, pregnant women, families, the disabled, and the elderly. More than half of recipients today have family income above the poverty level. State officials think that soaring Medicaid spending threatens other policy goals, such as reducing public school class size, increasing public transportation infrastructure, and funding innovative environmental programs. Based on NEED.

includes many new options for states trying to reduce the growth of Medicaid spending. Allows states to develop different benefit packages for different types of Medicaid recipients. Also allows states to require some recipients to pay for part of their health care.

the federal health care program for people over the age of 65. based on AGE/ELDERLY. if elderly and poor, then placed on medicaid.

poor: aint nobody got time for dat (voting) elderly: tons, they are the majority of voters in America (AARP, etc..)

the most common method of ensuring orderly growth - creates specific areas and limiting property usage in each area. A city may be divided into designated areas for single-family, two-family, or multi-family dwellings; for commercial purposes; and for light or heavy industry. Regulations restrict the height of buildings or require that buildings be located a certain distance apart or a certain distance from the boundaries of the lot

They help the city or county government coordinate services with land use. They also help stabilize property values by preventing, for example, garbage dumps from being located next to residential areas.

An approach to homeland security that addresses natural disaster as well as terrorism preparedness. The National Incident Management System implements this. "expect the best, prepare for the worst".

readiness response recovery remediation

involves prepositioning supplies and equipment and making sure that first responders are trained in what to do when an emergency occurs.

involves getting the right people to the site in question as quickly as possible. Sometimes this is the most important step

involves everything that occurs immediately after an emergency event - the cleanup of debris, restoration of traffic patterns, initial stabilization of damaged infrastructure, and so on.

involves changing the design of communities and buildings to make them less vulnerable to future incidents

Inherent powers of state governments to PASS LAWS to protect public health, safety, and welfare; the national government has no directly granted police powers but accomplishes the same goals through other delegated powers The inherent power of the states to USE PHYSICAL FORCE if necessary to protect the health, safety and welfare of their citizens. This power among those is not delegated by the federal government by the constitution and is instead reserved to the states

All states have these programs based on the belief that employees should not have to bear the cost of accidents or illnesses incurred because of their jobs. The costs of accidents and occupational diseases are borne by employers and passed on to consumers in the form of higher prices. In the past, employees had to prove that their employers were at fault if they suffered an accident on the job. Today, if people are injured or contract a disease in the ordinary course of employment, they are entitled to compensation set by a prearranged schedule. Workers compensation is a controversial issues, with employers arguing that employee claims of workplace stress are excessive and will make U.S. firms uncompetitive.

where public employment hiring and promotion are based on demonstrated skill, training, and performance rather than on political patronage. They are generally administered by an office of state personnel, which prepares and administers examinations, provides lists of job opening, establishes job classifications, and determines salary schedules. It also serves as a board of appeal for employees who are discharged. They were supposed to emphasize ability and minimize political favoritism, they came to be viewed as clumsy, complicated, and unresponsive to the needs of public managers and agencies. BASED ON KNOWLEDGE, SKILLS, AND ABILITIES (KSA). If you prove you can do the job, you will get the job. TEXAS IS A MIXTURE OF MERIT AND SPOILS SYSTEMS.

Gotten criticized for being overly merited - insulates public employees, have to have documentation from the government to fire someone. State personnel offices used procedures, job descriptions and tests that often failed to fit the needs of state agencies. Job descriptions were detailed and hard to change, and agency managers were thus prevented from adapting their workforces to changing needs. Procedures for filling jobs involved several levels of bureaucracy, and vacancies took a long time to fill. Complained that hiring and firing rules deprived responsible officials of authority over their subordinates. Argued there was too much insulating public employees from political coercion that employees enjoyed too much job security. Administrators could not get rid of incompetent workers.

a system of public employment based on rewarding party loyalists and friends. It was a reward for partisan loyalty and active political support in campaigns and elections. Based on who you know, your connections, family relationships - not about how well you do the job. Made famous at the national level by Andrew Jackson - he was a bad person, as president he balanced budget and got the country out of debt, his cabinet was referred to as the kitchen cabinet because his friends never went through the front door

began to move the federal government from the spoils system to the merit system. The act did not directly affect state and local governments many states began to institute the merit system.

governs what the bureaucracy can do and how the political party becomes. Further promoted the merit principle and limited the political activities of federal, state, and local employees whose salaries were supported with federal funds.

enforced merit principles and restricted the political activities of the employees

Negotiations between an employer and a labor union to set wages, benefits, and working conditions. Since all the workers are in the Union, the companies generally have to follow the guidelines. If not, the company risks strikes and union actions.

24 states have this. Ones employment cannot be dependent on whether one belongs to a labor union or not. These states employees can get fired almost without costs. ex: voting during your lunch break and coming back 5 minutes late and getting fired. TEXAS IS A RIGHT TO WORK STATE

are the union states. To have employment you have to belong to the union. San Antonio and Houston (larger cities) have these, but if you don't want to belong to the union then you don't have to and can negotiate your own contract.

Contracting of government services to private firms. Rather than relying on their own employees, states have "contracted out" public services to private sector organizations including for-profit corporations as well as non-profit agencies. State governments "privatize" certain services because many elected officials distrust their states own public bureaucracies. Privatization of social services is hard to practice, as it requires that public officials exercise sophisticated management skills in developing appropriate contracts, finding and evaluating competing contractors, and closely monitoring the quality of services provided by private agencies. Outsourcing raises fears that private contractors will hire transient or even overseas help at lower pay, undermining merit systems and public employee morale and angering some citizens. Despite all issues, it is likely to continue to grow as cities and state pressed for cash look for ways to cut back on their permanent workforces and rely increasingly on private contractors to provide basic services.

private organizations can bring a lot of expertise to public projects

can give governments flexibility. It allows governments to pay only for the completion of a specific project and not be responsible for maintaining a workforce between projects - or a workforce whose skills are not appropriate for later projects. Governments award contracts competitively - when private firms seek contracts by submitting bids - these are incentives for suppliers to improve the quality of their services to reduce their costs. To be more efficient than the government in delivering services is to pay their employees lower salaries and reduced benefits in comparison to public sector employees.

a. State and local governments get most of their money from taxes. States raised almost one-fifth of general revenues from sales taxes, one-tenth from personal income taxes, nearly 2 percent from corporate income taxes, and nearly one-fifth from property taxes. More than one-fifth came from federal grants-in-aid such as federal support for Medicaid, transportation, and welfare-to-work programs. Other revenues come from chargers to used of government services - such as tuition from students in public universities and colleges - and from a wide variety of other sources, such as earning from interest or property sales. b. Government would like to tax wealth but because we do not have a good method for determining wealth, the alternative is to tax the indicators of wealth. (income, property, and sales). We assume people of higher income are wealthier than people of lower income; that people who own valuable property, are wealthier than those who don't; and that people who purchase more are wealthier than people who purchase less. FEDERAL GOVERNMENT is the single LARGEST REVENUE SOURCE for every state: 22% Individual income tax: 11% (none in Texas) Sales Tax: 18% Property Tax: 18% Charges for Services: 16% Corporate income tax: 2% Miscellaneous general revenue: 9% Other taxes: 4% (legalized gambling, lotteries, grants, borrowed money)

does not dictate where state and local governments are to find revenue, but prohibit states from taking these actions: i. Taking exports or imports or levying tonnage duties without the consent of congress ii. Using taxing powers to interfere with federal operations iii. Discriminating against interstate commerce, unduly burdening it, or taxing it directly iv. Using taxing powers to deprive people of equal protection of the law v. Depriving individuals of their property without due process

one that is easy to administer fairly, one that does not burden individuals and corporations with a lot of extra paperwork and activities; one that does not demand enormous and intrusive governmental agencies to ensure compliance; one that does not allow some people to avoid paying their taxes. It should distribute financial burdens fairly. It should provide what governments need to pay for public programs and be adaptable to changing fiscal needs.

"the worst tax known in the civilized world". Not easy to administer but it sometimes bears little relationship to taxpayers income or other measures of their ability to pay. Main source of LOCAL revenue. Governments cap property taxes at a certain percentage of income for senior citizens and others on fixed income. Significant amount of real property are exempted from property taxes because they are owned by tax-exempt groups, such as churches, charitable organizations and universities. Funds 70% of education.

a tax levied by local and some state governments on real property or personal, tangible property, the major portion of which is on the estimates value of ones home an land. 17.6% of local government general revenues came from property taxes

1. the local governing body (city council, county commission, school board, and so on) sets the millage 2. an assessment of the property is conducted- this is usually done by tax assessors who are either paid local government employees or contractors. 3. the millage is multiplied by the assessed valuation to arrive at the amount of property taxed owed and the property owner is then billed.

the amount per $1000 of assessed valuation that the owner of the property pays.

the valuations a government places on property for the purposes of taxation - updated when improvements to property are made

typically includes fees or taxes charged by 3, 4, or more government units, such as the city, county, school board, water utility, and other special districts.

payment aspect of the property tax is one reason for its widespread unpopularity and has prompted many places to permit taxpayers to pay their taxes in installments, often collected when homeowners make their monthly mortgage payments to banks, which in turn pay the local government when the property taxes are due.

the amount of money available to finance education varies tremendously from area to area; rich suburban areas with a high property valuation per pupil can spend much more than poor areas such as the central cities. Reformers have urged the stress to take over the financing of the public education or at least to assume a greater share of the burden, in order to reduce differences from community to community or to provide enough support to offer an adequate education in all communities. Through the U.S. supreme court, there is no federal constitutional requirement that the amount spent per pupil in each school district be the same.

Watershed event in the politics of tax cutting was the 1978 passage of California's Proposition 13, which limits increases in property taxes to a maximum of 2% a each year. Because the property tax is more stable than most other taxes, when it is limited as a revenue source, the whole state and local tax system become more volatile, prone to big declines during recessions and large increases in times of economic growth.

Circuit Breaker Exemption- most states and certain cities give a form of tax relief to lower-income families and the elderly. The idea is to protect family income from property overload. "if the property tax burden of an individual exceeds a predetermined percentage of personal income, the circuit breaker goes into effect to relive the excess financial pressure.

most important source of revenue for STATES. They are unpopular with local merchants because they fear they drive business away. The sales tax requires a merchant to collect and send the tax to the state, thus freeing the state from much of the administrative burden in tax collection. This also introduces the possibility of fraud on the part of merchants who, if they can report lowered levels of sales, keep the tax they charged patrons. Many consumers consider sales taxes relatively painless because paying a small amount every fay means not having to pay a large tax bill all at one time, But labor groups and low-income consumers remain opposed to sales taxes, favoring wider use of the income tax instead. No states have a broad-based tax on services. It is politically difficult to establish such taxes, as each industry fights against a tax in its service, in state legislators and governors offices.

most retail goods, exempt necessities like food and medicine

on specific goods like motor vehicle, alcohol, and tobacco products. Set at a much higher rate than the general sales tax. Every state imposes these.

tax imposed on the value added to a product at each stage of production and distribution

one of the two largest revenue sources for STATE government. Accounts for 34% of all state tax collections. Based on federal taxable income- income from all sources minus personal exemptions and itemized deductions. They are progressive taxes. Most states do not allow government to levy these. Wage and payroll taxes are similar.

imposed at a flat rate which accounts for approximately 5% of STATE taxes. Many states have cut these taxes or granted generous exemptions as a way to attract businesses to their states.

Texas does not have legalized casino gambling. Gambling companies asserted that prohibitions against land-based casinos did not apply to floating ones, and they promoted gambling on riverboats and dockside casinos.

states operate lotteries as a special form of state-sponsored and state-administered gambling that raises money for public purposes. They have increased in popularity in part because they increase revenues without raising taxes. They provide 3% of what states collect in taxes. They provide essential revenues that would have to be replaced by other sources, all of which are less politically popular. States pay out between 60-70% of their gross receipts from lotteries in prizes and approximately 6% to cover administration costs. The remaining revenue is used for public purposes. Bingo in Texas is considered a form of this.

identify a popular cause such as education, the environment, or senior citizens as the beneficiaries of lottery profits in hopes of getting popular support for the passage of the lottery Opposition comes from church groups, which contend that state lotteries are immoral because they are a form of legalized gambling.

a tax so that people of higher income pay a larger fraction of their income than people of lower incomes. As income goes up, the percentage of taxation goes up.

a tax on the privilege of "severing" (removing from the land) such natural resources as coal, oil, timber, and gas from the land. As income goes up, the percentage paid in taxes of the overall income will go down Tax revenues from these go up and down with the price of oil, gas, and coal. TEXAS is regressive

Don't have to pay back. Grants between governments, usually from higher levels of government (federal and state) to lower levels (counties, cities, and townships) are essential and influential sources of revenue for state and local governments. Most of the growth in federal grants as sources of revenues for state governments come from Medicaid - a federal program that provides health coverage for low-income individuals. Other major areas of federal assistance include income support, education and training, and transportation. Federal assistance in the areas of health, social services, and income support is substantial, usually providing most of the funding for these programs at the STATE level.

Health and education: Most of the spending on health was disbursed through the Medicaid program, a joint federal-state program that provides medical assistance to low-income families. 3 other large spending areas: public safety expenditures (police, fire protection and corrections), environment/housing (parks and recreation facilities, housing, waste management, and natural resource management), and education spending.

education K-12

medicaid - the federal government provides $1 (sometimes up to $3) for ever dollar the state spends

taxes paid as a percentage of personal income

financial instruments issued by state and local governments and bought by investors. In exchange for a cash payment at the time the bond is issued, the issuing government promises the investor that it will repay the loan with interest over time, usually through a long period such as 20-40 years. Local governments face limits on the general level of debt they can incur, but the sale of bonds is often not covered by such limits. That makes selling bonds an attractive alternative for local governments.

property taxes- "the worst tax ever" Sales tax - consider these relatively painless because paying a small amount every day means not paying a large tax bill all at one time. Low income consumers remain opposed to these. in Texas: no income tax - texas has less money to spend

they either reduce or entirely eliminate your obligation to pay tax. Most taxpayers are entitled to an exemption on their tax return that reduces your tax bill in the same way a deduction does. Federal and state governments frequently exempt organizations from income tax entirely when it serves the public, such as with charities and religious organizations.

If you are not claimed as a dependent on another taxpayer's return, then you can claim one personal tax exemption. This is a fixed amount that generally increases each year. The exemption reduces your taxable income just like a deduction does, but has fewer restrictions to claiming it. If you are married and file a joint tax return, both you and your spouse each get an exemption.

The IRS allows you to take additional exemptions for each dependent you claim. Frequently, the source of these exemptions are the children who live with you for more than half the year, are under 19 years old (or under 24 if a full-time student) and who don't provide more than half of their own financial support during the tax year. Some of your relatives can also qualify to be your dependents if they live with you and even your parents who don't.

For an organization to receive tax-exempt status, it must satisfy all IRS requirements. Generally, these are organizations that don't operate for profit and provide valuable services to the community such as a charity. If an organization receives tax-exempt status it's not required to pay federal income tax, but must maintain accurate records to keep its status. Donations you make to these organizations usually entitle you to claim a charitable contribution deduction if you itemize.

State, county and municipal governments also provide tax exemptions to businesses to stimulate the local economy. For example, a business may be exempt from paying local property taxes if it moves its operations to a particular geographic area. In Massachusetts, the state provides many telecommunication companies that provide cable television, Internet access and public broadcasts of radio and television an exemption from sales tax. Many cities and states also offer sales tax holidays where consumers can purchase goods without paying state or local sales taxes.

state and local governments collect large sums of money to pay for current operating expenses- garbage collection, police protection, and social services. To fund long-term projects for expensive efforts such as building school, constructing roads, and clearing slums. The power to borrow money requires voter approval. states are only allowed to borrow money if it is voted on - done by selling bonds

a welfare strategy adopted by some states that gives able-bodied adults who do not have preschool-age children the opportunity to learn job skills that can lead to employment

a welfare strategy adopted by some states in which recipients sign a written agreement specifying their responsibilities and outlining a plan for obtaining work and achieving self -sufficiency.

prevention and control of disease are major state and local responsibilities. Thousands of local governments - counties, cities, townships, and special health districts - have some kind of public health program.

the federal government provides matching funds to states to help cover the costs of providing health care to children under the age of 19 who live in families with incomes up to two times the federal poverty-line. Texas has decreased funding for this every year since it was created.

president Obama signed this into law. This made a number of reforms to the nations health care system. Key provisions of that legislation include barring insurance companies from dropping people from coverage when they get sick, allowing younger adults to stay covered under their parents health care insurance plan until 26. Required states to expand Medicaid coverage to all individuals below a certain income level.

states must submit their plans and have their work inspected by the DOT. The money comes from the federal government, state, and local governments to build highways, public buildings, airports, parks, and recreational facilities. States do the planning, estimate the costs, and arrange for the construction work, even when they receive federal assistance.

states planned and built the national system of interstate and defense highways.

court case that ruled that vouchers, even for church-based schools, are constitutional

developed by the federal government to facilitate the local, state and federal governments working together in the event of a natural man-made distaster

very powerful interest group

Racial segregation, especially in public schools, that happens "by fact" or in reality, rather than by legal requirement, similar races and similar religions tend to live together.