In this seventh edition of his classic introduction to the process and content of public policy in America, B. Guy Peters provides the background and context needed for any introductory course in the subject. Deftly handling such core topics as the governmental structures and procedures through which policy is designed and implemented, Peters also examines substantive policy areas—including health care, education, social security and welfare, energy and the environment, and defense and law enforcement—to give students a solid foundation as well as a real sense of the issues and tradeoffs facing today’s policymakers.

Students and instructors alike will appreciate the seventh edition’s updated material on the George W. Bush administration along with cases and material drawn from recent events and scholarship. In addition to analysis of the impact of Hurricane Katrina and its aftermath, the continuing efforts to implement results-based legislation such as the “No Child Left Behind” policy, and an expanded discussion of the changing role of ideology, this revision also includes valuable new material on the defense budget, earmarking in the budgeting process, and the President’s Tax Reform Commission. Showing students why such politically divisive issues as abortion, gay marriage, and school prayer are so unyielding to bargaining and compromise, Peters includes a unique and insightful chapter on social policy and the culture wars. Finally, updated graphics, tables, and charts throughout will ensure that students have access to the latest data in the field.

Part 1. The Nature of Public Policy

1. What Is Public Policy?
Defining Public Policy
The Instruments of Public Policy
The Environment of Public Policy
Summary

2. The Structure of Policymaking in American Government
Federalism
Separation of Powers
Subgovernments
Public and Private
The Size and Shape of the Public Sector
Summary

Part 2. The Making of Public Policy

3. Agenda Setting and Public Policy
Agenda Setting
Kinds of Agendas
Who Sets Agendas?
From Problem to Issue: How to Get Problems on the Agenda
Policy Formulation
Decision Analysis
Summary

4. Legitimating Policy Choices
Legislative Legitimation
Oversight
Regulations and the Administrative Process
Summary

5. Organizations and Implementation
Dramatis Personae
Implementation
The Organizational Setting
Summary

6. Budgeting: Allocation and Public Policy
Characteristics of the Federal Budget
The Budget Cycle
Problems in the Budgetary Process
Reforming Budgeting
From Scalpels to Axes: Budget Reform in the 1980s and 1990s
Is Budget Change Its Own Reward?

7. Evaluation and Policy Change
Problems in Evaluating Public Programs
Policy Change
Summary

Part 3. Substantive Policy Issues

8. Economic Policy
The Goals of Economic Policy
The Instruments of Economic Policy
Summary

9. Tax Policy
Public Opinion and Taxation
Choices in Tax Policy
The Politics of Tax Reform
Summary

10. Health Care Policies
Problems in Health Care
Public Programs in Health Care
Health Care Regulation
The Pursuit of National Health Insurance
Conclusion

11. Income Maintenance: Social Security and Welfare
Social Insurance
Means-Tested Programs
The Persistence of Poverty in the United States
Summary

12. Educational Policy
Background
The Federal Government’s Role in Education
Issues of Educational Policy
Summary

13. Energy and the Environment
Energy: Problems and Policies
Energy Sources
Policy Options
Environmental Policies
Implementation of Environmental Controls

14. Protective Policies: Defense and Law Enforcement
Defense Policy
Problems of Defense Policy
Law Enforcement
Issues in Law Enforcement Policy
Conclusion

15. Culture Wars in American Politics: Regulating Social Life
Abortion and Reproductive Rights
Gay Rights: Politics Comes Out of the Closet
The Separation of Church and State: School Prayer and Other Issues
Summary

Part 4. Policy Analysis

16. Cost-Benefit Analysis
Principles of Cost-Benefit Analysis
Doing Cost-Benefit Analysis
Criticism and Modification

17. Ethical Analysis of Public Policy
Fundamental Value Premises
Ethics and Public Policy: Alternatives to Utilitarianism

Endnotes
Index

“This book is one of the most comprehensive, coherent and logical presentations of public policy that I have used. I have relied on editions of this same book for the last 10 years. No one else comes close to his review of key terms, issues and definitions. When you consider these in addition to the fact that he uses contemporary, real world examples and applications—from law enforcement, to social security, environmental policy and minority rights, it is understandable why Peters’ work is noteworthy.”

B. Guy Peters is Maurice Falk Professor of American Government at the University of Pittsburgh. He has written extensively in the areas of public administration and public policy, both for the United States and comparatively. Among his recent publications are the Handbook of Public Administration and The Quest for Control: Politicization of the Public Service.

FREE INSTRUCTOR’S RESOURCES

Saving instructors valuable prep time, these handy resources include test questions and PowerPoint lecture slides.