scholarly journals The Conditional Effect of Scientific Knowledge and Gender on Support for COVID-19 Government Containment Policies in a Partisan America

2020 ◽  
Vol 16 (4) ◽  
pp. 1075-1083 ◽  
Author(s):  
Carlos Algara ◽  
Sam Fuller ◽  
Christopher Hare
Keyword(s):  
General Population ◽  
Gender Gap ◽  
Scientific Knowledge ◽  
Local Governments ◽  
The United States ◽  
Health Crisis ◽  
Conditional Effect ◽  
Citizen Perceptions ◽  
State And Local ◽  
And Gender

AbstractWith the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic in the United States, many state and local governments were forced to implement necessary policies to contain transmission of the deadly virus. These policies ranged from closing most businesses to more controversial proposals, such as postponing primary elections. In this research note, we examine the role that scientific knowledge and gender played in citizen perceptions of these virus containment policies, both in the general population and among partisans. We find that while a gender gap persists in scientific knowledge, both in the general population and within the parties, women are generally more likely to use this knowledge to inform their policy views on necessary government action during the COVID-19 pandemic. These findings shed light on how knowledge and gender intersect to drive support for government intervention during the time of a severe public health crisis in a partisan America.

scholarly journals LGBT Discrimination, Subnational Public Policy, and Law in the United States

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Christy Mallory ◽  
Brad Sears
Keyword(s):  
United States ◽  
Sexual Orientation ◽  
Gender Identity ◽  
State Government ◽  
Local Governments ◽  
The United States ◽  
Executive Branch ◽  
State And Local ◽  
Lgbt People ◽  
And Gender

LGBT people in the United States continue to experience discrimination because of their sexual orientation and gender identity, despite increasing acceptance of LGBT people and legal recognition of marriage for same-sex couples nationwide. This ongoing discrimination can lead to under- and unemployment, resulting in socioeconomic disparities for LGBT people. In addition, empirical research has linked LGBT health disparities, including disparities in health-related risk factors, to experiences of stigma and discrimination. Currently, federal statutes in the United States do not prohibit discrimination based on sexual orientation or gender identity in employment, housing, or public accommodations, leaving regulation in this area primarily to state and local governments. This creates a limited and uneven patchwork of protections from discrimination against LGBT people across the country. Despite public support for LGBT-inclusive non-discrimination laws across the country, in 28 states there are no statewide statutory protections for LGBT people in employment, housing, or public accommodations. To date, only 20 states and the District of Columbia have enacted comprehensive non-discrimination statutes that expressly prohibit discrimination based on both sexual orientation and gender identity in all three of these areas. One additional state has statutes that prohibit sexual orientation discrimination, but not gender identity discrimination, in these areas. One other state prohibits discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity in employment and housing, but not in public accommodations. In states without statutes that prohibit discrimination based on sexual orientation and/or gender identity, there are other policies that afford LGBT people at least some limited protections from discrimination. In some of these states, state executive branch officials have expanded non-discrimination protections for LGBT people under their executive or agency powers. For example, in three states, state government agencies have expanded broad protections from sexual orientation or gender identity discrimination through administrative regulations. And, in 12 states without statutes prohibiting discrimination against LGBT people, governors have issued executive orders that protect state government employees (and sometimes employees of state government contractors) from discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity. In addition, local government ordinances provide another source of protection from discrimination; however, these laws are generally unenforceable in court and provide much more limited remedies than statewide non-discrimination statutes. In recent years, lawmakers have increasingly attempted to limit the reach of state and local non-discrimination laws, which can leave LGBT people vulnerable to discrimination. For example, some states have passed laws allowing religiously motivated discrimination and others have passed laws prohibiting local governments from enacting their own non-discrimination ordinances that are broader than state non-discrimination laws. While most of these bills have not passed, the recent increase in the introduction of these measures suggests that state legislatures will continue to consider rolling back non-discrimination protections for LGBT people in the coming years. Continued efforts are required at both the state and federal levels to ensure that LGBT people are fully protected from discrimination based on their sexual orientation and gender identity throughout the United States, including federal legislation and statewide bills in over half the states.

Government responses to the coronavirus in the United States: immediate remedial actions, rising debt levels and budgetary hangovers

2020 ◽  
Vol 32 (5) ◽  
pp. 745-758 ◽  
Author(s):  
Philip G. Joyce ◽  
Aichiro Suryo Prabowo
Keyword(s):  
United States ◽  
Local Governments ◽  
The United States ◽  
Economic Effects ◽  
State Governments ◽  
Fiscal Stimulus ◽  
Health Crisis ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Remedial Actions ◽  
State And Local

PurposeThis paper reviews the response of both the national and state governments in the United States to the coronavirus pandemic and discusses budgetary challenges that are likely to be faced by the country over the next several years.Design/methodology/approachThe paper uses government sources, analysis by internal and external think tanks and contemporaneous media accounts to describe both the problem and the governmental responses.FindingsSince the first cases appeared in the US in early 2020, and particularly as the numbers started to expand substantially by March of that year, governments at all levels have worked to both respond to the immediate public health crisis and mitigate the economic effects of the pandemic. This included some immediate actions by the Federal Reserve to introduce more liquidity and four separate pieces of legislation passed in March and April 2020. The effect of this legislation has been to add $2.5 tr to 2020 and 2021 deficits. State and local governments, meanwhile, face years of budget shortfalls, which will require them ultimately to raise taxes and cut spending and may also require additional fiscal stimulus from the federal government. The magnitude of the fiscal effects will be driven by whether there is a second wave, how long the recession lasts, and what additional responses will be necessary in order to get the pandemic under control and deal with its aftermath.Originality/valueThe paper is likely the first to summarize the information about the federal and state responses, and the likely future impacts, in a single place.

scholarly journals Early Responses to Climate Change: An Analysis of Seven U.S. State and Local Climate Adaptation Planning Initiatives

2010 ◽  
Vol 2 (3) ◽  
pp. 237-248 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kyle Andrew Poyar ◽  
Nancy Beller-Simms
Keyword(s):  
United States ◽  
Local Governments ◽  
Planning Process ◽  
Climate Adaptation ◽  
The United States ◽  
Climate Impact ◽  
Climate Impacts ◽  
Adaptation Planning ◽  
State And Local ◽  
Climate Adaptation Planning

Abstract State and local governments in the United States manage a wide array of natural and human resources that are particularly sensitive to climate variability and change. Recent revelations of the extent of the current and potential climate impact in this realm such as with the quality of water, the structure of the coasts, and the potential and witnessed impact on the built infrastructure give these political authorities impetus to minimize their vulnerability and plan for the future. In fact, a growing number of subnational government bodies in the United States have initiated climate adaptation planning efforts; these initiatives emphasize an array of climate impacts, but at different scales, scopes, and levels of sophistication. Meanwhile, the current body of climate adaptation literature has not taken a comprehensive look at these plans nor have they questioned what prompts local adaptation planning, at what scope and scale action is being taken, or what prioritizes certain policy responses over others. This paper presents a case-based analysis of seven urban climate adaptation planning initiatives, drawing from a review of publicly available planning documents and interviews with stakeholders directly involved in the planning process to provide a preliminary understanding of these issues. The paper also offers insight into the state of implementation of adaptation strategies, highlighting the role of low upfront costs and cobenefits with issues already on the local agenda in prompting anticipatory adaptation.

scholarly journals Integrated Data Systems in the US: a National Survey of State and Local Governments and their University Partners

2019 ◽  
Vol 4 (3) ◽  
Author(s):  
Adelia Jenkins ◽  
Dennis Culhane
Keyword(s):  
Learning Community ◽  
National Survey ◽  
Local Governments ◽  
Technical Assistance ◽  
The United States ◽  
Data Matrix ◽  
Data Systems ◽  
The Us ◽  
State And Local ◽  
K 12

Background Actionable Intelligence for Social Policy (AISP) is an initiative of the University of Pennsylvania that focuses on the development, use, and innovation of integrated data systems (IDS). We convene a network of IDS across the United States and provide technical assistance to support developing sites as they build the technical and human capacity to integrate and use administrative data across agencies. Main AimIn late 2018 and early 2019, AISP conducted a national survey of integrated data efforts to better understand the landscape and how it’s changed since the last national scan was completed in 2013. The survey also served to document who is leading data sharing efforts, what data they are linking, and how linked data are currently being used. This information was used to create a centralized data matrix and contact list in order to support cross-site learning and facilitate future projects and analyses. Methods/ApproachThe survey was disseminated to AISP Network Sites, Learning Community sites, and others by AISP staff and partner organizations, including the National Neighborhood Indicators Partnership Network and Arnold Policy Labs initiative. Survey responses were analyzed by AISP in spring 2019. ResultsThe survey yielded 39 responses from state and local governments and their research partners. The most common uses of integrated data among those surveyed are informing policy, program evaluation, and research. Integrated case management and resource allocation are also increasingly informed by integrated data. The most commonly integrated data sources are early childhood, child welfare, and K-12 education. Medicaid, TANF, SNAP, and UI Wage Records have also been integrated by over 50% of sites surveyed. The most common lingering challenges reported by sites related to sustainability. ConclusionSurvey results document the purposes and sources of data currently integrated by jurisdictions across the US and have major implications for the field both nationally and internationally.

Within Source Diversification When the Going Gets Tough: Examining Alterations to Human Service Nonprofit Funding by Levels of Government

2021 ◽  
pp. 45-66
Keyword(s):  
Nonprofit Organizations ◽  
Human Service ◽  
Local Governments ◽  
The United States ◽  
Government Funding ◽  
Federal State ◽  
The Great Recession ◽  
Nonprofit Funding ◽  
State And Local ◽  
The Government

Government increasingly relies on nonprofit organizations to deliver public services, especially for human services. As such, human service nonprofits receive a substantial amount of revenue from government agencies via grants and contracts. Yet, times of crises result in greater demand for services, but often with fewer financial resources. As governments and nonprofits are tasked to do more with less, how does diversification within the government funding stream influence government-nonprofit funding relationships? More specifically, we ask: How do the number of different government partners and the type of government funder—federal, state, or local—influence whether nonprofits face alterations to government funding agreements? Drawing upon data from over 2,000 human service nonprofits in the United States, following the Great Recession, we find nonprofit organizations that only received funds from the federal government were less likely to experience funding alterations. This helps to illustrate the economic impact of the recession on state and local governments as well as the nonprofit organizations that partner with them.

The Contours of Repression

2019 ◽  
pp. 184-208
Author(s):  
David M. Struthers
Keyword(s):  
United States ◽  
Local Governments ◽  
The United States ◽  
Federal State ◽  
Industrial Workers ◽  
World War One ◽  
International Borders ◽  
The World ◽  
Sedition Act ◽  
State And Local

This chapter examines the World War One period in which the federal, state, and local governments in the United States, in addition to non-state actors, created one of the most severe eras of political repression in United States history. The Espionage Act, the Sedition Act, changes to immigration law at the federal level, and state criminal syndicalism laws served as the legal basis for repression. The Partido Liberal Mexicano (PLM), Industrial Workers of the World (IWW), and other anarchists took different paths in this era. Some faced lengthy prison sentences, some went underground, while others crossed international borders to flee repression and continue organizing. This chapter examines the repression of radical movements and organizing continuities that sustained the movement into the 1920s.

Government and Fiscal Policy in American Economic History

2018 ◽  
pp. 194-224
Author(s):  
John Joseph Wallis
Keyword(s):  
United States ◽  
Economic Development ◽  
Economic History ◽  
Local Governments ◽  
Property Tax ◽  
The United States ◽  
State Governments ◽  
Payroll Taxes ◽  
The Third ◽  
State And Local

Over the last 225 years, government finances in the United States have gone through three distinct stages. In the first stage, 1790–1850, state governments actively pursued policies to promote economic development and financed them from revenues from state investments. In the second, 1850–1930, local governments became the most important level of government, as measured by revenues and expenditures, and revenues shifted toward the property tax. In the third period, 1930 to the present, the national government became the most active and largest level of government, financed through income and payroll taxes, and developed an extensive network of grants to state and local governments. The chapter tracks the changes in sources of revenues and purpose of expenditures, with specific attention paid to military spending over the entire period.

Infant formula and toddler milk marketing: opportunities to address harmful practices and improve young children’s diets

2020 ◽  
Vol 78 (10) ◽  
pp. 866-883 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jennifer L Harris ◽  
Jennifer L Pomeranz
Keyword(s):  
United States ◽  
Infant Formula ◽  
Local Governments ◽  
Child Nutrition ◽  
Self Regulation ◽  
The United States ◽  
World Health ◽  
Health Providers ◽  
Formula Milk ◽  
State And Local

Abstract Children’s diets in their first 1000 days influence dietary preferences, eating habits, and long-term health. Yet the diets of most infants and toddlers in the United States do not conform to recommendations for optimal child nutrition. This narrative review examines whether marketing for infant formula and other commercial baby/toddler foods plays a role. The World Health Organization’s International Code of Marketing Breast-milk Substitutes strongly encourages countries and manufacturers to prohibit marketing practices that discourage initiation of, and continued, breastfeeding. However, in the United States, widespread infant formula marketing negatively impacts breastfeeding. Research has also identified questionable marketing of toddler milks (formula/milk-based drinks for children aged 12–36 mo). The United States has relied exclusively on industry self-regulation, but US federal agencies and state and local governments could regulate problematic marketing of infant formula and toddler milks. Health providers and public health organizations should also provide guidance. However, further research is needed to better understand how marketing influences what and how caregivers feed their young children and inform potential interventions and regulatory solutions.

State and Local Opportunities in Environmental Policy: Cleaning up the Potomac and Anacostia Rivers

1997 ◽  
Vol 2 (2) ◽  
pp. 159-170 ◽  
Author(s):  
Troy D. Abel ◽  
J. Thomas Hennessey
Keyword(s):  
Environmental Policy ◽  
Local Governments ◽  
The United States ◽  
Public And Private ◽  
Policy Issues ◽  
Private Organizations ◽  
Recent Developments ◽  
State And Local Government ◽  
State And Local ◽  
National Environmental

Since 1970, much of state and local activity in environmental protection involved implementing or enforcing national mandates. Recent developments in the United States suggest that some subnational jurisdictions have taken and are taking significant steps to address local environmental problems within, and beyond, national mandates. This suggests that there may be opportunities for state and local governments to address emerging local environmental policy issues. With any opportunity to address emerging local environmental policy issues is the question, Can state and local governments effectively implement new strategies to address emerging environmental issues? This article examines two cases where state and local governments have taken and are taking a prominent role in addressing water quality problems. The cases, although different in time and focus, argue that state and local governments can, and have, provided leadership on such issues. Much of the early effort to push for national environmental mandates was based on the assumption that state and local governments were incapable of addressing the environmental challenges facing them. The two cases presented in this article suggest that more than national mandates are required to overcome local limits. Among the required components for successful state and local government efforts suggested by these cases are experimentation, innovative combinations of public and private organizations at the local and state levels, and flexible federal support for local action.

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