Glenn W. Fisher. The Worst Tax? A History of the Property Tax in America. (Studies in Government and Public Policy.) Lawrence: University Press of Kansas. 1996. Pp. x, 245. $35.00

1998 ◽  
Keyword(s):  
Public Policy ◽  
Property Tax ◽  
History Of

COMMONWEALTH Forum: The Politics of Science or the Science of Politics

Commonwealth ◽  
2017 ◽  
Vol 19 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
John Arway
Keyword(s):  
Public Policy ◽  
Natural Resource ◽  
Factual Information ◽  
The Past ◽  
Difference Of Opinion ◽  
History Of ◽  
The Right ◽  
Scientific Facts ◽  
Environmental Agency ◽  
Laws And Regulations

The challenges of including factual information in public policy and political discussions are many. The difficulties of including scientific facts in these debates can often be frustrating for scientists, politicians and policymakers alike. At times it seems that discussions involve different languages or dialects such that it becomes a challenge to even understand one another’s position. Oftentimes difference of opinion leads to laws and regulations that are tilted to the left or the right. The collaborative balancing to insure public and natural resource interests are protected ends up being accomplished through extensive litigation in the courts. In this article, the author discusses the history of environmental balancing during the past three decades from the perspective of a field biologist who has used the strength of our policies, laws and regulations to fight for the protection of our Commonwealth’s aquatic resources. For the past 7 years, the author has taken over the reins of “the most powerful environmental agency in Pennsylvania” and charted a course using science to properly represent natural resource interests in public policy and political deliberations.

Animal Pain Scales in Public Policy

1990 ◽  
Vol 18 (1_part_1) ◽  
pp. 41-50
Author(s):  
F. Barbara Orlans
Keyword(s):  
Public Policy ◽  
Animal Welfare ◽  
The United States ◽  
Pain Scale ◽  
Laboratory Animals ◽  
Practical Applications ◽  
Animal Pain ◽  
Pain Scales ◽  
History Of ◽  
And Control

Pain scales classify the severity of pain inflicted on laboratory animals from little or none up to severe. A pain scale as part of public policy serves beneficial purposes that promote animal welfare. It can be used to educate people about the two alternatives of refinement and replacement, and the need to reduce animal pain. Furthermore, a pain scale has practical applications: 1) in review procedures for animal welfare concerns; 2) in developing policies on the use of animals in education; and 3) as a basis for collecting national data on animal experimentation, so that meaningful data can be collected on trends in reduction and control in animal pain. So far, only a few countries (including Sweden, the Netherlands, Canada and New Zealand) have adopted pain scales as part of their public policy. Most countries, including the United States, have not yet done so. The history of the development and adoption of pain scales by various countries is described and the case is presented for wider adoption of a pain scale in countries not currently using one.

“Theoretically all Children are Equal. Practically this can Never be So”: The History of the District Property Tax in California and the Choice of Inequality

2020 ◽  
Vol 122 (2) ◽  
pp. 1-32
Author(s):  
Matthew Gardner Kelly
Keyword(s):  
School Finance ◽  
Research Question ◽  
Property Tax ◽  
School Funding ◽  
State Governments ◽  
Property Taxation ◽  
History Of ◽  
Long Term Trends ◽  
Funding Disparities

Background/Context Dealing mostly in aggregate statistics that mask important regional variations, scholars often assume that district property taxation and the resource disparities this approach to school funding creates are deeply rooted in the history of American education. Purpose/Objective/Research Question/Focus of Study This article explores the history of district property taxation and school funding disparities in California during the 19th and 20th centuries. First, the article documents the limited use of district property taxation for school funding in California and several other Western states during the 19th century, showing that the development of school finance was more complicated than standard accounts suggest. Then, the article examines how a coalition of experts, activists, and politicians worked together during the early 20th century to promote district property taxation and institutionalize the idea that the wealth of local communities, rather than the wealth of the entire state, should determine the resources available for public schooling. Research Design This article draws on primary source documents from state and regional archives, including district-level funding data from nine Northern California counties, to complete a historical analysis. Conclusions/Recommendations The history of California's district property tax suggests the need for continued research on long-term trends in school finance and educational inequality. Popular accounts minimizing the historical role of state governments in school funding obscure how public policies, not just market forces shaping property values, create funding inequalities. In turn, these accounts communicate powerful messages about the supposed inevitability of funding disparities and the responsibility of state governments to correct them. Through increased attention to long-term trends in school funding, scholars can help popular commentators and policymakers avoid assumptions that naturalize inequality and narrow the possibilities for future funding reforms.

scholarly journals CONFLICTS AND CONTRADICTIONS IN POLICY APPROACHES IN NIGERIA: A DIALECTICAL MANIFESTATION OF POVERTY OF LEADERSHIP

2020 ◽  
Vol 2 (1) ◽  
pp. 04-08
Author(s):  
James Nde Jacob ◽  
Ochoga Anita Onmoba
Keyword(s):  
Public Policy ◽  
Data Gathering ◽  
Policy Outcomes ◽  
Factors Affecting ◽  
Elite Theory ◽  
Implementation Processes ◽  
Colonial Legacy ◽  
History Of ◽  
Major Factors ◽  
Bad Leadership

The paper discusses the conflicts and contradictions in policy approaches in Nigeria since 1960 with a view to ascertaining the role of bad leadership in policy outcomes. It adopts essentially the secondary methodology in data gathering through textbooks, journals and research articles, while the elite theory is chosen to explain the influence of the elite class on policy issues in Nigeria. From the findings, the paper argues that the heterogeneous configuration of Nigeria, colonial legacy, and institutional constraints have remained the major factors affecting smooth policy making and implementation processes in Nigeria due largely to the dearth of national leadership. In addition, the paper undertakes conceptual clarification of terms as used in relation to Public Policy in modern Nigeria; traces the history of Public Policy in the country; draws conclusion and made recommendations.

History of Research in Developmental Psychology

2013 ◽  
pp. 12-34
Author(s):  
W. Andrew Collins ◽  
Willard W. Hartup
Keyword(s):  
United States ◽  
Nineteenth Century ◽  
Public Policy ◽  
Experimental Psychology ◽  
Developmental Psychology ◽  
The United States ◽  
Psychological Development ◽  
First Century ◽  
History Of Research ◽  
History Of

This chapter summarizes the emergence and prominent features of a science of psychological development. Pioneering researchers established laboratories in Europe in the mid-nineteenth century to examine the significance of successive changes in the organism with the passage of time. American psychologists, many of whom had studied in the European laboratories, subsequently inaugurated similar efforts in the United States. Scientific theories and methods in the fledgling field were fostered by developments in experimental psychology, but also in physiology, embryology, ethology, and sociology. Moreover, organized efforts to provide information about development to parents, educators, and public policy specialists further propagated support for developmental science. The evolution of the field in its first century has provided a substantial platform for future developmental research.

Clio’s Lost Tribe: Public Policy History Since 1978

2012 ◽  
Author(s):  
Julian E. Zelizer
Keyword(s):  
Professional Development ◽  
Public Policy ◽  
Political Culture ◽  
Historical Research ◽  
University Professors ◽  
Policy History ◽  
The World ◽  
History Of ◽  
Policy Analysts ◽  
Cultural Persistence

This chapter traces the history of U.S. public policy since 1978. It first considers the professional development of public historians before discussing the arguments that policy historians make regarding the value of their research to policymaking. In particular, it looks at the scholarship of university professors and describes five categories of historical research: Institutional and Cultural Persistence, Lost Alternatives, Historical Correctives, Political Culture, and Process Evolution. These categories of research offer work that is distinct from the emphasis of mainstream policy analysts and can provide guidance to policymakers without becoming advocates. The chapter situates recent research within these categories and explains their analytic value, arguing that historians should be speaking with greater authority in the world of governance so that policy history will not continue to be “Clio's lost tribe.”

Mosul Four and Iran Six

2018 ◽  
pp. 284-293
Author(s):  
Alex Mills
Keyword(s):  
Public Policy ◽  
International Law ◽  
Security Council ◽  
Private International Law ◽  
Commercial Aircraft ◽  
Public And Private ◽  
State Immunity ◽  
House Of Lords ◽  
Un Security Council ◽  
History Of

This chapter explores the practical entanglement of questions of public and private international law through an examination of the history of ten commercial aircraft belonging to Kuwait Airways Corporation. The aircraft were seized by Iraq after the unlawful 1990 invasion of Kuwait, flown to Baghdad, and handed over to Iraqi Airways. Proceedings seeking return of the aircraft and damages were commenced by Kuwait Airways against Iraqi Airways in the English courts, a further saga which led to more than thirty reported cases, including a remarkable five decisions of the House of Lords. The dispute raised a range of issues, including questions of jurisdiction, state immunity, and perhaps most significantly the potential for public international law to be given effect through domestic private law proceedings, in this case as a source of public policy denying effect to acts of Iraqi law which were contrary to UN Security Council resolutions.

scholarly journals Text as Discourse: The Chinese in Canada in Historiographical Perspective

2008 ◽  
Vol 11 ◽  
Author(s):  
Samantha J Scot
Keyword(s):  
Public Policy ◽  
British Columbia ◽  
Top Down ◽  
Bottom Up ◽  
History Of ◽  
Historical Representations ◽  
Denise Chong ◽  
Compare And Contrast

As a historiographical analysis, this essay seeks to understand the idea of historical layering through the topic of Chinese immigration to Canada. It considers the following four works: In the Sea of Sterile Mountains: The Chinese in British Columbia (1974) by James Morton, White Canada Forever: Popular Attitudes and Public Policy Toward Orientals in British Columbia (1978) by W Peter Ward, From China to Canada: A History of the Chinese Communities in Canada (1982) by Harry Con et al., and The Concubine's Children (1994) by Denise Chong. It does so in an effort to compare and contrast their approaches with regard to consensus and specialist histories, top-down and bottom-up approaches, as well as passive and active historical representations.

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