Discussion Topic: Policy Cycle, Policy Formation, and Executive, Legislative, and Judicial Actions

Discussion Topic: Policy Cycle, Policy Formation, and Executive, Legislative, and Judicial Actions

“Let us never forget that government is ourselves and not an alien power over us. The ultimate rulers of our democracy are not a President and senators and congressmen and government officials, but the voters of this country.”
–Franklin D. Roosevelt

The policy cycle is a process that explains how public policy is created, implemented, and evaluated. Although there are many different variations of the public policy cycle, we shall use a simplified, four step public policy cycle:

Step 1: Agenda Setting

How public policy concerns are understood and how various interests highlight the public policy concern.

Step 2: Policy Formation

The crafting of public policy solutions. Public policy solutions are mostly addressed through legislation or regulation.

Step 3: Policy Implementation

How public policy is applied via federal, state, and/or local endeavors.

Step 4: Policy Evaluation

How public policy is assessed: success or failure.

Policy formation is the second step of the policy cycle.

Often, it is the executive, legislative, and judicial branches of the U.S. government that affect public policy via policy formation. Policy formation at government level typically involves regulation, management, education, taxing, and market incentives (Kraft, 2018).

The Second Amendment is a prime example of how executive, legislative, and judicial branches influenced public policy through policy formation. The Second Amendment of the United States Constitution: “A well-regulated Militia, being necessary to the security of a free State, the right of the people to keep and bear Arms, shall not be infringed.” However, since the ratification of the Constitution in 1789 the 2nd Amendment continues to be interpreted and amended via executive, legislative, and judicial actions. There is little that is “well-regulated” about current American gun policy.

The following policy formation examples highlight one executive, legislative, and judicial action:

  • On February 20, 2018, the White House issued a Presidential Memorandum that requested the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives investigate how to regulate bump stocks and other devices (White House, 2018). Later that year the Department of Justice instructed to the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives to outlaw bump stocks because the addition of this device fell “within the definition of “machinegun” under federal law, as such devices allow a shooter of a semiautomatic firearm to initiate a continuous firing cycle with a single pull of the trigger” (ATF, n.d.).
  • On June 26, 1934 Congress passed the National Firearms Act. This legislation required firearms to be registered and taxed. In addition, the following weapons were outlawed: “shotguns and rifles having barrels less than 18 inches in length, certain firearms described as “any other weapons,” machineguns, and firearm mufflers and silencers” (ATF, n.d.).
  • District of Columbia v Heller, 2008. In 2001, Washington D.C. passed municipal legislation that required registration of guns (with qualifications on what guns could or could not be registered) and that all guns stored within homes to be kept “unloaded and disassembled or bound by a trigger lock.” Dick Heller, a police officer, sued the District of Columbia because he was not allowed to register his semi-automatic handgun within his home. The Supreme Court ruled that the Second Amendment’s right to bear arms could not be restricted by the District of Columbia’s municipal legislation (Heller v D.C., 2008).

Directions: Using the required, academic readings, and supplemental academic research, please address the following while adhering to the Discussion Board Rubric:

  • Select a specific example of public policy from one of the following fields:
    • Economic policy
      • An example of economic policy is U.S. budget deficit spending.
    • Education policy
      • An example of education policy is the implementation of national education standards.
    • Environmental policy
      • An example of environmental policy is the Clean Air Act.
    • Foreign policy
      • An example of foreign policy is how we conduct trade with other countries.
    • Healthcare policy
      • An example of healthcare policy is the Affordable Care Act (Obamacare)
    • Welfare policy
      • An example of welfare policy is Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF).
  • Review the official website of the three branches of U.S. government: The White House, Congress, and the Supreme Court.
  • Conduct a keyword search of the official websites for public policies pertinent to your chosen public policy. Each website of three branches of government include a search option on the top of each page.
  • Select a total of two examples from executive legislative, or judicial actions that have helped or hindered your chosen, public policy. You can pick from the different branches or you can pick two from the same branch.
    • Summarize the executive, legislative, and/or judicial actions.
    • How do these examples inform the public policy cycle?

References:

Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives. (n.d.). Retrieved from https://www.atf.gov/rules-and-regulations/bump-sto…

Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives. (n.d.). Retrieved from https://www.atf.gov/rules-and-regulations/national…

DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA v. HELLER. (2008, June 26). Retrieved from

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The policy I will be discussing is in regard to COVID-19, and how the government is moving forward with assisting families with preventative measures. On March 12, 2020, Congress introduced a bill entitled, “Ensuring Access to COVID-19 Preventive Care Act of 2020” This act essentially helps to provide families with the availability to rapid testing, and eventually will ensure that families have access to the COVID-19 vaccine when it is developed. One particular section of the Bill order that, “the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices shall meet and issue a recommendation with respect to a vaccine that is intended to prevent or treat COVID-19 not later than 15 business days after the date on which such vaccine is licensed” H. R. 6231, Sect. 2 (2020). This shows that the legislative of the American government is diligent in ensuring the American people are provided with the necessary protective measures in place to stop the spread of covid, and protect the health of our citizens.

I have also explored the healthcare policies related to the COVID-19 pandemic from the executive branch. President Trump has implemented many executive orders since the pandemic began. One particular executive order supports the American people by prioritizing medical and health-related resources and allocating them to curb the spread of COVID-19. The Executive Order is titled, “Executive Order on Prioritizing and Allocating Health and Medical Resources to Respond to the Spread of Covid-19” (2020). This is executive order was published on March 18, 2020. The purpose of the order was to allow for the Secretary of Health and Human Services the delegation authority to begin allocating medical resources to healthcare facilities that need them most. Some specific medical resources mentioned in the executive order include: Personal Protective Equipment, and ventilators for those in need.

These two examples of public policy which I have presented do indeed the public policy cycle. The SARS-COV-2 virus has effected the United States in unprecedented ways. We have completely shifted our American way of life both socially and economically. Of course, the safety of American lives should be the priority of our government, and these policies implemented by the legislative and executive branches reflect that notion. The respective branches of government identified a capability gap in our healthcare system; for the legislative branch, they identified that we needed to assist Americans with testing and subsequent vaccination capabilities. For the Executive branch, the president identified early on that we should delegate authority to ensure resources are allocated accordingly.

Upon identifying these problems, both branches formulated a policy to eliminate, or at least assist with the issues we faced as a nation. In the case of the executive order, the policy was adopted immediately, but the Bill proposed by the House has yet to be adopted into law. The executive order has been implemented and is most likely being evaluated for effectiveness by experts now. However, the bill proposed by congress is still in the process of being implemented into law as we speak. Given that we are still in the midst of the pandemic crisis today, it may take months and possibly years for the public to know if these specific policies were effective in supporting the prevention of the virus in America.

References

Trump, D. J. (2020, March 18). Executive Order on Prioritizing and Allocating Health and Medical Resources to Respond to the Spread of Covid-19. Retrieved from https://www.whitehouse.gov/presidential-actions/executive-order-prioritizing-allocating-health-medical-resources-respond-spread-covid-19/

Darryl Wilson posted Nov 5, 2020 12:11 AM

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Education serves as the cornerstone of success in America. Whether it be economics, craftsmanship, or business, the amount of education in a given field predicts the amount of success you achieve. There are many cases such as Lebron James, who has employed a different method to success, where he challenged his friends to seek higher education to expand his reach in areas he lacked the educational experience. Programs such as No Child Left Behind (NCLB) later evolved into the Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA) due to criticisms of using state standardized tests to measure education (Kraft & Furlong, 2018). Under the ESSA, many teachers were able to use innovative learning tools to tailor education to individual children inspiring ideas such as Lebron to expand reach through others’ education in areas he lacked.

Under the legislative branch, Congress is responsible for lawmaking and budgeting to run government programs. Congress recognized significant gaps in education, starting with scores presented during the NCLB days that presented a unique opportunity for lawmakers. According to the House of Representatives (2019), ESSA created opportunities across various areas and cultures to obtain a high-quality education. Fast forward Department of Education focus has shifted to privatizing education and lack of focus on failing programs.

The executive branch consists of the President, Whitehouse staff, Vice President, and federal bureaus responsible for the adaptation and implementation of all policies. According to Kraft & Furlong, the executive branch acts as a symbolization of U.S. values speaking for the nation abroad, commanding public and media attention that gives him unequaled influence in agenda-setting and policy leadership, according to Kraft & Furlong (2018, p.54). Under the Trump administration, programs such as ESSA expounded upon due to increased awareness of education abroad compared to that of the United States. In 2017 the Trump administration signed an order to expand access to high-quality Science, Technology, Engineering and Math (STEM) and Computer Science education because according to the White House (2017), these skills were necessary to achieve stable jobs and make young Americans more competitive in the job market. By enacting this order, the administration of many underprivileged school systems had more access and the ability to educate children to a higher standard.

How do these examples inform the public policy cycle?

Like all decisions made start from the ground and work their way up, the same is true for public policy. When a problem exists, many groups begin to lobby about these ideas until they reach the heads that manage change. If an issue exists, public policy is the end-all answer by groups of different branches on regulation and implementation to better an issue. Public Policy is the script of issues and the way to fix it.

References:

Kraft M. E., Furlong S. R. (2018). Public Policy – Politics, Analysis, and Alternatives 6th Edition. Retrieved from https://purdueuniversityglobal.vitalsource.com/#/b…

The White House (2017). President Trump Signs Memorandum for STEM Education Funding. Retrieved from https://www.whitehouse.gov/articles/president-trump-signs-memorandum-stem-education-funding/

House of Representatives (2019). IMPROVING OUTCOMES FOR ALL STUDENTS AT ALL LEVELS; Congressional Record Vol. 165, No. 198. Retrieved from https://www.congress.gov/congressional-record/2019…

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