STATE AND LOCAL GOVERNMENT
FALL 2008
PSC24001C
TTH. 11:00-12:15 Rm.447M
Instructor: christopher.drennan@clinton.edu
Office:534M, Tel: 562-4173.
Office Hrs. MWF 9:30-10:45 / TH 12:15-2-00.
Course Description:
An introduction to the Structure, Function and Scope of State and Local government within the United States.
Course Objectives:
a) To achieve an appreciation of the role played by state and local government in one's community.
b) To achieve an understanding of the relationship between state/local government and the national government.
c) To encourage the development of the student's critical faculties in terms of the conceptualization, interpretation and articulation of issues facing state and local government.
d) To encourage supplemental readings in the field through assigned and suggested readings.
e) To motivate and challenge students to pursue further studies in the liberal arts.
Required Text:
Bowman, Ann & Kearney, Richard. State and Local Government. 7th ed., Boston & New York: Houghton Mifflin Company, 2008.
Assignments:
a) Text readings are shown on the attached Topic/Activity schedule. The student is responsible for completing the readings prior to the class in which they'll be discussed.
b) There will be six (6) in-class tests.
c) There will be one (1) Web Exercise.
d) There will be two (2) papers (4-5 pp. double-spaced & typewritten) based on the following.
Paper A will be a response to a series of questions handed out two (2) weeks prior to the due date and will
be based on your reading of the text and secondary sources.
Paper B will be based on your observations of two consecutive meetings of a local government entity (i.e., County, Village, City, Town, School).
e) A Midterm and Final exam.
Grading:
The final grade will be based on the following criteria:
In-class tests. 6 @ 5% = 30%
Paper A 1 @ 15% = 15%
Paper B 1 @ 20% = 20%
Web Exercise @ 10% = 10%
Mid-Term 1 @ 10% = 10%
Final 1 @ 15% = 15%
The percentage score will be translated into a letter grade at the end of the semester in accordance with the standards of the college as described in the college catalog.
Attendance:
Attendance at all scheduled sessions is mandatory. If you miss more than the equivalent of three classes without sufficient cause your grade will be lowered one step, i.e., B+ to C+. You must inform me in person, by phone or email at the contact information above in the event of your absence from class.
Plagiarism:
All writing needs to be your own: do not plagiarize! Take what you learn from your readings and research and put it into your own words. Plagiarism will result in a zero for the assignment involved.
The following is a Topic/Activity schedule for PCS2402C, State & Local Government. While every effort will be made to adhere to this schedule, it is subject to change. The TEXT READING stems from Bowman, Ann & Kearney, Richard. State and Local Government. 7th ed., Boston & New York: Houghton Mifflin Company, 2008.
DATE/08 TOPIC/ACTIVITY TEXT READING
Aug. 26 Introduction to Political Science and the field of
State & Local Government. Course Content and
Requirements.
28 New Directions for State and Local Government. Chap.1, pp.1 -22.
American Subnational Government at the turn of
the 3rd Millennium. The Status of States and In-
creased State Capacity. 21st Century Challenges Facing
States; Fiscal Stress and Population Growth and
Migration.
Sept. 2 Federalism and the States. Unitary, Confederal and Chap.2, pp. 23-36
Federal Systems of Government.
Federalism and the States. An Historical Look at
Subnational Governments in the Federal System;
Pt.1, State Centered.
4 Federalism and the States. An Historical Look Chap.2, pp.37-53.
at Subnational Governments in the Federal System;
Pt.2, Nation Centered. Models of Federalism. Inter-
governmental Relations and the Future of Federalism.
Quiz1 9 State Constitutions. The Evolution of State Constitutions Chap.3, pp.54-76.
and their Weaknesses. State Constitutional Reform.
Methods of Constitutional Change; Informal and Formal
Constitutional Change.
11 Citizen Participation and Elections. Participation and Chap.4, pp.77-103.
Non-Participation. The Struggle for the Right to Vote.
Primary, Runoff and General Elections. Election Day
Lawmaking. Citizen Access to Government. Open Meeting
Laws, Advisory Committees and Volunteerism.
16 Political Parties, Interest Groups and Campaigns. Chap.5, pp.104-122.
Political Party Theory, Party Organization and the Two
Party System. Interest Groups and their Political Strategies
and Techniques.
Quiz2 18 Political Parties, Interest Groups and Campaigns. Chap.5, pp. 123-132.
Negative and Positive Campaigns, the Use of the Media
and Campaign Finance.
23 State Legislatures. Legislative Functions, Dynamics and Chap.6, pp.133-148..
Districts. Legislative Pay, Leadership and Legislative
Behavior. Legislative Cue Taking.
25 State Legislatures. Legislation (How a Bill Becomes Law), Chap.6, pp.148-162.
Reform of the Legislature and its Relationship to the Ex-
ecutive
30 Governors. The History of the Office, Today’s Governors Chap.7, pp. 163-177.
and Gubernatorial Campaigns.
Oct. 2 Governors. Duties and Responsibilities of the Governor. Chap.7, pp. 177-196.
The Formal and Informal Powers of the Governor.
Quiz3 7 Public Administration: Budgeting and Service. Chap.8, pp. 197-209.
Delivery. Who Are the Bureaucracy and What They Do.
Budgeting in State and Local Government.
9 Public Administration: Budgeting and Service Chap.8, pp. 209-228.
Delivery. The Merit Based System, the Politics of the
Bureaucracy and Reinventing Government.
14 No Class (College Open)
16 Mid-Term
21 The Judiciary. The Structure of State Court Systems Chap.9, pp.229-244.
and Judicial Selection.
23 The Judiciary. Judicial Decision Making and the New Chap.9, pp244-257.
Judicial Federalism.
28 The Structure of Local Government. Five Types of Local Chap.10, pp.258-277.
Government; County & Municipal Government. Executive
Organization; Mayor versus City.
30 The Structure of Local Government. Towns, Special Dis- Chap.10, pp.277-287.
tricts and School Districts.
Nov. 4 Local Leadership and Governance. Theories of Political Chap.11, pp.288-312.
Quiz4 Power at the Community Level; Elitism and Pluralism.
Local Executives, Local Legislatures, and Leadership.
6 State/Local Relations. The Distribution of Authority and Chap.12, pp.313-337.
the Challenges Faced by Metropolitics and Rural Areas.
Regional Governance as a Consequence of City-County
Consolidation. States and Urban Policy.
11 State and Local Finance. Principles of Finance and Chap.13, pp. 338-356.
Sources of State and Local Revenues. The Political Eco-
nomy of Taxation, Managing Money and State and Local
Financial Relations.
13 State and Local Finance. The Political Economy of Chap.13, pp.356-370.
Taxation; Managing Money.
18 Economic Development. The Politics of Economic De- Chap.14, pp.371-394.
velopment and Regional Differences. Current Initiatives in
State and Local Areas.
Paper A 20 Education Policy . The Crisis in Education. Standards, Chap.15, pp.395-427.
Students and Teachers. Intergovernmental Roles in
Education (National, State and Local). Actors in Educa-
tional Policy. Innovation and Challenges within Public
Education.
Paper B 25 Criminal Justice. Measuring Crime and Intergovernmental Chap.16, pp.428-455.
Quiz5 Roles in Criminal Justice. Actors in Criminal Justice and
Corrections. Criminal Justice Policy Alternatives for States
and Localities.
27 Thanksgiving Break (No Class)
Dec. 2 Social Welfare and Health Care Policy. Poverty, Social Chap.17, pp.456-477.
Welfare and Ideology and Current Social Welfare Policy.
Types of Social Welfare Programs and Welfare Reform.
State Innovations in Health Care and Health Care Reform.
Quiz6 4 Environmental Policy . The Political Economy of Environ- Chap.18. pp.478-502.
mental Protection and Intergovernmental Environmental
Policy. Management of Solid Waste, Hazardous Waste and
Nuclear Waste at the State and Local Level.
9 Final Exam. (12:40-3:10, Rm. 447)
Due Dates:
Paper A November 20/08.
Paper B November 25/08.
Late Papers are assessed a 1% per day penalty.