The federal government is larger than conventional budget measures suggest. Many tax preferences are effectively spending programs. Adding these spending-like tax preferences to federal outlays and receipts makes the government appear about 4 percent of GDP larger. The 1986 tax reform cut these benefits, but they have since rebounded to a larger share of GDP than before. Using this broader meas...

This article addresses the complex question of whether gun control should be regulated by the federal or state government , or by some combination of both. In a thorough look at the history of federal and Maine state gun control— and at the various ways the issue of gun violence can be framed—Harwood concludes that neither level of government has a clear mandate to regulate exclusively. Rather,...

oth the U.S. public and U.S. policymakers pursue a love-hate relationship with U.S. schools. While a majority of parents believe that their children’s schools are doing well, a majority also believe that the system as a whole needs help. Complicating this view is a variety of concerns about specific aspects of U.S. schools—they are too expensive, too rigid, too elitist, and too unequal. During ...

Conflict among herders in East Africa is a common occurrence. It affects millions of people in many ways by extinguishing their livelihoods and forcing many others to change. This paper is focused on the East Pokot pastoralists’ adjustment to conflict. The paper first presents the East Pokot as a people, their history, brief interaction with the central government, and their geographical region...

The paper explores some of the issues involved in evaluating educational policy initiatives. It gives examples of how research findings can be evaluated and draws lessons for the ways in which policymakers can interact usefully with researchers. It argues that while central government’s use of research evidence is often highly selective and concerned with its own perceived short term interests,...

The Federal Employees Health Benefits Program (FEHBP) could be combined with health insurance tax credits to extend coverage to the uninsured. An extended FEHBP, or "E-FEHBP," would be open to all individuals who were not covered through work or public programs and who also were eligible for the tax credits on the basis of income. E-FEHBP also would be open to employees of very small firms, reg...

For much of its existence, Nigeria was governed by the military. From 1960 to 2007, a total of forty-seven years, the military ruled for twenty-nine years. The remaining eighteen years was taken up by civilian rule. The search for a functional and cohesive Nigeria was a constant leitmotiv that ran throughout the period. This search is what has been termed nation-building. The federal government...

This paper presents the validation process for a tool assessing basic pharmaceutical services through an analysis of the implementation of a Basic Pharmaceuticals Distribution Program by the Brazilian Federal government. The process began with the drafting of a theoretical model, based on a state-of-the-art review and allowing the selection of various conceptual dimensions and respective criter...

The Liberal commitment to replace the goods and services tax (GST) with a better tax has been studied by the House of Commons Finance Committee. The question of alternatives to the GST is not a new one. Prior to its introduction in 1991, a minority of tax experts questioned the wisdom of the federal government’s determination to go ahead with the GST.1 Some developed detailed proposals that wou...

Ever since the terrorist attacks of 9/11, the federal government increased funding for emergency preparedness. However, the literature continues to document several areas of weaknesses in public health emergency management by local health departments (LHD). This literature review discusses the role of information technology (IT) for emergency preparedness by LHDs. The focus areas for this revie...