Policymaking in the US

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US Policy-making Process

How are American policies structured and created? First off, let us discuss policy. What is policy? Policy is that stand, position or perspective that an individual, an organization or the government takes when it comes to certain issues, subjects, events and risks. Public policy are those positions and subsequent decisions based on said positions that the government takes. For example, it is government policy in terms of education to follow through with the government advocacy 'no-child-left-behind'. As such, this policy guides local, state and federal actions towards ensuring that education is made accessible to all American kids all over the country regardless of social strata, sex, ethnicity and religion. For a policy to be put in place, so many processes, procedures and elements must first be in place and must be taken up. A policy starts when the government is confronted with a problem. Let us take the example of a local government problem - say, pollution. Let us suppose than town Y is confronted with the problem of air pollution from the factories in it's domain and it is affecting the air quality and the health of the townspeople. Having identified the problem what follows next go through the following steps:

1. Agenda building - having identified the problem, the town must now put together an agenda. How serious is the problem? What will happen if it is not mitigated? What are the particulars of the problem - who are the pollutants, why is pollution happening, what will the effects of closing or penalizing the factory do to local economy, what alternatives are in place? Are their rules and legislation already in place? If so, how come the problem exists? These are just among the many questions that can be asked during agenda building. What it will do though is that it will provide a clear picture of the problem.

2. Formulation and adoption - having identified the varied elements that make up the problem as well as all the necessary issues and effects the problem will have to the locals - to their health and economy, it is possible to see what options there are on the table? As long as the problem is clear, then it is possible to formulate a working solution, one that takes account of everything discussed in the agenda-building stage. The factory cannot just be closed for example as it is the source of jobs for many and it supports local economy: its closure will affect the financial capacity of a proportionate amount of the townsfolk. Since this is a local problem ...