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POLS 207 Exam 1 - Coggle Diagram

- - - - Gives power to institutions and creates rules for decision making
    - - Where political power comes from and what it can be used for
  - - - Institutions sharing power
    - - though local govt. are subdivisions of state govts, with no power of their own or federalism"
      - Constitution
      - State statutes
      - Local gov’t ordinances
    - - Also additional rights
  - - - Citizens themselves can make laws
        
        Initiative
        
        propose laws & amendments
        
        Referendum
        
        ratifying a law/amendment with a referendum vote
    - - U.S. Constitutions are shorter than most State Constitutions
        
        State Constitutions are more specific
        
        Specific public policy
        
        Difficult to change constitution which works as a tool for interest groups to have their preferences in the constitution
        
        Detailed restrictions of govt. power creating weaker governor and legislatures
      - Lots of regulatory language
      - Taxation & finance specifics
        
        Limits/caps power to tax
        
        Tax exemption
      - Limitations on Debt
        
        Balanced budgets
  - - - Protect various private interests
      - Avoid abuse of power by govt.
- - - - Income receives by govt. (most from taxes)
    - - Goods and services purchased w/ govt. funds
        
        Public Goods
        
        Market is unwilling/unable to provide (national defense, public order, parks)
        
        Merit Goods
        
        Society holds these shouldn't be denied on ability to pay (education)
      - Earmarked Funds
        
        Certain revenues reserved for certain programs
      - General Fund
        
        Appropiation and expeniture not earmarked
      - Uncontrollable/ Mandatory Spending
        
        Funds already committed to things like entitlement programs and federal mandates (Medicaid)
  - - - economic conditions can changes, potentially causing issues
    - - estimates state revenues
      - must certify budget for it to become law
    - - Strike out parts of a budget bill and approve the rest
    - - used during good times to be invested or to avoid painful cuts due to revenue shortfall in bad times
      - appropriating requires supermajority of TX legislature
      - Conservatives don't like rainy day spending
  - - - Cuts to (already lean) state budget
      - Dip into rainy day fund
      - Accounting ‘tricks’ & deferrals
  - - - Can be cut
- - - - public policy created by the people and representatives and for the people
  - - - have varying degrees of power and different preferences of how power should be used
        
        root of political conflict
        
        politics manages conflict through political institutions and processes
  - - - Anarchism
        
        No govt., no power
      - Totalitarianism
        
        unlimited govt. power
    - - Socialism
        
        society owns and controls provision of goods and services
        
        promotes equality, but free-rider problem!
      - Capitalism
        
        individuals own and control provision of basic goods and what is done with them
        
        promotes efficiency for those who participate in the market and freedom to acquire individual wealth but can widen economic gap
    - - social freedom
        
        individuals liberties
      - social order
        
        public safety and decency above individual freedom and expression
    - - Liberal
        
        govt. should not restrict social choices but should intervene in the economy to promote individual welfare
        
        value social freedom and economic equality
      - Conservative
        
        social order and economic efficiency
        
        govt. should regulate social choices but not economic ones (bc that's the market's job)
      - Libertarian
        
        value social freedom and economic efficiency
        
        stress individual autonomy and minimalist role for govt.
        
        only want govt. to protect people, property and enforce contracts (public power)
      - Populist
        
        want govt. intervention in economy to benefit average citizens against wealthy and powerful
        while conforming to traditional moral and social values
        
        distrust elites
  - - - Developed a theory of political culture based on immigrants w/ distinct cultures who settled in the past and their descendant who later migrated in particular patterns
    - - Moralistic
        
        Govt. advances the public interest and serves as a positive force in citizens' lives
        (corruption is not tolerated)
        
        Citizens have a duty to serve and participate in politics
        (civil-service bureaucracy viewed favorably)
        
        Politicians seek office to advance issues
        
        Puritans in New England & Scandinavian settlers -> Great Lakes region -> Midwest & Northwest
      - Traditionalistic
        
        Govt. serves elites
        
        Maintains existing social order and economic hierarchy
        
        elite have a family obligation to govern, civil-service bureaucracy is seen as interfering with their relationships
        
        Settlers in the Southern Colonies -> Southern SW states
      - Individualistic
        
        Emphasis on individual initiative and the market (not govt.)
        
        Corruption is tolerated
        
        Office is a way for self-advancement and election focus on gaining office more than issues
        
        Settlers in Mid-Atlantic States -> Midwest & West
    - - Texas
        
        Traditionalistic
        
        long history of one-party rule as a Republican state
        
        Social and economic conservatism
        
        Low voter turnout
        
        Social issues
        
        Individualistic
        
        opposition to 'big govt.' interference
        
        Strong support for private business and individual initiatives
        
        Economic issues
- - - - McCulloch v. Maryland
        
        Implied powers
        
        Limited states' ability to impede federal govt. and increased fed govt. power under the necessary and proper clause
      - Gibbons v. Ogden
        
        Silent Commerce Clause
        
        States can't interfere with Congress's ability to regulate commerce, even if they aren't regulating it
  - - - regulate economy in general
        
        General Welfare Clause (Article 1)
        
        “power to tax and spend” for the “general welfare
  - - - States can't be forced to take the money or commandeered
    - - Categorical
        
        specific, narrow projects, with more federal oversight & control
      - Block
        
        Money given for a broad function w/ states & communities have more discretion in choosing the projects getting the funds
      - General Revenue Sharing
        
        (Short-lived) policy giving states federal money with essentially “no strings attached”
  - - - fed. govt. takes more authority and acts beyond traditional national problems
      - More categorical grants and unfunded mandates
    - - Devolution and bringing political power back to the states
      - Reduced dependence on federal funds
      - More block grants
      - Associated w/ modern conservativism
    - - Gov’ts mix resources to solve common problems & advance shared interests, exemplified by FDR's new deal
        
        "marble cake"
    - - federalism based on partisan convenience - if in Washington, don't care about federalism, but care about when not in power
    - - Clear division btwn fed. and state govt. w/ each gov’t sovereign & free to operate w/o interference from the other
        
        "layer cake"
    - - States taking the lead to address problems and pushing back against federal policy mandates
      - Multistate lawsuits against fed. govt.
- - - - different levels of govt. control same people and territory
      - each level of govt. protected from encroachment by the other
      - each unit has the power to influence the behavior of the other
      - important policy-making powers at different levels
    - - larger countries
      - diverse in race, language, economics, and religion
      - long standing historical divisions
    - - conflict w/ national interest
        
        makes it hard to address national problems
      - complexity, confusion, and redundancy of laws
      - reduce govt. accountability with deflecting blame
      - states compete against each other
      - inequality in states
    - - maintain national-level unity
      - further divides power and protects against tyranny
      - decentralizes political power and keeps govt. closer to the people
      - More opportunities for political participation
      - political diversity and different policies for different states
        
        state-led experimentation - laboratories of democracy
      - More accountability and policy responsiveness
    - - Powers granted to the Federal Govt.
        
        enumerated powers (Article 1)
        
        Ex. tax & spend, regulate interstate commerce, war & treaties, coinage, post office
        
        explicit grants of power for federal govt.
        
        Implied powers from necessary and proper clause
      - Supremacy Clause (Article VI (6))
        
        constitution is the supreme law of the land
        
        In cases where federal govt. has authority, federal law prevails and is over state law
      - Powers denied to the states (Article 1)
        
        treaties & alliances, war, taxing imports/exports, coining money
      - 10th amendment
        
        reserved powers for the states include anything the states are not prohibited to do in the constitution
        
        state have police powers to make laws for thee general welfare of their communities to advance health, safety, welfare, and morals
      - Federal Govt. Obligations to the States (Article 4)
        
        territorial integrity
        
        republican form of govt. (representative)
        
        equal rep. in the Senate
        
        protection from foreign invasion
        
        protection from domestic violence
      - States' roles in Federal Govt.
        
        elect pres. w/ Electoral College
        
        governors' powers to fill congressional vacancies
        
        apportionment & redistricting
        
        state legislatures draw U.S. congressional districts
        
        Govern elections of federal officials
        
        3/4 States' approval required for
        U.S. Constitutional amendment process
      - States' obligations to each other (horizontal federalism/interstate relations)
        
        full faith and credit to public records, acts, and judicial proceedings of other states
        
        Extradition (Article 4)
        
        process where one state surrenders an accused or convicted individual to another where the crime was committed, ensuring they face prosecution or punishment
        
        Privileges and immunities
        
        states can't discriminate against citizens and residents of other states
        
        If there is a conflict, it falls under the original jurisdiction of the SCOTUS
- - - - Geography
        
        Natural resources, rivers/ waterways (ports), arable land, infrastructure
      - Human Resources
        
        population, education and skills
      - Policy decisions create a business climate
        
        regulatory environment, tax structure, rates, and breaks
    - - demography is the study of populations and their characteristics
        
        Age
        
        Gender
        
        Ethnicity
        
        Income
        
        Race
        
        Education Level
      - Composition of public & electorate matters
- - - - include income, sales, property, severance
    - - Base rate at which something is taxed
      - Effective tax rate after deductions, exemptions, etc.
      - Exemption
        
        not taxed
      - Deduction
        
        subtracted from total amount taxed
      - Credit
        
        applied against amount you have to pay
      - usually progressive (some proportional) in income tax
      - Tax rate fixed for sales, excise, and property tax
    - - what is being taxed
      - personal/corporate income subject to taxation
      - Sales and property subject to taxation
      - excise tax
        
        on cigarettes, alcohol, sugar, carbon emissions
        
        usually go to a specific purpose
    - - % of income (or total revenue if tax on business) paid in taxes
      - Statement about distribution of the costs of taxation throughout society
      - Where does it fall?
        
        Regressive
        
        lower income groups pay a larger share
        
        in sales, property (less than sales), and excise taxes
        
        lower-income earners pay more sales tax
        
        polices to reduce regressivity of sales tax include exemptions on food, medicine, etc. and tax holidays
        
        High income-earners often don’t own expensive enough property for their tax burden to increase proportionally
        
        Proportional
        
        all income groups pay same percentage
        
        tithe or other "flat tax"
        
        Progressive
        
        higher income groups pay a larger share
        
        federal and some state income taxes
        
        Dollars already taxed are NOT taxed again
      - Income tax
        
        Widely accepted as progressive based on adjusted gross income (AGI)
        Much less progressive when calculated w/ “total income”
    - - Most state tax structures are regressive:
        
        This means state & local taxes actually increase inequality!
        
        Wealth gap after taxes > wealth gap before taxes
      - Depends on
        
        The types of taxes used
        
        The rates of those taxes
        
        Any “tax breaks”
      - Texas
        
        low taxes
        
        no income tax
        
        higher than avg. sales tax
        
        High local taxes
        
        property
        
        Progressive Features
        
        Sales tax base excluded groceries and medicine
        
        Tax free weekend
        
        Regressive Features
        
        No personal income tax
        
        heavy reliance on sales and property taxes
        
        No corporate income tax
        
        Use of regressive gross receipts tax
        
        Few tax credits for low-income taxpayers to offset regressive taxes
        
        bear heavier burden in state taxation
        
        One of the most tax regressive states
- - - - Welfare
      - Morals
      - Safety
      - Health