Transcript Unit V Public Policy Vocabulary Chapters 15-17

Q1. Public policy process
A1. The political interactions that lead to
the emergence and resolution of public
policy issues.
Q2. A system of production and
consumption of goods and services that
are allocated through exchange
among producers and consumers
A2. economy
Q3. A classic economic philosophy that
holds that owners of business should be
allowed to make their own production
and distribution decisions without
government regulation or control
A3. laissez-faire doctrine
Q4. A term that refers to government
restrictions on the economic practices
of private firms.
A4. regulation
Q5. An economic principle that holds
that firms should fulfill as many of
society’s needs as possible while using
as few of its resources as possible. The
greater the output (production) for a
given input (for example, an hour of
labor), the more efficient the process
A5. efficiency
Q6. Burdens that society incurs when
firms fail to pay the full costs of
production. An example is the pollution
that results when corporations dump
industrial wastes into lakes and rivers
A6. externalities
Q7. The rescinding of excessive
government regulations for the purpose
of improving economic efficiency
A7. deregulation
Q8. equity (in relation to
economic policy)
A8. The situation in which the outcome
of an economic transaction is fair to
each party. An outcome can usually be
considered fair if each party enters into
a transaction freely and is not
unknowingly at a disadvantage
Q9. A tool of economic management
by which government attempts to
maintain a stable economy through its
taxing and spending policies
A9. fiscal policy
Q10. When the government spends
more than it collects in taxes and other
revenues
A10. deficit spending
Q11. A very severe and sustained
economic downturn. They are very rare
in the United States; the last one was in
the 1930s
A11. economic depression
Q12. A moderate but sustained
downturn in the economy. (Two
consecutive quarters in which GDP
decreases) They are part of the normal
cycle of ups and downs
A12. economic recession
Q13. demand-side
economics
A13. A form of fiscal policy that
emphasizes “demand” (consumer
spending). Government can use
increased spending or tax cuts to place
more money in consumers’ hands and
thereby increase demand
Q14. budget deficit
A14. The situation when the
government’s expenditures exceed its
tax and other revenue
Q15. The total cumulative amount that
the U.S. government owes to creditors
A15. national debt
Q16. Situation when the government’s
tax and other revenues for the year are
roughly equal to its expenditures
A16. balanced budget
Q17. budget surplus
A17. Situation when the government’s
tax and other revenues exceed its
expenditures
Q18. A form of fiscal policy that
emphasizes “supply” (production). An
example is a tax cut for business
A18. supply-side
economics
Q19. capital-gains tax
A19. The tax that individuals pay on
money gained from the sale of a
capital asset, such as property or stocks
Q20. A general increase in the average
level of prices of goods and services
A20. inflation
Q21. graduated personal
income tax
A21. A tax on personal income in which
the tax rate increases as income
increases; in other words, the tax rate is
higher for higher income levels
Q22. A tool of economic management,
to available to government, based on
manipulation of the amount of money
in circulation; tools include the reserve
requirement, discount rate, and open
market operations.
A22. monetary policy
Q23. political agenda
A23. Issues that people believe require
governmental action
Q24. A burden that people believe they
must bear if a policy is enacted
A24. cost
Q25. A satisfaction that people believe
they will enjoy if a policy is adopted
Q25. benefit
Q26. majoritarian politics
A26. A policy in which almost everybody
benefits and almost everybody pays
Q27. interest group
politics
A27. A policy in which one small group
benefits and another small group pays
Q28. client politics
A28. A policy in which one small group
benefits and almost everybody pays
Q29. entrepreneurial
politics
A29. A policy in which almost everybody
benefits and a small group pays the
cost
Q30. policy entrepreneurs
A30. Activists in or out of government
who pull together a political majority on
behalf of unorganized interests
Q31. The market value of all final goods
and services produced in the United
States during a given year
A31. gross domestic
product
Q32. The use of supply-side theory, taxes
were reduced, government regulation
reduced, government spending reduce
(except) military, and money supply
controled
A32. Reaganomics
Q33. A document that states tax
collections, spending levels, and the
allocation of spending among purposes
A33. budget
Q34. For the federal government,
October 1 through the following
September 30
A34. fiscal year
Q35. budget resolution
A35. A congressional decision that
states the maximum amount of money
the government should spend
Q36. sequester
A36. Automatic spending cuts
Q37. An economic system in which
individuals and corporations, not
government, own the principal means
of production and seek profit
A37. capitalism
Q38. Negotiations between
representatives of labor unions and
management to determine acceptable
working conditions
A38. collective bargaining
Q39. As measured by the Bureau of
Labor Statistics (BLS), the proportion of
the labor force actively seeking work
but unable to fine jobs
A39. unemployment rate
Q40. Keynesian economic
theory
A40. The theory emphasizing that
government spending and deficits can
help the economy weather its normal
ups and downs. Proponents of this
theory advocate using the power of
government to stimulate the economy
when it is lagging
Q41. poverty line
A41. As defined by the federal
government, the annual cost of a thrifty
food budget for an urban family of four,
multiplied by three to allow also for the
cost of housing, clothes, and other
expenses. Families below the poverty
line are considered poor and are
eligible for certain forms of public
assistance
Q42. negative
government
A42. The philosophical belief that
government governs best by staying out
of people’s lives, giving individuals as
much freedom as possible to determine
their own pursuits
Q43. positive government
A43. The philosophical belief that
government intervention is necessary in
order to enhance personal liberty and
security when individuals are buffeted
by economic and social forces beyond
their control
Q44. Government benefits that are
given directly to individuals. These
payments may be either cash transfers,
such as Social Security payments and
retirement payments to former
government employees, or in-kind
transfers, such as food stamps and lowinterest loans for college education
A44. transfer payments
Q45. Any of a number of individualbenefit programs, such as social
security, that require government to
provide a designated benefit to any
person who meets the legally defined
criteria for eligibility
A45. entitlement
programs
Q46. social insurance
A46. Social welfare programs based on
the “insurance” concept, requiring that
individuals pay into the program in order
to be eligible to receive funds from it.
An example is social security for retired
people, unemployment insurance, and
medicare
Q47. public assistance
A47. A term that refers to social welfare
programs funded through general tax
revenues and available only to the
financially needy. Eligibility for such a
program is established by a means test.
These programs include Temporary
Assistance for Needy Families (TANF),
food stamps, subsidized housing, and
medicaid
Q48. The requirement that applicants
for public assistance must demonstrate
that they are poor in order to be eligible
for the assistance
A48. means test
Q49. A government benefit that is a
cash equivalent, such as food stamps or
rent vouchers. This form of benefit
ensures that recipients will use public
assistance in a specified way
A49. in-kind benefit
Q50. effective tax rate
A50. The actual percentage of a
person’s income that is spent to pay
taxes
Q51. The idea that all individuals should
be given an equal chance to succeed
on their own
A51. equality of
opportunity
Q52. charitable choice
A52. Name given to four federal laws
passed in the late 1990s specifying the
conditions under which nonprofit
religious organizations could compete
to administer certain social service
delivery and welfare programs
Q53 Major Social Welfare
Programs
•
Insurance, or “Contributory”, Programs
o Old Age, Survivors, and Disability Insurance (OASDI)
• Monthly payments to retired or disabled people and to surviving members of
their families. This program, popularly called Social Security, is paid for by a
payroll tax on employers and employees. (No means test)
o Medicare
• Federal government pays for part of the cost of medical care for retired or
disabled people covered by Social Security. Paid for by payroll taxes on
employees and employers. (No means test)
Q53 Major Social Welfare Programs
•
Assistance, or “Noncontributory” Programs
o Unemployment Insurance (UI)
• Weekly payments to workers who have been laid off and cannot find work.
Benefits and requirements determined by states. Paid for by taxes on
employers. (No means test)
o Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF)
• Payments to needy families with children. Replaced the old AFDC program.
Partially paid for by block grants from the federal government to the states.
(Means test)
o Supplemental Security Income (SSI)
• Cash payments to aged, blind, or disabled people whose income is below a
certain amount. Paid for from general federal revenues. (Means test)
o Food Stamps
• Vouchers given to people whose income is below a certain level, that can be
used to buy food at grocery stores. Paid for out of general federal revenues.
(Means test)
o Medicaid
• Pays medical expenses of persons receiving TANF or SSI payments (Means test)
o Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC)
• A provision of a 1975 law that entitles working families with children to receive
money from the government if their total income is below a certain level.
Q54. social welfare
policies
A54. Policies that provide benefits to
individuals, particularly to those in need.
Q55. income distribution
A55. The “shares” of the national
income earned by various groups
Q56. A tax by which the government
takes a greater share of the income of
the rich than of the poor. The more you
make, the more you pay, as a
percentage of your income. Example:
income tax
o High income: 30 %
o Middle income: 20%
o Low income: 10%
A56. progressive tax
Q57. A tax by which the government
takes the same share of income from
everyone, rich and poor alike. Often
called a flat tax.
o High income: 20 %
o Middle income: 20%
o Low income: 20%
A57. proportional tax
Q58. A tax in which the burden falls
relatively more heavily upon lowincome groups than upon wealthy
taxpayers. The opposite of a progressive
tax, in which tax rates increase as
income increases. The more you make,
the less you pay, as a percentage of
your income. Example: sales tax
o High income: 10 %
o Middle income: 20%
o Low income: 30%
A58. regressive tax
Q59. Describes the view that the
country should deliberately avoid a
large role in world affairs and instead
concentrate on domestic concerns
A59. isolationist
Q60. Describes the view that the
country should involve itself deeply in
world affairs
A60. internationalist
Q61. A doctrine, developed after World
War II, based on assumptions that the
Soviet Union was an aggressor nation
and that only a determined United
States could block Soviet territorial
ambitions
A61. containment
Q62. The lengthy period after World War
II when the United States and the Soviet
Union were not engaged in actual
combat (a “hot war”) but were locked
in a state of deep-seated hostility
A62. cold war
Q63. A power structure dominated by
two powers only, as in the case of the
United States and the Soviet Union
during the cold war
A63. bipolar (power
structure)
Q64. A power structure dominated by a
single powerful actor, as in the case of
the United States after the collapse of
the Soviet Union
A64. unipolar (power
structure)
Q65. multilaterralism
A65. The situation in which nations act
together in response to problems and
crises
Q66. preemptive war
doctrine
A66. The idea, espoused by President
George W. Bush, that the United States
could attack a potentially threatening
nation even if the threat had not yet
reached a serious and immediate level
Q67. The situation in which one nation
takes action against another state
(nation) or states (nations)
A67. unilateralism
Q68. deterrence policy
A68. The idea that nuclear war can be
discouraged if each side in a conflict
has the capacity to destroy the other
with nuclear weapons
Q69. The three components (the military
establishment, the industries that
manufacture weapons, and the
members of Congress from states and
districts that depend heavily on the
arms industry) that mutually benefit from
a high level of defense spending
A69. military-industrial
complex
Q70. Business firms with major operations
in more than one country
A70. multinational
corporations
Q71. economic
globalization
A71. the increased interdependence of
nations’ economies. The change is the
result of technological, transportation,
and communication advances that
have enabled firms to deploy their
resources around the globe
Q72. the view that the long-term
economic interests of all countries are
advanced when tariffs and other trade
barriers are kept to a minimum
A72. free-trade position
Q73. The view that the immediate
interests of domestic producers should
have a higher priority (through, for
example, protective tariffs) than should
free trade between nations
A73. protectionism
Q74. worldviews
A74. A comprehensive opinion of how
the United States should respond to
world problems
Q75. disengagement (or
Vietnam) view
A75. The belief that the United States
was harmed by its war in Vietnam and
so should avoid supposedly similar
events
Q76. The view that we should try to
improve the lives of people in other
countries
A76. doctrine of human
rights
Q77. gold plating
A77. The tendency of Pentagon officials
to ask weapons contractors to meet
excessively high requirements
Q78. environment impact
statement
A78. A report required by federal law
that assesses the possible effect of a
project on the environment if the
project is subsidized in whole or part by
federal funds
Q79. command-andcontrol strategy
A79. A strategy to improve air and
water quality, involving the setting of
detailed pollution standards and rules
Q80. foreign policy
A80. A policy that involves choice
taking, like domestic policy, but
additionally involves choices about
relations with the rest of the world.
Q81. Created in 1945, an organization
whose members agree to renounce war
and to respect certain human and
economic freedoms. The seat of real
power is the Security Council in which
the United States is a permanent
member.
A81. United Nations (UN)
Q82. Created in 1949, an organization
whose members include the United
States, Canada, most Western
European nations, and Turkey, all of
whom agreed to combine military
forces and to treat a war against one as
a war against all
A82. North Atlantic Treaty
Organization (NATO
Q83. An alliance of the major Western
European nations that coordinates
monetary, trade, immigration, and labor
policies, making its members one
economic unit. An example of a
regional organization
A83. European Union
(EU)
Q84. A tense relationship beginning in
the 1950s between the Soviet Union and
the United States whereby one side’s
weaponry became the other side’s
goad to procure more weaponry and
so on.
A84. arms race
Q85. A slow transformation from conflict
thinking to cooperative thinking in
foreign policy strategy and
policymaking. It sought a relaxation of
tensions between the superpowers,
coupled with firm guarantees of mutual
security
A85. detente
Q86. Mutual dependency, in which the
actions of nations reverberate and
affect one another’s economic lifelines
A86. interdependency
Q87. Often call “Star Wars” by the critics
and the press. A plan for defense
against the Soviet Union unveiled by
President Reagan in 1983. It would crate
a global umbrella in space, using
computers to scan the skies and hightech devices to destroy invading missiles
A87. Strategic Defense
Initiative (SDI)