PUBLIC POLICY & PROGRAM

ADMINISTRATION
By:
Engr. Rogelio D. Mercado
DPA 204

What is Public Policy?

Attempt by the government to address a public
issue
Principles & standards regarded by the
legislature or by the courts as being of
fundamental concern to the State & the whole
society
Course of action or inaction taken by
governmental entities with regard to a particular
issue or set of issues

Meaning of Public Policy

System of courses of action, regulatory measures,
laws, & funding priorities concerning a given
topic promulgated by a governmental entity or its
representatives
Commonly embodied in constitutions, legislative
acts and judicial decisions; may also be created
by an executive order, bureaucratic regulation, or
provincial/city/municipal/barangay ordinance

Meaning of Public Policy

Also considered academic discipline as it is
studied by professors & students at public
policy schools of major universities
Basically the legal framework within which
society operates
Composite of decisions that government
makes & programs it embarks upon or
implements to achieve goals

Meaning of Public Policy

Implies process of formulating & promulgating
a program based on a set of principles
Rule of action, manifesting or clarifying
specific organization goals, objectives, values,
or ideals & often prescribing the obligatory or
most desirable ways & means for their
accomplishment

Aims of Public Policy

Reconcile conflicting claims for scarce
resources
Encourage or foster cooperation that would
probably not occur without government
influence or encouragement
Prohibit morally unacceptable behavior
Protect the rights of individuals
Provide direct benefits to citizens

Nature & Scope of Public Policy

The authoritative allocation of values for a society.
The process of deciding who gets what, when,
where and how.
What the government chooses to do or not to do
about a specific problem.
Establish the boundaries of our freedoms & color
the contours of our interactions with other people in
our political, social & economic systems

Three (3) Parts to Public Policy-Making

Problem issue that needs to be addressed
Player individual or group that is influential in
forming a plan to address the problem in
question
Policy finalized course of action decided upon
by the government; widely open to interpretation
by NGO players & private sector including church
& cultural institutions

Shaping Public Policy

Complex & multifaceted process
Interplay of individuals & groups (interest)
competing/collaborating to influence policy
makers
Variety of tools/tactics used to advance aims
Advocating positions publicly educating
supporters/opponents, mobilizing allies

Advocacy
Attempt to influence public policy thru
education, lobbying or political pressure
Educate general public/policy makers re:
nature of problems, needed legislation &
funding required for services/research
Regarded as unseemly but it can clearly
influence public policy priorities

Guidance for Policy Makers

(Core Principles)
Politicians & public servants are accountable
to the public
Elites, in politics & private sector, do not have
the right to pursue their interests without
constraints
Government bureaucratic & decision
processes must be open, accessible, &
transparent, as well as responsive to public

Guidance to Policy Makers

Individuals & communities affected by
projects have the right to information
regarding proposed developments; the
right to challenge the need for, and the
design of, projects, and the right to be
involved in planning and decision-making
processes.

Rational Model of Public

Policy Making Process
Agenda setting agencies & government
officials meet to discuss the problem at hand
Option-formulation alternative solutions are
considered & final decisions are made
regarding the best policy
Implementation the decided policy is
enforced

Stages in the Policy Process

(John W. Kingdom, 1984)

Agenda setting
Policy recognition
Policy generation
Political action
Policy formulation
Policy implementation

Agenda Setting
Certain problems are viewed as needing action while
others are postponed; competing claims &
prioritization gain or decline in prominence over time
Many people contribute president, members of
congress, executive branch officials, political parties,
interest groups, media & the general public in
shaping public opinion

Agenda Setting
From many & competing claims, policy
makers select issues to be given priority
& those to be filtered out
Confluence of 3 streams of events: policy
recognition, policy generation, & political
action

Policy Recognition
Certain topics emerge as significant issues that demand
action due to many influences such as indicators that
come to public view, feedback on current programs, or
events that demand attention
Policy entrepreneurs invest personal time, energy, &
often money to pursue policy changes by using
publicity campaigns, direct contacts with decision
makers (letters, phone calls) petition drives, etc. Or
involve themselves in media, political parties, or
interest groups, that provide access to decision makers

Policy Generation
May occur almost simultaneously with policy
recognition; likely that many are trying to
generate solutions to the problem
Ideas come from decision makers themselves,
members of their staff, experts in the
bureaucracy, members of the scientific
community, policy think tanks, or from the
general public

Policy Generation
Proposed solutions swirl around through
speeches & articles, papers, & conversations
until a few ideas begin to gain special currency
Ideas generated not only seem to correctly
address the problem but seem also to be
politically acceptable.

Political Action
To reach the top of policy agenda, proposal
must be consistent with emerging political
realities
Consistent with prevailing political climate
Favored by incumbent administration &
legislative majority
Support of interest groups

Policy Formulation
Development of formal policy statements
(legislation, executive orders, administrative
rules, etc.) that are viewed as legitimate
Procedure in legislation: a bill is introduced &
referred to a committee ( & perhaps a subcommittee), hearings are held, the committee
reports to the larger body, a vote is taken in both
houses, a conference committee works out
differences in the 2 versions, & the bill is sent to
the chief executive for his signature

Policy Formulation
President has formal & informal means of
influencing legislation thru program initiatives
& budget proposals
Other government officials interact with
Congress on a regular basis & may also affect
policy outcomes
Individual citizens & interest groups also seek
access & influence

Policy Formulation
Government agencies usually send program
proposals to the legislature for its
consideration
Agency personnel are often called upon to
provide testimony regarding particular
proposals due to their expertise on public
issues

Policy Formulation
When relationship among interest
groups, agency personnel, & members of
Congress become strong, frequent &
intense, the resulting alliance is called
sub-governments or iron triangles that
often exert great influence

Policy Implementation
Legislation is general & lacks details
Legislators cannot foresee questions that may come
up during implementation
Legislation leaves great deal of discretion to public
managers in working out details of particular
program
Managers develop administrative rules or policies to
give detail to legislation or fill in the gaps

Types of Policy
Regulatory policy designed to limit the
actions of persons or groups so as to protect
the general public or a substantial portion of
the public
Distributive policy most common form of
government policy, uses tax revenues to
provide benefits to individuals or groups by
means of grants or subsidies

Types of Policy
Redistributive policy take taxes from certain
groups & give them to another group
Income stabilization support to
unemployed or retired
Social welfare providing direct payments
to indigents
Health care programs - Medicare

Types of Policy
Constituent Policy intended to benefit the
public generally or to serve the government
Foreign & defence policies
Policies affecting the structure & function of
government agencies like government reorganization, etc.

Steps in Making Public Policies

(Roy Sylvan)
Identify problem that needs improvement or
solution
Develop alternative solutions that can improve or
solve the problem
Adopt an alternative or combination of alternatives
Implement the adopted policy
Evaluate the effect of the policy on the problem it
addresses & on the people affected

Steps in Passage of Bill in Philippine

Legislature
1st reading principal author may propose additional
authors; contains title, number & names of authors
Bill referred to appropriate committee for study; if
disapproved by committee, dies
2nd reading after favorable committee evaluation,
bill forwarded to Committee on Rules for calendar;
read for 2nd time in entirety

Steps in Philippine Legislature

Debates general debate & amendments
proposed in accordance with rules
Printing & distribution after approval on 2nd
reading, bill printed in final form & distributed
to members 3 days before passage
3rd reading last reading where only title is
read; no amendment allowed & votes (yeas &
nays) entered in journal; member may
abstain; majority of quorum can pass bill

Steps in Philippine Legislature

Bill referred to other house same procedure
Bill forwarded to President if approved on 3rd
reading by both houses, bill printed in final form &
transmitted to the President for appropriate action;
no action within 30 days means the bill becomes law;
bills re-passed over veto automatically becomes

law.

Local Legislative Body (Sanggunian)

Critical Tasks
Formulating & managing the legislative
agenda
Crafting ordinances & resolutions
Enacting ordinances & codes of ordinances
Evaluating the implementation of ordinances

Crafting Ordinances & Resolutions

Identifying & analyzing a policy problem to be
addressed by legislation
Gathering research-based information
Drafting the legislative proposal requires
knowledge of its parts or elements, rules of
construction such as grammar & usage, form
& style; civil society groups can influence this
cycle by drafting proposals & giving them to
legislators

Enactment of Legislation

Deliberation
Consultation
Codification
Consideration

Legislative Oversight
Evaluation of how the policy
was carried out; that funds
were not wasted

Elements of Effective Local Legislation

Efficient institution or organization
Participatory legislation process
Development perspective; addresses
development objectives: poverty reduction,
environmental protection, gender equality,
peace & unity, accountability & transparency,
citizen participation

Citizen Participation
Awareness-raising on areas & mechanisms for
participation
Making existing legislative mechanisms for
participation work
Developing innovative tools to encourage &
sustain participation in legislative decision
making

Mechanisms for Legislative

Participation
Committee meetings
Committee hearings
Legislative agenda formulation public
consultations & workshop
Budget hearings
Accreditation (research, writing, information)

Methods to Solicit Input

/Comment from Public

Public hearing
Public consultation
Focus group discussion
Community needs assessment survey
Consultation by individual legislators

Tools To Reach Out Public

Legislative digest
Sanggunian brochure
Media tools
Website
Letters to constituents
Barangay or purok hopping
Study visits for students