Deck 11: Issues in Public Policy

Question 1

When public officials develop public policy, they are establishing priorities for programs that benefit the public.

Answer 1

True

Question 2

Widespread agreement generally exists as to which programs should receive the attention of public officials and how the money should be spent.

Answer 2

False

Question 3

Issues are generally placed on the public agenda through the means of public opinion polls.

Answer 3

False

Question 4

The Texas legislature in 2006 finally came to an agreement on a solution to the school funding process after orderly debate and careful consideration, with no outside pressure.

Question 5

The Texas court system played a major role in securing the action of the Texas legislature on the school funding issue.

Question 6

Issues may be placed on the public policy agenda as a result of the political events such as the outcome of an election.

Question 7

Interest groups seldom are effective in placing items on the public policy agenda.

Question 8

A mandate is an order by a higher level of government which requires a lower unit of government to make or enforce a particular action.

Question 9

Among the root causes of most modern policy issues are caused by urbanization, industrialization, economic fluctuations, or issues with the environment.

Question 10

Following the wishes of the majority in a democracy will generally solve all of the problems of society.

Question 11

Whenever government seeks to improve the quality of life for the poor, it is producing a redistributive public policy.

Question 12

The percentage of people who live below the poverty level in Texas is greater than the national average.

Question 13

Most of the children who live in poverty in Texas live in families where both parents are unemployed.

Question 14

The reality of poverty in Texas is that the very young and very old are most likely to live in poverty.

Question 15

The typical family of three in Texas generally will qualify for enough public assistance to place them above the poverty level.

Question 16

Virtually all public assistance programs in Texas are coordinated through the Texas Health and Human Services Commission.

Question 17

Nationally and in Texas, almost two-thirds of health assistance goes to children.

Question 18

Unemployment compensation programs are paid for out of general tax revenues.

Question 19

The Texas worker's compensation program is administered by the Texas Department of Insurance.

Question 20

The Texas Children's Health Insurance Program (CHIP) was designed to provide health insurance for the children of the working poor.

Question 21

Under recent federal legislation, states have been allowed to reduce welfare with no loss of federal funds.

Question 22

Texas, like most of the other states, is spending all of the federal funds to which it would be entitled under federal law.

Question 23

Because of the tax structure used in Texas, the number of persons needing public assistance is generally likely to increase at the same time that the state's taxation system is producing fewer dollars.

Question 24

Higher education funding in Texas suffers because it is the largest source of money not protected by dedication of revenues in the budget.

Question 25

The Permanent University Fund (PUF) can only be used by the University of Texas and the Texas A&M System.

Question 26

The Texas Higher Education Assistance Fund (HEAF) is designed to fund capital expenditures for institutions of higher education not eligible for PUF.

Question 27

The LULAC case in 1992 forced the state of Texas to spend more money on higher education in South Texas.

Question 28

The Hopwood v. State case was directed against the affirmative action admission program of the Texas A&M law school.

Question 29

Affirmative action (AA) programs are always required to establish quotas for members of minority groups.

Question 30

The report of the commission formed by Lt. Governor Rick Perry on the 21^st Century Colleges and Universities has led to a significant increase in the level of funding for Texas colleges and universities.

Question 31

Compared to other urban states, Texas ranks first in the average salaries paid to higher education faculty.

Question 32

The federal government has fully funds all of the mandates related to the environment such as the Clean Water Act, the Clean Air Act, and the Safe Drinking Water Act.

Question 33

The main focus of legislators from West Texas has been water supply.

Question 34

Texas ranks near the top of all states in the amount of toxic pollutants that it allows to be released into the air, seep in the ground, and be dumped into the waters of the state.

Question 35

The Texas Commission on Environmental Quality (TCEQ) is the most recent agency created by the legislature to oversee environmental quality.

Question 36

Texas has met the air attainment standards established by the federal Environmental Protection Agency.

Question 37

The problem of what to do with radioactive wastes produced by the nuclear power plants in Texas has been finally resolved by establishing a waste disposal site in the Davis Mountains.

Question 38

According to the authors, Texas is leading the nation in environmental policy-making.

Question 39

The main obstacle to the solution what to do with wastes is primarily technological.

Question 40

According to the authors, Texas has shown stinginess in trying to mitigate poverty, inconsistency in funding higher education, and a cavalier attitude toward the environment.

Question 41

Issues are placed on the public policy agenda as a result of

A) the attention of elected officials such as legislators and the governor
B) attention by the media
C) mandates by higher level governments
D) all of the above

Question 42

A _____ is an action by a higher level unit of government which forces a lower level unit of government to take a particular policy action.

A) decree
B) administrative order
C) executive edict
D) mandate

Question 43

In which of the following areas of public policy has the state of Texas been forced to take actions because of federal court orders?

A) prison reform
B) higher education
C) public school finance
D) all of the above

Question 44

Which of the following has created public policy problems for the state of Texas?

A) urbanization
B) environmental concerns
C) demographic change
D) all of the above

Question 45

Whenever the government attempts to alleviate the problems of the poor by taking money from the wealthy and providing benefits for the poor, it is engaging in ___________ actions.

A) progressive public policy
B) redistributive public policy
C) regressive public policy
D) none of the above

Question 46

Poverty in Texas is largely centered among

A) people who live in South Texas
B) children under the age of 14
C) the elderly
D) all of the above

Question 47

Which of the following programs is designed to provide assistance to the aged, blind, and disabled?

A) Temporary Assistance to Needy Families (TANF)
B) Social Security Supplemental Security Income
C) Medicaid
D) Food stamp program

Question 48

The agency recently created to coordinate the state's programs of assistance is the

A) Texas Department of Welfare
B) Department of Health and Human Services
C) Texas Workforce Commission
D) Texas Department of Public Assistance

Question 49

The workfare approach to public assistance limits a person to no more than ____ years of public assistance.

A) one
B) three
C) five
D) ten

Question 50

The program that was established to provide health insurance for the families of the working poor was the _________ program.

A) Aide for Families of Dependent Children
B) Temporary Assistance to Needy Families
C) Medicaid
D) Children's Health Insurance Program

Question 51

Which of the following is not true concerning recent efforts in public assistance in Texas?

A) a sharp drop in the number of welfare recipients has occurred
B) Texas is not spending all of the federal money to which it is entitled
C) educational programs for persons who have learning disabilities have been increased
D) the state's revenue is frequently on a down-turn when those who need assistance are on the increase

Question 52

The cost of funding buildings and other facilities for institutions of higher education outside of the University of Texas and Texas A&M systems was provided by constitutional amendment in 1984 by the creation of the

A) Foundation School Fund
B) Permanent University Fund
C) Higher Education Assistance Fund
D) Highway Fund

Question 53

To meet the additional costs of increased enrollment, faculty salaries, and inflation, colleges and universities in Texas have had to depend on

A) increased federal assistance
B) increased tuition and fees paid by students
C) increased funding by the state
D) increased private foundation funding

Question 54

In 1992, the League of United Latin American Citizens (LULAC) filed a court case in which it alleged that Texas discriminated against Mexican American citizens by which action?

A) denied Hispanic students admission to the University of Texas
B) provided reduced amounts of financial aid to Hispanic students as compared to Afro American students
C) systematically provided fewer educational opportunities for Hispanics by under funding colleges and universities in South Texas
D) forced Hispanic students to take admissions exams in English

Question 55

Among the issues cited by the authors of the textbook as reasons for the problems with the legislature were all but one of the following. Which one was that?

A) higher education had an image problem
B) the legislature was funding higher education at less than the enrollment growth rate
C) higher education was steadily being privatized by encouraging the selling of long- standing university operations to private corporations
D) colleges and universities were failing to produce students who could pass literacy exams

Question 56

As a result of the Supreme Court decision in Hopwood v. State, Texas was forced to

A) admit unqualified minority students into its professional schools
B) eliminate affirmative action programs designed to admit minority students into the major universities of the state
C) provide lower tuition for minority students
D) require standard admissions exams for all students

Question 57

Which of the following was not a focus of the "Back to Basics" proposals presented by the Chancellors of the six public university systems in Texas?

A) increasing the partnerships between higher education and public schools
B) increased efforts to help at-risk students who were most likely to "stop out"
C) increase the number of teaching assistants and less-experienced faculty to reduce costs
D) establish a more stable source of state funding for the state's colleges and universities

Question 58

Which of the following statements more closely reflects the actions of the Texas legislature in the sessions of 2003 and 2005?

A) the legislature increased funding to accommodate increased enrollment and inflation costs
B) the legislature gave the colleges and universities permission to increase tuition and fees
C) the legislature established a funding formula to provide for future revenue needs of the colleges and universities
D) the legislature established a dedicated tax to pay for future college and university costs

Question 59

Which of the following have contributed to the importance of environmental issues in Texas?

A) the state's history of living off of the environment by using its minerals, land, and water
B) the state's often hostile climate with floods, hurricanes, tornadoes, and occasional earthquakes
C) the indifference of the population to environmental concerns
D) all of the above

Question 60

Under normal conditions, which of the following is true?

A) for every twenty miles west, rainfall decreases by about one inch per year
B) for every twenty miles east, rainfall decreases by about one inch per year
C) for every mile north from the border with Mexico, rainfall increases by about one inch
D) all sections of the state receive equal amounts of rainfall

Question 61

With regard to water quality, which of the following statements is true?

A) Texas is blessed with a plentiful supply of pure water
B) Texas has limited supplies of water, particularly in the western part of the state, and that is often of relatively poor quality
C) Texans have traditionally been very careful not to pollute the rivers and streams of the state
D) Texas has had effective and careful supervision of its natural resources for the past fifty years

Question 62

With regard to air quality, which of the following is a true statement?

A) the major metropolitan areas of the state- Houston, Dallas-Fort Worth, Beaumont, and El Paso have air quality which fails to meet federal clean air standards
B) five metropolitan regions- North east Texas, Austin, San Antonio, Victoria, and Corpus Christi - have air quality which is close to the non-attainment status
C) the legislature in 1995 cancelled the auto emissions program which had previously been established
D) all of the above are true statements

Question 63

The most common method of disposing of garbage in Texas is

A) recycling
B) composting
C) incineration
D) landfills

Question 64

The primary reason that Texas has failed to cope efficiently with environmental problems is cited by the authors of your text as

A) legislators are bribed by polluters
B) the economic costs of environmentally safe operations are greater than the perceived benefits
C) the lack of federal legislation
D) the lack of technology to deal with environmental problems

Question 65

In what ways have federal mandates affected environmental policies in Texas? Cite three examples.

Question 66

How does Texas compare with other states in attempting to solve the problems of poverty? Has the conservative political culture of the state influenced the policies adopted by the legislature?

Question 67

Based on your reading of chapter 11, what can we expect from the legislature in policy toward higher education in Texas?

Question 68

Which groups of students are most affected by the policies adopted by the Texas legislature from 2003 to the present?

Question 69

What issues are most pressing for higher education in Texas?

Question 70

To what extent do the environmental policies of the state of Texas reflect the general attitude of the public and to what extend do they reflect the pressures of special interest groups?