DEFINITION OF

PUBLIC POLICY & PROGRAM

ADMINISTRATION
ROGER V. SUERTE
Reporter
WHAT IS
PUBLIC
POLICY?
• “A COURSE OF GOVERNMENT ACTION OR
INACTION IN RESPONSE TO A
PUBLIC PROBLEMS”

- SCOTT R. FURLONG
“whatever governments choose to
do or not to do”

- THOMAS DYE 1987

WHAT IS PUBLIC POLICY?
 In
any society, governmental entities enact
laws, make policies, and allocate resources.
This is true at all levels.
 Public
policy can be generally defined as a
system of laws, regulatory measures,
courses of action, and funding priorities
concerning a given topic promulgated by a
governmental entity or its representatives.
WHAT IS PUBLIC POLICY?
 Problems on crime, education, foreign
policy, health, and social welfare.

 Public policy is an attempt by a government

to address a public issue by instituting
laws, regulations, decisions, or actions
pertinent to the problem at hand.
Difference of Policy and Law
Policy
• Policies are only documents
• A policy is that which outlines what a
government is going to do and not to do
• Policies can be called a set of rules that
guide any government or any organization.
• Policies are objectives that an organization
or a government sets for itself to achieve
in a given period of time
Law
• Laws are the tools that help a government
achieve there objectives
• Laws are the standard rules and
regulations that are compulsory and to be
followed by all the people of the country
• Laws are set of principles that guide
people’s actions in various situations of life
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
• 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
 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 sub-
committee), 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 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 re-
organization, 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