Despite legal affirmations of women's rights to abortion, actual access to the procedure in North America is increasingly curtailed. Melissa Haussman analyzes this disturbing disparity between official policies and daily realities in the United States, Canada, and Mexico.

Haussman examines the successes of U.S. antichoice groupsgroups that have extended their reach to    More >

As the cost of higher education continues to rise, students increasingly rely on borrowing to pay for college. But is the result the improved socioeconomic position that they anticipate? Borrowing Inequality explores the real impact of loans on minority and low-income students.

Drawing on a national study of student-borrowing patterns, Derek Price finds that racial and ethnic    More >

No state has felt the impact of the new immigration more than California, and no institution more than its schools. Fully a third of the nation's 20 million immigrants are concentrated in California, and over a third of the state's schoolchildren speak a language other than English at home. Largely from Asia and Latin America, these new Californians are extraordinarily diverse in their social,    More >

What is regulation? Why do governments regulate, and how does regulatory change take place? Exploring these and other questions, the second edition of Contemporary Regulatory Policy demystifies the field of regulatory politics.

Eisner, Worsham, and Ringquist have completely updated their examination of the regulatory process in seven major areas: antitrust, banking and    More >

Through case studies of two prison systems—the U.S. Federal Bureau of Prisons and the Dutch prison system—Arjen Boin identifies the challenges and opportunities that confront public managers who want to reorient correctional policy and make prisons more effective.

Crafting Public Institutions contrasts the two prison systems to show how focused leadership—or its    More >

Seldom do we notice, let alone explicitly acknowledge, that public policies set distinct parameters for gender. But as Creating Gender compellingly demonstrates, in reality governments do use policy—to legitimize and support some gender-based behaviors, while undermining others.

Looking in depth at the case of welfare reform, but considering a wide range of policy    More >

Conservatives and liberals agree that President Bill Clinton's effort to lift the military's gay ban was perhaps one of the greatest blunders of his tenure in office. Conservatives argue that Clinton should have left well enough alone; liberals believe that he should have ordered the military to accept homosexuals rather than agreeing to the compromise "don't ask, don't tell" policy. In    More >

All men may be created equal in the United States—but more than 30 years after Congress approved the Equal Rights Amendment, can the same be said for women? Elusive Equality offers a clear understanding of how government institutions—the executive branch, Congress, and state legislatures, as well as the federal courts—affect the legal status of women.

Surveying    More >

In the past fifteen years, presidents from two parties, supported by parents, teachers, and civic leaders have tried—and generally failed—to increase student achievement through federal policymaking. Supposedly pathbreaking legislation to "leave no child behind" has hardly made a dent in the problem. What is going on? Kevin R. Kosar delves into the political maneuvering    More >

Legalized gambling has spread like wildfire through the United States, with only Hawaii and Utah still prohibiting all of its forms. The reason? Gambling has become the method of choice for states in search of additional revenue: in 2002 alone, state lottery sales exceeded $42 billion, netting nearly $14 billion in "voluntary taxes." Gambling Politics examines this dramatic    More >

This comprehensive overview of US environmental regulation from the inception of the EPA through the current Bush administration goes beyond traditional texts to consider alternatives to the existing regulatory regime, as well as the challenges posed by the global nature of environmental issues.

Thoughtful and evenhanded, Governing the Environment covers the full    More >

This important new book reveals how the stricter US border-control activities of the past decade have affected the behavior of migrants and potential migrants in rural Mexico.

The authors establish direct links between changes in immigration-control policies and changes in the decision to migrate, choice of destination, mode of entry, and inclination to participate in a temporary worker    More >

"It's my land, I can do whatever I want with it." "This is our neighborhood (or city, or park), and we should be the ones deciding how it's used." These are two strongly held—and diametrically opposed—views of appropriate land use. As John G. and Leslie Pickering Francis demonstrate, the debate about what to do with land is messy, complex, and often based on    More >

This volume provides a vivid portrait of a transnational migrant community anchored in both the remote Mixteca region of Oaxaca and the San Diego metropolitan area.

Drawing on surveys and interviews with migrants and potential migrants conducted by a binational research team in 2007-2008, the contributors show how the Oaxaca-based and the California-based natives of the town of San    More >

How did the European Union come to be the global leader in setting data privacy standards? And what is the significance of this development? Dorothee Heisenberg traces the origins of the stringent EU privacy laws, the responses of the United States and other governments, and the reactions and concerns of a range of interest groups.

Analyzing the negotiation of the original 1995    More >

What drives cities to pursue large-scale, high-profile events like the Olympic games? What are the consequences for citizens and local governments? Investigating local politics in three U.S. cities—Los Angeles, Atlanta, and Salt Lake City—as they vied for the role of Olympic host, this book provides a compelling narrative of the evolving political economy of modern megaevents.

The    More >

From aspirin to Viagra to the latest cancer treatment, the Food and Drug Administration acts as a gatekeeper determining what medicines are legally available in the United States. But in fulfilling that regulatory role, Stephen Ceccoli argues, the FDA may inadvertently be promoting new drugs at the expense of public health.

The FDA's initial mandate to protect health grew out of    More >

This accessible yet challenging introduction to public policy navigates the concepts and methods of the policymaking process, as well as the values influencing policy choices.

The authors first cover the basics: How do issues reach the policy agenda? How are policies crafted and implemented? Who pays/benefits? How is the effectiveness of a policy determined? They then apply this foundation to    More >

Does federal funding of a church's welfare-to-work program constitute government endorsement of a particular religion? Do religious organizations that accept public funds lose the legal autonomy needed to preserve their religious identity and mission? Wading into the constitutional battle over whether government can/should enlist the help of religious organizations in delivering social services,    More >

Despite a broad political environment conducive to deregulation, television is one industry that consistently fails to loosen government's regulatory grip. To explain why, Lori Brainard explores the technological changes, industry structures, and political dynamics influencing this policy quagmire.

Contradicting current scholarly and popular accounts, Brainard demonstrates that    More >

In the last decades of the twentieth century, many political leaders declared that government was, in the words of Ronald Reagan, "the problem, not the solution." But on closer inspection, argues Elaine Kamarck, the revolt against government was and is a revolt against bureaucracy a revolt that has taken place in first world, developing, and avowedly communist countries    More >

How is U.S. public policy made? This comprehensive survey, designed to help students and scholars understand the complexity of policymaking, traces the Employee Commute Option (ECO) step by step from initial idea through enactment and implementation to evaluation and reformulation.

The authors integrate two dominant theories in the policy analysis literature—the policy cycle model and    More >

The Making of Telecommunications Policy examines the history, politics, and impact of telecommunications policy.

Beginning with a comparison of several alternate views of the future, Olufs explains how government action makes the widespread use of some new technologies more likely than others. He details the challenges that rapid advances in communications technologies pose for    More >

Does Alaska's reliance on oil and gas mean that it inevitably will be controlled by corporate energy interests? Or can the state use its vast resource holdings to manage a more symmetrical partnership? The Political Economy of Oil in Alaska investigates the complex relationship Alaska has with its most precious commodity.

Offering a new perspective on the challenges of    More >

How are budget decisions made by the US government? Is it fair to blame skyrocketing deficits on an inability to curtail spending? How—and why—are taxing and spending decidedly separate political processes?

Emphasizing budgetary politics rather than economic theories, Patrick Fisher offers a clear, thorough overview of how money flows through our government coffers. A    More >

The politics of immigration and migration control has taken on new urgency in the post-9/11 world as sovereignty concerns clash with industrialized democracies' continuing need for immigrants to fill jobs and sustain social security reserves.

Rosenblum analyzes U.S. immigration policy over the last 25 years, conceptualizing it as a two-stage, two-level game—thereby    More >

Completely revised throughout, the fourth edition of US National Security reflects the new strategic landscape as it has evolved in the aftermath of the September 11 terrorist attacks. The ongoing US military involvement in Afghanistan and Iraq, the focus on homeland security, the significant organizational changes in the intelligence bureaucracy, and the impact of the Bush Doctrine are    More >

Whistleblowers can ruin lives—and can save them. Is it worth it? Roberta Ann Johnson explores when and how—and to what effect—people make the choice to blow the whistle. Engrossing case studies from the tobacco industry, to NASA, to the FDA illustrate clearly how individual efforts can and do transform institutions, shape public policy, and serve as a force for    More >