Deck 13: Social and Economic Policy

Question 1

The federal bureaucracy,which is part of the executive branch,can take on a quasi-legislative role in policymaking.

Answer 1

True

Question 2

Health care policy in the United States began first at the ________ to deal with sick and disabled seamen.

A)local level
B)state level
C)national level
D)same time at all levels of government
E)individual level

Answer 2

C

Question 3

_______________ is the process of altering existing policy proposals or creating new proposals within an issue area the government has previously addressed.

A)Analogous formulation
B)Creative formulation
C)Routine formulation
D)Historical formulation
E)Problem formulation

Answer 3

C

Question 4

President Franklin D.Roosevelt's New Deal decreased government intervention in many economic policy areas,such as labor and industry.

Question 5

Policy adoption generally occurs before receiving the requisite authorization to implement a solution to a problem.

Question 6

The Department of Education was established during the administration of President

A)Franklin D. Roosevelt.
B)John F. Kennedy.
C)Jimmy Carter.
D)Ronald Reagan.
E)George H.W. Bush.

Question 7

The deliberate use of the national government's taxing and spending policies to maintain economic stability is called fiscal policy.

Question 8

Problem recognition

A)is the first stage of the policy-making process.
B)is the last stage of the policy-making process.
C)requires governmental intervention.
D)is not necessarily critical to the policy-making process.
E)can occur at any time during the policy-making process.

Question 9

The supplemental nutrition program was originally intended to increase the variety of international foods Americans were eating.

Question 10

The deliberate use of taxing and spending policies to improve the country's economic prospects is called

A)budgetary policy.
B)fiscal policy.
C)socioeconomic policy.
D)discretionary policy.
E)monetary policy.

Question 11

Medicaid was designed to provide health care

A)for the aged and ill.
B)for the poor.
C)for the working class.
D)for children.
E)for everyone.

Question 12

The New Deal programs lessened government involvement in Americans' everyday lives.

Question 13

Social Security was created in the

A)1790s
B)1860s
C)1930s
D)1960s
E)1970s

Question 14

The Office of Management and Budget's mission is to defend the congressional budgetary agenda.

Question 15

In 2009,Americans spent about _____ times more per capita on health care than they did in 1970.

A)two
B)five
C)ten
D)fifteen
E)twenty

Question 16

The earned income tax credit program does all of the following EXCEPT

A)increase employment among low-income Americans.
B)refund part or all of the Social Security wages paid by the poor.
C)provide an incentive to work.
D)help the unemployed.
E)increase consumer spending.

Question 17

Why is the cost of health care an increasing problem for governments?
?

A)As a result of recent reforms,the federal government will eventually have to pay for the skyrocketing health care costs.
B)State governments have decreased Medicaid payouts substantially in the past two years.
C)The number of Medicare beneficiaries is decreasing substantially.
D)The federal government cannot run a budget deficit to pay for the rising cost of health care.
E)Local governments are increasingly providing health insurance.

Question 18

Medicare is the largest government health insurance program in the United States.

Question 19

Studying rankings provided by the __________________ is one way to evaluate how hospitable a country is to business.

A)Better Business Bureau
B)Federal Reserve System
C)AFL-CIO
D)World Economy Fact Book
E)Economic Freedom of the World Index

Question 20

How are supplemental nutrition benefits distributed to citizens?

A)Food delivery services
B)An electronic debit program
C)Paper coupons
D)Food banks
E)The government eliminated the program entirely.

Question 21

If you donate money to the Sierra Club,your contribution is tax-deductible.This tactic used by the government to encourage the public to support environmental policies is a/an ________ technique.

A)authoritative
B)capacity
C)incentive
D)hortatory
E)free market

Question 22

_____________________ are the largest source of policy decisions made by the federal government.

A)Executive orders
B)Federal rules
C)Congressional acts
D)Supreme Court decisions
E)Constitutional amendments

Question 23

A set of problems to which policy makers believe they should discuss or be attentive is called

A)the playbill.
B)programs.
C)entitlements.
D)policy formulation.
E)an agenda.

Question 24

Defense spending accounts for close to 20 percent of the budget.

Question 25

The changing list of issues that public officials believe they are obliged to devote active and serious attention is called the

A)policy agenda.
B)governmental agenda.
C)systematic agenda.
D)legislative agenda.
E)policy addendum.

Question 26

The intentional course of action followed by government in dealing with problems or matters of concern is called

A)policy formulation.
B)social welfare policy.
C)policy administration.
D)public administration.
E)public policy.

Question 27

When did active federal involvement in health care policy first begin?

A)1798
B)1887
C)1965
D)1979
E)2006

Question 28

In the 1990s,the Centers for Disease Control used a "Don't Be a Butthead" campaign to discourage youth smoking.The implementation technique used here is _______.

A)instinctual
B)incentive
C)authoritative
D)free market
E)hortatory

Question 29

Providing people with information,training,or resources that will enable them to undertake desired activities is an example of a ________ technique.

A)hortatory
B)capacity
C)authoritative
D)incentive
E)free market

Question 30

All provisions of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act will be implemented by 2012.

Question 31

Legislation that contains ambiguous language

A)is easy to implement.
B)typically favors the Democrats.
C)allows for discretion on the part of those implementing the law.
D)prevents implementation of laws in ways that are inconsistent with congressional intent.
E)is a typical Republican strategy to kill bills in a Democratic-controlled Congress.

Question 32

The Federal Reserve has recently begun take a big-picture financial system approach to regulation as opposed to focusing on individual banks.

Question 33

The crafting of appropriate and acceptable proposed courses of action to ameliorate or resolve public problems is called

A)agenda setting.
B)public administration.
C)policy adoption.
D)policy resolution.
E)policy formulation.

Question 34

A list of all issues that the political community views as meriting public attention is called the

A)policy agenda.
B)institutional agenda.
C)systemic agenda.
D)governmental agenda.
E)organizational agenda.

Question 35

Addressing a current problem by drawing on previous experiences with similar problems in the past is known as

A)analogous formulation.
B)creative formulation.
C)routine formulation.
D)problem formulation.
E)historical formulation.

Question 36

The Federal Reserve Board consists of seven members who serve 14-year terms,are appointed by the president,and are confirmed by the Senate.

Question 37

Policy adoption

A)prohibits the implementation of policies approved by the legislature.
B)occurs immediately after the problem-recognition phase of the process.
C)gives policies legal force.
D)provides guidelines for legislative consideration of policy proposals.
E)gives policies judicial protection.

Question 38

Choose the answer that correctly places the following components of the policy-making process in the correct order.
I)Policy evaluation
II)Agenda setting
III)Policy adoption
IV)Budgeting

A)I, II, III, IV
B)II, IV, I, III
C)IV, III, II, I
D)II, III, IV, I
E)II, III, I, IV

Question 39

When President Franklin D.Roosevelt gave his fireside chats,he was engaging in which step of the policy-making process?

A)Policy adoption
B)Budgeting
C)Policy implementation
D)Policy evaluation
E)Agenda setting

Question 40

The majority of Recovery Act funds were allotted to improving health care.

Question 41

According to the text,why is the future of Social Security in jeopardy?
?
I)People are living longer.
II)Americans are having more children than they once did.?
III)Baby boomers are retiring en masse.
IV)The cost of living is increasing,and the Social Security Trust Fund is not growing at the same rate.

A)II only
B)I and III
C)I, II, and III
D)I, III, and IV
E)I, II, III, and IV

Question 42

Which of the following is/are true about Supplemental Security Income?
I)It is non-means tested.
II)Primary funding is provided by the states.
III)Coverage includes needy people who are permanently disabled.
IV)Beneficiaries can only have limited income.

A)I only
B)I and II
C)I and IV
D)III and IV
E)II, III, and IV

Question 43

Which of the following states had an unemployment rate greater than 10 percent in 2010?

A)Nebraska
B)Colorado
C)Florida
D)South Dakota
E)North Dakota

Question 44

The initial purpose of the food stamp program was to

A)provide special nutritional programs for poor women.
B)alleviate poverty during the Great Depression.
C)alleviate poverty and hunger during the 1960s.
D)reduce hunger and malnutrition in children.
E)expand domestic markets for farm commodities.

Question 45

The current debate over raising the retirement age affects which of the following programs?
I)Medicaid
II)Social Security
III)Veterans' disability benefits
IV)Temporary Assistance for Needy Families

A)I and II
B)II only
C)I and III
D)II, III, and IV
E)III and IV

Question 46

All of the following scenarios would be affected by income security EXCEPT

A)a 70-year-old choosing to retire.
B)an accident that limits a person's ability to work.
C)a college student's decision to take summer classes and not take a job.
D)the poor economy causing a person's job to be eliminated.
E)the death of a man with two children and a stay-at-home wife.

Question 47

Unemployment insurance payments

A)are available to all unemployed persons seeking work.
B)vary based on unemployment rates.
C)vary dramatically by state.
D)are subject to mandated minimums set by the federal government.
E)are most generous in southern states.

Question 48

An American who is over the age of 65 would rely on which part of Medicare for hospitalization coverage?

A)Medicare Part A
B)Medicare Part B
C)Medicare Part C
D)Medicare Part D
E)Medicare Part H

Question 49

The largest national health insurance program in the United States is

A)Medicare.
B)Medicaid.
C)MedicAlert.
D)Tri-Care.
E)National Health Service.

Question 50

If the president wanted to decrease defense spending and increase monetary aid to victims of natural disaster,which one of the following groups would be MOST likely to balance the new distribution of spending?

A)The Department of Transportation
B)The Office of Management and Budget
C)The Central Intelligence Agency
D)The Department of the Interior
E)The Cabinet

Question 51

Which of the following can be purchased using food stamps in Alaska?
I)Prepared hot foods sold in stores
II)Vitamins
III)Herb seeds
IV)Candy

A)II only
B)II and III
C)III and IV
D)I and IV
E)I, III, and IV

Question 52

National health insurance

A)was first seriously considered in the 1930s at the same time as Social Security.
B)has never been realistically considered in the United States.
C)was adopted during the Clinton administration.
D)was proposed as part of Johnson's Great Society program.
E)was adopted and then abandoned in the 1940s.

Question 53

Social Security was created in the

A)1790s.
B)1860s.
C)1930s.
D)1960s.
E)1970s.

Question 54

___________________ is one of the two policy areas in which the government spends most of its money.

A)Road repair
B)Purchasing military weaponry
C)Building new libraries
D)Sending aid to Haiti
E)Subsidizing the development of electric cars

Question 55

The unemployment rate in 2010 was

A)below 5% percent
B)around 10 percent.
C)between 12 and 15 percent.
D)around 20 percent.
E)greater than 20 percent.

Question 56

Which of the following are components of the Social Security Act of 1935?
I)Old-age insurance
II)Unemployment insurance
III)Workers' compensation
IV)Increased tax refunds

A)I and II
B)I and IV
C)II and III
D)III and IV
E)I, II, and III

Question 57

All of the following are examples of entitlement programs EXCEPT

A)Supplemental Security Income.
B)public housing.
C)Social Security.
D)the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program.
E)Temporary Assistance for Needy Families.

Question 58

The costs of Social Security

A)have always exceeded revenues.
B)are expected to exceed revenues in 2050.
C)are expected to exceed revenues by 2017.
D)are mandated by law to equal revenues.
E)are not expected to exceed revenues until 2085.

Question 59

The Earned Income Tax Credit and Supplementary Security Income have what in common?

A)Individuals receiving benefits must have children.
B)Benefits are only distributed to those who earn less than a pre-determined income amount.
C)Individuals enrolled in each program must be over the age of 65.
D)Individuals enrolled in each program must be disabled.
E)Only individuals in certain states can receive benefits from these programs.

Question 60

Which of the following are likely reasons for the government to be running a deficit?
I)Military invasions
II)Budget cuts
III)Economic recession
IV)Tax cuts

A)I only
B)I and II
C)I and IV
D) III and IV
E)I, III, and IV

Question 61

Which of the following is NOT a method used by the Bush Administration to fix the economic downturn in early 2008?

A)Increasing the supply of money
B)Implementing a deficit spending approach
C)Lowering interest rates
D)Issuing tax rebates to citizens
E)Working with the Federal Reserve Board

Question 62

All of the following are reforms encouraged by Federal Reserve Board Chairman Ben Bernanke EXCEPT

A)a focus on the whole financial system, not just individual banks.
B)strengthening capital requirements for banks.
C)the creation of one national bank to limit bank failures.
D)the creation of a council of regulators to police risky financial practices.
E)safe dismantling of failing financial firms.

Question 63

The first step of the policy-making process is agenda setting.

Question 64

A Federal Communications Commission fine to CBS for showing indecent content on network television is an example of authoritative policy implementation.

Question 65

Which of the following are arguments against economic stimulus payments?
I)Deficit spending has serious future ramifications.
II)Stimulus payments send a powerful message to consumers,businesses,and investors.
III)Government cannot control how stimulus payments are used.
IV)The government has a responsibility to prevent economic downturns.

A)I and II
B)I and III
C)II and IV
D)III and IV
E)I, III and IV

Question 66

____________________ is a similar action to deficit spending.

A)Opening a checking account
B)Declaring bankruptcy
C)Using a credit card
D)Renting a car
E)Buying a car with cash

Question 67

The $700 billion bailout

A)failed to win the support of both houses of Congress.
B)was enacted using executive order.
C)failed to pass Congress the first time but succeeded the second time.
D)was authorized under the Glass-Steagall Act.
E)was declared unconstitutional by the Supreme Court.

Question 68

Over half of Americans believe that the recent health care reforms will improve the state of health care in the United States.

Question 69

Medicare and Medicaid are both products of the legislation of the 1960s.

Question 70

Congress passed the Troubled Asset Relief Program to speed recovery from the poor economic conditions in the United States resulting from

A)the stock market crash of 1929.
B)the oil crisis of the 1970s.
C)the stock market crash of 1987.
D)the burst of the technology bubble in the 1990s.
E)the sub-prime mortgage crisis in the 2000s.

Question 71

Conservative scholars credit the _______ for creating the economic growth that stalled a rise in unemployment in 2010.

A)Recovery Act
B)TARP program
C)tax and spend economic policies
D)Great Society program
E)New Deal

Question 72

Congress passed the Federal Reserve Act in 1913 to

A)adjust the money supply to the needs of agriculture, commerce, and industry.
B)encourage the production of domestic and offshore oil reserves.
C)wean the United States off the gold standard.
D)ensure that the federal budget was balanced.
E)create a six-month supply of currency backed by gold bullion and stored at Fort Knox.

Question 73

All of the following indicate that 2008 marked the beginning of a period of economic instability in the U.S.economy EXCEPT

A)furloughs for government employees instituted by many states.
B)high voter turnout.
C)a drastic increase in housing foreclosures.
D)the collapse of the financial industry.
E)high unemployment.

Question 74

Which of the following policy areas appeared to be given the most priority in allocating funds for the Recovery Act?

A)Education
B)Low-income aid
C)Healthcare
D)Energy
E)Tax cuts

Question 75

The _________________ Act of 2009 was designed to create jobs and cut taxes through deficit spending.

A)American Recovery and Reinvestment
B)Glass-Steagall
C)Economic and Financial Investment
D)Interstate Commerce
E)McCain-Feingold

Question 76

Analogous policy formulation draws on experiences of the past to solve modern-day problems.

Question 77

If you were 70 years old and broke your arm,your X-ray would be covered by Medicare Part A.

Question 78

Scheduling congressional hearings to evaluate the impending problem of global warming is an example of agenda setting.

Question 79

The percentage of Americans enrolled in Medicare who also choose Medicare Advantage programs shows that Medicare may not adequately cover medical expenses.

Question 80

The Department of Health,Education,and Welfare was established in 1965.