Question 1

The process of identifying and solving problems that affect all or a group of citizens is called:&#10;A)Public policy&#10;B)Agenda setting&#10;C)Legislative processes&#10;D)Contiguous framing&#10;E)Litigious migration

Accepted Answer

Public policy is the process of identifying and solving problems that affect all or a group of citizens. In other words, public policy can be thought of as figuring out what's wrong and trying to fix it. In a way, it can be thought of as the primary role of government. Public policy is a process, and, more often than not, the solutions to the problems don't always work out quite like they are supposed to.

Question 2

Which of the following is not a stage of the policymaking cycle?&#10;A)Agenda setting&#10;B)Policy formulation&#10;C)Implementation&#10;D)Policy evaluation&#10;E)Policy regression

Accepted Answer

Policy regression is not a stage in the policymaking cycle, and is instead the idea that you dump all of your policy ideas and regress to the way things were before. It is not part of the policymaking cycle because it is the elimination of policy, not the creating of it. The cycle includes: 1) deciding something is a problem that needs solving, 2) developing the policy, 3) implementing the policy, and 4) evaluating whether or not the policy was effective.

Question 3

Suppose Senator Knowsome is convinced that the US needs to outlaw hamburgers because too many Americans are becoming obese. He makes a speech on the floor of the Senate explaining the need to ban hamburgers. What stage of the policymaking cycle is this an example of?

A)Agenda setting
B)Policy formulation
C)Implementation
D)Policy evaluation
E)Policy regression

Agenda setting

Accepted Answer

When you first identify a problem and bring it to public or governmental attention, you are participating in the agenda setting stage of the policymaking cycle. This is the first stage in the policymaking cycle-identifying a problem that you are trying to solve. There are many problems that never get on the agenda, generally because the government does not really see it as either serious or addressing that problem as part of the government's job.

Question 4

Senator Knowsome proposes a bill to outlaw hamburgers. The bill is sent to a committee and then a sub-committee to work out the details. At what stage of the policymaking cycle is this?&#10;A)Agenda setting&#10;B)Policy formulation&#10;C)Implementation&#10;D)Policy evaluation&#10;E)Policy regression

Accepted Answer

Senator Knowsome's bill being sent to a committee and then a sub-committee is an example of the policy formulation stage of the policymaking cycle. Policy formulation is when you are trying to figure out how to solve a public problem. In the US system this can get really tricky because you have to get a whole lot of people to agree to the policy solution. By the time you get 3/5 of the Senate, a majority of the House, and the President to agree on something, the actual policy probably isn't making very many people actually happy about it. It becomes a "Well, this is better than nothing" scenario.

Question 5

Somehow, Senator Knowsome's bill to outlaw hamburgers passes the House, the Senate, and is signed by the President. The bill instructs the Food and Drug Administration to ensure that there are no more hamburgers, which the FDA begins to do. At what stage of the policymaking cycle is this?

A)Agenda setting
B)Policy formulation
C)Implementation
D)Policy evaluation
E)Policy regression

Accepted Answer

Implementing a policy can be almost as difficult as creating it. How is the FDA to get rid of all hamburgers? It can ban the selling of ground beef, but that won't stop people from grinding their own beef. It can make sure there are no hamburgers sold in restaurants, but how is it supposed to ensure there are no hamburgers being made in people's homes? Outlawing hamburgers is easier said than done.

Question 6

After a law outlawing hamburgers has been in place for a while, the FDA does a study to examine the effectiveness of the ban in reducing obesity. To everyone's surprise, they find that obesity has actually increased because people now are loading up on french-fries (Oops). At what stage of the policymaking cycle is this?

A)Agenda setting
B)Policy formulation
C)Implementation
D)Policy evaluation
E)Policy regression

Accepted Answer

The analysis of the effects of this law represents the policy evaluation stage of the policymaking cycle. After policies are formulated and implemented, they are evaluated to determine effectiveness. Very often a policy solution does not work or it has some unintended consequences (such as obesity increasing in this example). At that point policymakers have to decide whether to leave it alone or to try to make improvements. If improvements are to be made, the policymaking cycle starts all over again (thus the "cycle").

Question 7

One of the difficulties of policy evaluation comes from the fact that:&#10;A)There is no single agreed-on method of evaluating policy.&#10;B)There is no pool of experts trained in policy evaluation.&#10;C)Scholars attempt to be unbiased.&#10;D)Congress seldom allocates funding for evaluation of its policies.&#10;E)The President doesn't allow the bureaucracies to evaluate their own work.

Accepted Answer

One of the difficulties of policy evaluation comes from the fact that there is no single agreed-on method of evaluating policy. In other words, evaluating policy effectiveness gets very tricky because there are a whole lot of ways one could look at it. Suppose you are evaluating Medicaid. Do you measure success by the number of people in the program? Or by how much is being spent on it? Or by the health of the people in the program? All of these are legitimate things to measure, but they could lead to different conclusions about the program's effectiveness.

Question 8

An economist with an interest in tax reform who works with elected representatives, their office staff, committee staff, and bureaucrats is a member of:&#10;A)The power elite.&#10;B)A professional association.&#10;C)An issue network.&#10;D)A public interest group.&#10;E)A scholarly society.

Accepted Answer

An issue network is a group of people with a common interest in a policy area that work to solve problems in that area. Generally, there are divergent viewpoints within an issue network (otherwise it might become an "iron triangle") so working to solve problems does not always translate into "working together" to solve problems. While not exactly hidden from public attention, issue networks generally function better when there is less attention and therefore less partisan political pressure.

Question 9

If the government cuts taxes to encourage people to spend more money to stimulate economic growth, it is using:&#10;A)Business cycling&#10;B)Fiscal policy&#10;C)Monetary policy&#10;D)Public income reductions&#10;E)Economic easement

Accepted Answer

Fiscal policy is a tool the government uses to affect the economy through taxing and spending in the budget. To get the economy to speed up, Congress could get more money flowing through the economy by either cutting taxes (leaving people with more money to spend) or increasing government spending (the government sends money to people or it buys things from private companies). To get the economy to slow down, Congress could reverse these measures.

Question 10

The Federal Reserve Board is responsible for:&#10;A)Ensuring all the library books are returned.&#10;B)Fiscal policy&#10;C)Monetary policy&#10;D)Business cycling&#10;E)Public income reductions

Accepted Answer

The Federal Reserve Board (or "the Fed") is primarily responsible for monetary policy. Monetary policy is basically controlling how much money is being made available to the economy through banks. One of the easiest ways to do this is to set interest rates. When interest rates are low, people are more likely to borrow money to make big purchases. When they are high, people are less likely to borrow money and therefore less likely to make big purchases.

Question 11

When Adam Smith refers to &#34;the invisible hand,&#34; what is he talking about?&#10;A)The piece of the body connected to the invisible wrist.&#10;B)The uncontrollable forces of nature that affect the economy.&#10;C)The control that government exercises over the economy.&#10;D)The economic force that converts individual pursuit of personal profit into societal good.&#10;E)The fact that the basic cost of goods will always increase.

Accepted Answer

The answer of When Adam Smith refers to &#34;the invisible...

Question 12

The theory that budget deficits are a short-term concern that may be addressed in more prosperous economic years is the theory of:&#10;A)Keynesian economics&#10;B)Laissez faire economics&#10;C)Crucial demand theory&#10;D)Subsistence manipulation&#10;E)Supply-side economics

Accepted Answer

The answer of The theory that budget deficits are a...

Question 13

Which of the following programs involves discretionary spending?&#10;A)Social Security&#10;B)Veterans benefits&#10;C)Payments on the national debt&#10;D)Medicare&#10;E)Education

Accepted Answer

The answer of Which of the following programs involves discretionary...

Question 14

The Employment Act of 1946 was a turning point in US economic policy because it:&#10;A)Provided college funds for returning World War II veterans.&#10;B)Committed the national government to a policy of maintaining a healthy economy and promoting jobs.&#10;C)Created the Federal Reserve system.&#10;D)Reasserted the doctrine of free-market economics.&#10;E)Separated the IRS from the Department of the Treasury.

Accepted Answer

The answer of The Employment Act of 1946 was a...

Question 15

Why was the Congressional Budget Office (CBO) created?&#10;A)To manage the deficit.&#10;B)To make sure that Congress adheres to its own budget.&#10;C)To find constructive ways to raise taxes.&#10;D)To counterbalance the authority of the executive branch's Office of Management and Budget.&#10;E)To provide accounting services to members of Congress so that they aren't tempted to dip into public funds.

Accepted Answer

The answer of Why was the Congressional Budget Office (CBO)...

Question 16

Significant tax reform in the US is normally difficult because:&#10;A)Presidents hate making changes.&#10;B)Interest groups fight hard to keep tax rules that favor them.&#10;C)Tax laws cannot change without a constitutional amendment.&#10;D)No one really thinks there is anything wrong with the current system.&#10;E)Congress is fearful of unintended consequences.

Accepted Answer

The answer of Significant tax reform in the US is...

Question 17

What is a flat tax?&#10;A)A tax where every taxpayer pays the same amount.&#10;B)A tax where every taxpayer pays the same percentage of her income.&#10;C)A tax that is the same in all 50 states.&#10;D)A tax that guarantees and equal distribution of wealth.&#10;E)A tax that cannot change over time.

Accepted Answer

The answer of What is a flat tax?&#10;A)A tax where...

Question 18

What is a progressive tax?&#10;A)A tax where every taxpayer pays the same percentage of her income.&#10;B)A tax where people who make less money pay a higher percentage of their income.&#10;C)A tax where people who make more money pay a higher percentage of their income.&#10;D)A tax that liberals like.&#10;E)A tax where the rate of taxation increases over time.

Accepted Answer

The answer of What is a progressive tax?&#10;A)A tax where...

Question 19

What is a regressive tax?&#10;A)A tax where every taxpayer pays the same percentage of her income.&#10;B)A tax where people who make less money pay a higher percentage of their income.&#10;C)A tax where people who make more money pay a higher percentage of their income.&#10;D)A tax that liberals like.&#10;E)A tax where the rate of taxation decreases over time.

Accepted Answer

The answer of What is a regressive tax?&#10;A)A tax where...

Question 20

Developing budgets by using last year's budget as the base and adding an amount to cover the increased costs of doing business (inflation) in addition to any new programs is called:&#10;A)Deficit budgeting&#10;B)Program-planning-budgeting-system&#10;C)Incremental budgeting&#10;D)Zero-based budgeting&#10;E)Accountancy

Accepted Answer

The answer of Developing budgets by using last year's budget...

Question 21

What is the difference between the national debt and the national deficit?&#10;A)There is no difference. They are the same thing.&#10;B)The deficit is each year's debts added together.&#10;C)The debt is the cumulative deficit added together.&#10;D)A higher debt implies a lower deficit.&#10;E)A high debt forces a decrease in taxes to raise the deficit.

Accepted Answer

The answer of What is the difference between the national...

Question 22

The largest expenditure in the national budget most years is:&#10;A)Medicaid&#10;B)National defense&#10;C)Interest payments on the debt&#10;D)Education&#10;E)Social Security payments

Accepted Answer

The answer of The largest expenditure in the national budget...

Question 23

All of the following can clearly be considered social welfare programs except:&#10;A)Healthcare for low-income families&#10;B)Public education programs&#10;C)Programs providing income for the elderly&#10;D)Environmental protection programs&#10;E)Housing programs

Accepted Answer

The answer of All of the following can clearly be...

Question 24

The effect of congressional legislation in 1996 upon welfare was to:&#10;A)Eliminate poverty in the US.&#10;B)Eliminate women as the largest category of the poor needing assistance.&#10;C)Improve the central coordination of programs.&#10;D)Mandate performance reviews for all current poverty programs.&#10;E)Largely turn program operation and responsibility over to state and local governments.

Accepted Answer

The answer of The effect of congressional legislation in 1996...

Question 25

The Social Security program is projected to bankrupt itself in the near future without reforms, largely due to:&#10;A)People failing to pay their Social Security taxes&#10;B)Political refusal to increase payroll taxes&#10;C)A poorly performing economy&#10;D)A large expansion of benefits&#10;E)Longer life spans and lower birth rates

Accepted Answer

The answer of The Social Security program is projected to...

Question 26

Both Medicare and Medicaid are medical assistance programs. What two groups are currently eligible for each plan, respectively?&#10;A)People at-risk, financially; people over age 65 with low income&#10;B)People over age 65 with low income; people over age 70&#10;C)People over age 65; people ineligible for Medicare assistance&#10;D)People over age 65; poor people under age 65&#10;E)People at-risk, financially; people over age 65

Accepted Answer

The answer of Both Medicare and Medicaid are medical assistance...

Question 27

Which of the following is a feature of the No Child Left Behind Act?&#10;A)Mandated property tax maximums&#10;B)Annual testing to measure progress&#10;C)Stronger support for teachers unions&#10;D)Federal takeover of locally-controlled schools&#10;E)Mandated longer school days

Accepted Answer

The answer of Which of the following is a feature...

Question 28

The key difference between an executive agreement and a treaty is:&#10;A)An executive agreement has more power than a treaty&#10;B)An executive agreement must be ratified by 2/3 of the Senate&#10;C)A treaty must be ratified by the Senate&#10;D)A treaty expires in ten years from the date of issue&#10;E)An executive agreement has the effect of law when issued

Accepted Answer

The answer of The key difference between an executive agreement...

Question 29

All of the following are among the growing number of players involved in foreign policymaking except:&#10;A)The Department of Housing and Urban Development.&#10;B)The Department of Agriculture&#10;C)The Commerce Department&#10;D)The State Department&#10;E)The Pentagon

Accepted Answer

The answer of All of the following are among the...

Question 30

What percentage of the U.S. government budget goes to foreign aid?&#10;A)Less than 2%&#10;B)10%&#10;C)20%&#10;D)30%&#10;E)45%

Accepted Answer

The answer of What percentage of the U.S. government budget...

Question 31

Which of the following is the philosophy behind Franklin D. Roosevelt's New Deal?&#10;A)War ends depression.&#10;B)Laissez-faire economic policy&#10;C)Relief, recovery, and reform&#10;D)Philosophies passed down from Herbert Hoover

Accepted Answer

The answer of Which of the following is the philosophy...

Question 32

What policy did the Populist Party advocate in the late 19th century to help remedy problems faced by American farmers?&#10;A)The Populist Party helped to curb inflation.&#10;B)The Populist Party worked to increase the amount of circulated currency.&#10;C)The Populist Party raised tariffs to protect American agricultural products.&#10;D)The Populist Party helped rural farmers to resettle in more populated urban areas.

Accepted Answer

The answer of What policy did the Populist Party advocate...

Question 33

Which of the following types of grants require competitive bids and also often require a certain amount of matching money?&#10;A)Block grants&#10;B)Grants-in-aid&#10;C)Project grants&#10;D)Formula grants

Accepted Answer

The answer of Which of the following types of grants...

Question 34

The concept of Social Security was adopted as a major public safety net during which domestic policy period?&#10;A)Great Depression, New Deal&#10;B)Great Society&#10;C)Cold War&#10;D)Progressive Era

Accepted Answer

The answer of The concept of Social Security was adopted...

Question 35

Which of the following labels refers to the principle under which the government does not meddle with the economy?&#10;A)Supply-side economics policy&#10;B)Laissez-faire economics policy&#10;C)Elitist economics policy&#10;D)Monetarism

Accepted Answer

The answer of Which of the following labels refers to...

Question 36

During the presidency of Ronald Reagan, the Strategic Defense Initiative began. What did this initiative seek to achieve?&#10;A)Peace between Egypt and Israel&#10;B)An increase in military strength in the Middle East&#10;C)Placement of strategic weapons in the Korean peninsula&#10;D)Plans to place antimissile weapons in space orbit

Accepted Answer

The answer of During the presidency of Ronald Reagan, the...

Question 37

Which of the following definitions best describes the major concept of bilateral agreements?&#10;A)They only work with missile deployment.&#10;B)They only work with offensive-type weapons.&#10;C)They are between two nations, with the purpose of creating joint policies.&#10;D)They only work with the issue of Pacific military bases.

Accepted Answer

The answer of Which of the following definitions best describes...

Question 38

Look at the following list of economic theories. Which one encourages the government to create job opportunities for citizens during periods of high unemployment so that more money can get back into the hands of consumers, thereby stimulating the economic growth of the country?

A)Keynesian economics
B)Supply-side economics
C)Reaganomics
D)Military-industrial economics

Accepted Answer

The answer of Look at the following list of economic...

Question 39

Which of the following types of federal grants gives states the most flexibility in how the money is spent?&#10;A)Grants-in-aid&#10;B)Categorical grants&#10;C)Formula grants&#10;D)Project grants&#10;E)Block grants

Accepted Answer

The answer of Which of the following types of federal...

Deck 45: (AP) Us Government: Public Policy