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?

Question

Quizplus · 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").

After a Law Outlawing Hamburgers Has Been in Place for a While