Questions and Answers Public Safety Administration

Describe federalism. Identify the impact it has on the public safety administrator. Make sure you include specific examples or details in your response.
It is important to note that there is no assigned definition for federalism. This essentially means that various definitions have been floated in the past in an attempt to define federalism. However, in essence, federalism could be seen as a political system whereby authority over a definite jurisdiction is shared between several governments (two or more) (Banks, 2018). More specifically, Khan (2008) defines federalism as “a form of government that distributes powers between the national government and state governments” (49). In seeking to distinguish federalism and a unitary form of government, the author further points out that in the latter case, the national/central government has all the powers – with other governments (i.e. local and state) deriving their mandate from the central government. It is important to note that at present, there are a number of countries from the across the world that have in place a federal system and/or are governed by the same. The said countries include, but they are not limited to, Argentina, the U.S., and Canada. Right here in the U.S., the constitution is clear on the powers apportioned to both state and federal governments. In this case, in addition to being advanced the power to enforce diverse laws, states also in place their very own judicial, executive, as well as legislative branches. It is also important to note that in the U.S., the mandate of the federal government largely relates to the foreign policy determination (Banks, 2018). Also, the constitution grants the federal government exclusive power for not only export/import control, but also war declaration (Banks, 2018). It should, however, be noted that most of the state and federal roles are not mutually exclusive. Instead, they largely complement or supplement each other. Such roles include, but they are not limited to promotion of civil rights, protection of the environment, business regulation, and taxation.
In essence, federalism does have an impact on public safety administration. Towards this end, the public safety administrator has to be aware of the relevance of cooperation across local, state, and federal levels. It should be noted that in this case, the public safety administrator ought to be aware of the fact that there is a clear distinction between meaningful cooperation and displacement (i.e. where either government supplants the other). Thus in dealing with issues of law enforcement, the best results are likely to be derived via meaningful and deliberate collaboration as well as cooperation. This is more so the case today where terrorism remains a valid and ever-present threat. Towards this end, counterterrorism policy ought to be even more appreciative of the relevance of collaboration at the local, state, and federal levels of government.
Next, the public safety administrator ought to be aware of the role, capacity, as well as competency of each level when it comes to handling crime and dealing with criminal enterprises. This is to say that in some instances, crime is best handled by either the federal, local, or state government. In this case, therefore, the public safety administrator must be capable of making proper referrals in his role as a public safety official/administrator. For instance, the federal government is best placed to handle interstate and international crime. Further, it is also important to note that some resources have better utility when maintained by the federal government. A good example in this case is the identification and fingerprints database. In the final analysis, the public safety administrator ought to be aware of the fact that no level of government has sole responsibility for public safety. In so doing, the public administrator should also be aware of the concern of crime federalization and the impact it could have as far as disparate enforcement is concerned.
References
Banks, C.P. (2018). Controversies in American Federalism and Public Policy. New York, NY: Taylor and Francis.
Khan, H.A. (2008). An Introduction to Public Administration. New York, NY: Unity Press of America.
There are several budget formats commonly used in the public sector. Describe the appropriate use of one of the formats. Make sure you include the positive and negative features in your response.
The three budget formats used in the public sector include: deficit budget, surplus budget, and balanced budget. It is important to note that each of the formats listed in this case has its own advantages and disadvantages. It should also be noted that in the U.S., the Office of Management and Budget has the mandate of budget preparation. It is, congress that however takes the presented budget into consideration and suggests adjustments when necessary. Although the federal government can run a deficit budget, most states must run balanced budgets. Before highlighting the appropriate use of one of the formats as well as the negative and positive features of the same, it would be prudent to describe each of the three formats in greater detail.
To begin with, a government budget could be deemed surplus when government expenditure estimates are exceeded by government revenues (Kagan, 2018). In essence, as Kagan (2018) further points out, “a surplus is a positive value and is the sum by which government revenues are greater than government spending during a set period, usually a fiscal year.” On the other hand, a balanced budget comes about when government receipts within a specific period of time (usually a fiscal year) are equal to the estimated government expenditure. Lastly, we have budget deficit. As the name suggests, a budget deficit results from excess of government expenditure over/or in comparison to government revenue (Kagan, 2018). Essentially, the government could in this case seek to incur additional expenditure over and above expected revenue as a consequence of a number of factors. These include, but they are not limited to, employment rate improvement. However, imprudent management of public resources and/or expenditure could also result in a deficit budget. It is also important to note that the government could end up overburdening itself as a consequence of debt accumulation.
In most cases, a government runs a deficit budget during recessions or downturns in economic activity. This is more so the case given that in such cases, there are decreased tax revenues. However, during growth periods, lower spending as well as enhanced tax revenues decrease the deficit – meaning that the government is likely to run a surplus or balanced budget during such periods.
The appropriate use of a deficit budget would be during periods of downturn in economic activity. This is when there is need to stabilize the economy. In basic terms, as Schick (2004) points out, during recessionary periods, employment and incomes fall. This effectively means that the government’s ability to collect taxes is impeded. However, even as government revenues from taxes fall, government expenditure increases. This is more so the case as the government makes welfare payments, advances unemployment compensation and makes several other related transfers. In such a case, the deficit is bound to increase further. It is, however, important to point out that thanks to such measures, the economy is shielded or cushioned from further decline by way of ensuring that household disposable income is not severely eroded. When households experience significant declines in their disposable incomes, businesses register losses and unemployment worsens – effectively adding to the gloom of recessionary periods. In the final analysis, therefore, as Schick (2004) observes, a budget deficit contributes towards the maintenance of the consumption at a slightly higher level. As the author further points out, this is of great relevance in seeking to mitigate recessionary effects via the maintenance of aggregate demand levels. Conversely, it could be argued that in seeking to stabilize the economy during periods of expansion, a budget surplus would be more relevant.
References
Kagan, J. (2018). Budget Surplus. Retrieved from https://www.investopedia.com/terms/b/budget-surplus.asp
Schick, A. (2004). The Federal Budget: Politics, Policy, Process. Washington, D.C: Brookings Institution Press.
There are many decision-making models available to the public safety administrator. Describe an organizational situation that requires a major decision to be made. Identify a decision-making model that would appropriately address the situation and describe the process to be used. Be detailed and specific in your response.
According to Swanson, Territo and Taylor (as cited in LawTech Publishing Group, 2018), some of the decision-making models available to the public safety administrator include, the rational model, heuristic model, incremental model, and alternative decision-making model. A typical situation will be highlighted below in an attempt to further assess the tenets and application basis of one of the decision-making models identified above.
Consider that a fictional jurisdiction, christened Place XYZ, has experienced significant decrease in crime in recent years. The falling crime rates have been as a consequence of a 25% decrease in population within the last 15 years, establishment of a ‘know your’ neighbor initiative within the jurisdiction, and a significant increase in the number of citizens bearing arms. Now, the problem the Chief of Police in Place XYZ faces is that his department is at present overstaffed and to put it plainly, his officers spend most of their time idling around the office with nothing much to do. The political leadership of Place XYZ is worried that the police department as currently constituted is wasting dollars in salaries and wages. A decision has been made that the department expenditure be slashed by 50%. The chief of police has been asked to come up with a lasting solution to this particular issue or concern. In my opinion, it would be prudent for the chief of police to apply the rational decision-making model in seeking to address the present concern. This particular decision-making model comprises of six primary steps.
Definition of the Issue/Problem: The first step involves the classification and/or definition of the concern. In this case, the problem is slashing the expenditure of department. Falling crime rates have resulted in redundancy and the political leadership feels that the dollars being used up in salaries and wages could be put to better use elsewhere.
Objective Setting: In this case, of great relevance is the formulation of the criteria to be satisfied so as to sufficiently address the overall objective. The overall objective in this case is a 50% reduction in the current expenditure of the department while at the same time ensuring that the department’s ability to effectively play its role is not compromised.
Alternatives Generation: There are two courses of action that could be embraced in this case. The first course of action involves laying-off some law enforcement officers. Layoffs would in this case affect almost half the department’s staff. The other course of action involves slashing officer salaries so as to achieve the 50% expenditure reduction objective.
Alternatives Analysis: The first alternative would involve sending home close to half of the current workforce. This alternative is likely to have ethical implications. This is more so the case given that sending home individuals who have dedicated their lives to the maintenance of law and order - effectively putting their lives on the line for the sake of public safety – would be seen as a ‘thankless’ decision. The second course of action could see the morale of workers decrease significantly, effectively affecting their motivation and thus performance. In that regard, the first alternative appears most valid. In this case, the remaining officers would not have their motivation affected upon – especially if the need for the decision is sufficiently explained. To minimize the ethical concerns associated with the first decision, a severance package will be proposed.
Implementation of Decision: The implementation process will in this case rope in all the relevant stakeholders.
Follow-up and Evaluation: This is important so as to identify deviations from the intended results so that corrective action can be embraced. For instance, if the morale of the remaining employees is affected, then a bonus package can be proposed.
References
LawTech Publishing Group. (2018). Police Administration: Structures, Processes, and Behaviors (5th ed.). New York, NY: LawTech Publishing Group.