Variations in the Use of Grant Discretion: The Case of ISTEA

The Intermodal Surf ace Transportation Efficiency Act gave stategovernments increased flexibility in spending federal transportationgrant funds. However, most of the flexibility was not used;there are many other potential sources of inflexibility in transportationpolicymaking. States were more likely to use flexibility ifthey were politically liberal, had larger populations and, otherthings being equal, had less metropolitan populations. Statesthat were previously more involved in nontraditional transportationprograms were also somewhat more likely to use flexibility.     

The policy consequences of political corruption

Controversies abound over whether political corruption handicaps the disadvantaged, facilitates government action, or simply inflates government costs. Multivariate analysis using data from the American states supports none of the hypotheses. Rather, corruption appears to have virtually no policy impact, either directly or in interaction with party competition.     

Interest groups and policymaking in the American states

States in which candidates endorsed by liberal interest groups are more successful at the election polls tend to have higher Aid to Families with Dependent Children (AFDC) benefits and to enact more consumer protection legislation. In addition, states where interest-group-endorsed candidates are more successful at the polls tend to spend more on highways.     

Competitiveness in house and senate elections with identical constituencies

The greater competitiveness of Senate elections relative to House elections has been attributed to both constituency and nonconstituency factors. When constituency factors are held constant, House incumbents perform slightly better at the polls than do Senate incumbents. However, the differences between House and Senate incumbents have not increased since 1920. On the contrary, the differences have narrowed somewhat.     

Interstate and Intergovernmental Factors Affecting the Conditions of Rural Bridges

Many of the nation's rural highway bridges are structurallydeficient, functionally inadequate, or both. Rural bridges areparticularly likely to be in poor condition in states wherethe federal government plays a small role in the highway program,where local governments play a large role in highway financing,and where the chief state transportation agency is a highwaydepartment rather than a department of transportation. The assignmentof responsibilities, then, appears to influence program performance.     

State Participation in Interstate Compacts

When problems straddle state boundaries, interstate cooperationis often needed in order to resolve those problems. Participationin interstate compacts, a form of cooperative activity, variesconsiderably from state to state. Compact participation generallytends to be higher among states likely to experience interdependence,as indicated by the geographical proximity of their state capitalsto each other. Patterns of adoption vary, however, dependingon the subject matter of the compact.     

The Impact of State Policies to Limit Debt Financing

State policies intended to limit debt financing, either by requiringa balanced budget or by establishing constitutional limitationson debt, have been adopted in many states. A nalysis revealsthat stricter constitutional debt limitations are associatedwith lower levels of full faith and credit debt but show littlerelationship to overall state debt.     

States and PACs: The legacy of established decision rules

The growth of political action committees (PACs) and their growing role in campaign finance have led to calls for placing limits on campaign contributions by PACs. State decisions regarding whether to limit PAC contributions appear to result from established policy orientations regarding other campaign finance issues: states with a history of previous efforts to regulate campaign finances are more likely to limit PAC contributions.