Home mortgage lending by applicant race: Do HMDA figures provide a distorted picture?

Abstract

The Home Mortgage Disclosure Act of 1975 (HMDA) was designed to further fair access to mortgage credit and requires lenders to report such information as location, loan amount, income, and race and sex for each application. However, race is missing in a significant proportion of applications taken by mail or phone. Given the widespread use of HMDA data by lenders, community groups, researchers, and regulators and the importance of mortgage lending as a public policy issue, the strengths and shortcomings of these data must be clearly understood.

The main findings are that reported approval rates by race are significantly overstated for refinance and home improvement loans, while home purchase loans are little affected. A review of trends in how race is reported and in the technology of mortgage lending indicates that missing data on race will become a bigger and bigger problem in the near future.     

Traffic Management Rules for Space Operations

This article is based on the report on the status of work of the Study Group on Space Traffic Management, International Academy of Astronautics; in particular it describes the approach and the scope of the study as well as its preliminary findings. The study group intends to finalize its work in late 2004, in order to be able to put the study before the International Academy of Astronautics (IAA) and launch its review process after the 2004 International Astronautical Congress. Following this review, the study will be published and is expected to make an impact in different international forums dealing with the exploration and use of outer space.     

How Do Nonprofits Respond to Regulatory Thresholds: Evidence From New York's Audit Requirements

Nonprofits in the United States must comply with various state and federal regulations to maintain their tax‐exempt status. Despite persistent calls to increase accountability in the nonprofit sector, there is little research examining the burden imposed by existing regulatory requirements, especially at the state level. This paper uses a bunching design to estimate the avoidance behavior exhibited by tax‐exempt charities in response to New York State's audit requirements. There is clear evidence of bunching in response to the requirement that nonprofits above certain revenue thresholds file financial statements reviewed by or audited by an independent certified public accountant. Measuring the extent of bunching around the revenue notches yields estimates of the average revenue that nonprofits either forego or fail to report in avoidance of the requirements. Results from dynamic estimation show that charities near the threshold for a review engagement report approximately $1,300 less revenue than otherwise predicted by a counterfactual; charities near the threshold for a full audit report approximately $1,400 less. The results have implications for the optimal design of state‐level financial regulations.     

FLYING BLIND? EVIDENCE FOR GOOD GOVERNANCE PUBLIC MANAGEMENT REFORM AGENDAS,IMPLEMENTATION AND OUTCOMES IN LOW INCOME COUNTRIES

Although considerable resources and attention have been allocated to recent ‘good governance’ public management reform in low income and fragile states, there is little evidence as to what degree this agenda has been implemented nor as to whether it has led to improved services and outcomes for populations. To address this lacuna, we conduct a review of the large but almost entirely qualitative literature on good governance reform in the 49 countries classed as low income by the United Nations. We find only a small number of documents that link good governance public sector reform agendas with implementation. Fewer still assess outcome. We conduct an empirical analysis of the relationship between reform agenda (using data from the literature review), implementation, service delivery and outcomes, as measured by performance on Millennium Development Goals indicators. We report that there is little, if any, empirical evidence that reform enhances service delivery. Copyright © 2012 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Preserving Curious Institutions

Reviewing the BBC 'Impartiality' review and the OFCOM report on the future of news the piece argues that impartiality remains a vital tool of maintaining standards of public service news, which in the end have to be objective. Sustaining journalism that reveals new knowledge is the problem and vital to the maintainance of democratic discussion.     

Stern Review 2.0? The Report of the Global Commission on the Economy and Climate

Eight years after the launch of the Stern Review of the economics of climate change, a new major report on economic growth and climate change (Better Growth, Better Climate) has been published by a Global Commission on the Economy and Climate, chaired by Nicholas Stern. While this comprehensive review of recent evidence has some overlap with the original Stern Review, it focuses more on the short‐term costs and benefits of action needed to reduce carbon emissions in specific parts of the economy such as cities, energy and agriculture. Perhaps the most noted conclusion of the report is that policies which governments should be pursuing anyway, because they will reduce pollution, improve health, raise productivity and reduce congestion, will cut carbon emission by between 50 and 90 per cent of what is needed to get to a 2°C pathway. This is an important report that will have considerable influence, although it has had lower public visibility than the original Stern Review. However, it also points to the need for a better understanding of the politics of climate policy, and why the opportunities to adopt policies that have multiple long‐term public benefits do not get taken. While Better Growth, Better Climate does have a chapter on the political economy of change, the analysis is limited, and could be deepened by bringing in the growing literature on the politics of climate policy.     

Workshop Summary and Conclusions: Export Controls of Space Systems

This report is a follow-up to the previous review of the workshop on export controls of space systems. The focus is on key points put forward at the workshop and concluding observations.     

The Beecroft Report: Pandering to Popular Perceptions of Over‐regulation

The Coalition government made a commitment to review employment law to ensure flexibility for both parties and enhance business's competitiveness. This led the prime minister to ask venture capitalist Adrian Beecroft to undertake the task of identifying the areas of employment law that presented the greatest burden, and making recommendations for reform. The Beecroft report identifies 16 areas for reform, but the lack of evidence to support his conclusions severely undermines his case. The challenge of increasing employment in a stagnant economy is substantial, and Beecroft's recommendations, if implemented, are unlikely to make a difference. Businesses need to see increased demand and access to finance if they are to take on more workers, but government must also develop a long‐term vision of the UK labour market and address weaknesses that existed before the financial crisis.     

Preview of the IPPR Commission on the Future of Higher Education

Review of a Critical Path Securing the Future of Higher Education in England: the final report of the IPPR Commission on the future of Higher Education. The focus of the review is first on the funding of Higher Education and the options set out by the IPPR which include lower tuition fees, a graduate tax, means tested family contributions and changes to the loan repayment scheme; and second on better ways of widening participation and expanding opportunities for under‐represented groups of students.     

Misrepresentation and Omission—An Analysis of the Review of the Public Sector Equality Duty

Many of the claims made in the Independent Review of the Public Sector Equality Duty are not supported by the evidence submitted to the review. In addition the report fails to reflect key barriers to the successful implementation of the PSED which are raised in the same submissions. This raises questions about the legitimacy of the review process, which has resulted in recommendations which may damage the working of the PSED.     

THE OPERATIONAL DIMENSIONS OF RESULTS‐BASED FINANCING

As part of a growing focus on the effectiveness of development assistance from the World Bank and other agencies, new efforts are being made to relate development finance more closely to outcomes achieved rather than to inputs used, through the results‐based financing approach. We provide a framework for analyzing the operational dimensions of results‐based financing, including the conditions that suit this approach, and how best to define, measure, and report results. We review some of the early World Bank experience with this approach. Noting that this approach is as yet not fully tested, we suggest evaluative issues for future research while highlighting strengths and challenges in the range of techniques adopted so far. Copyright © 2014 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

A Mountain to Climb: The Labour Together 2019 Election Review

The Labour Together review of the 2019 election brings together polling data, survey data, interviews, and submissions from across the Labour movement. An unpopular leader, tensions around the Brexit position, and a manifesto which was not seen as credible, are all found to have contributed to the scale of the defeat, but Labour’s unexpectedly strong performance in 2017 also masked long-term issues in its connection with the electorate and within the party’s campaign organisation. The report attempts to move beyond simply diagnosing the difficulties the party faces, but some of the thorniest issues for the party to resolve are nonetheless left unresolved.     

The impact of sunset review: A study of real estate licensing

This paper focuses on the impact that state sunset review has had on the real estate occupation's ability to restrict entry through the imposition of licensing requirements. The results presented indicate that the 1983 rejection rate for real estate brokers and salespersons was lower in states undergoing sunset review of real estate than in those states not undergoing such a review. Sunset appears to have the power to effect changes in the licensing behavior of the occupation considered in this analysis.     

Sustainability and the world's leading ocean cruising companies

The aim of this research note paper is to offer an exploratory review of the extent to which the leading ocean cruise companies are publicly addressing and reporting on their sustainability strategies and achievements and to offer some reflections on sustainability within the cruise industry. The paper begins with an outline of cruising and the cruising industry and a short commentary on the sustainability challenges the industry faces. The information on which the paper is based is drawn from the leading cruise companies' corporate web sites. The findings of the paper reveal a marked variation in the extent to which the leading cruise companies publicly report on their sustainability strategies and achievements. While the two leading cruise companies, namely the Carnival Corporation and Royal Caribbean Cruises, published extensive sustainability reports which covered a number of environmental social and economic issues, the other leading cruise companies published very limited information on sustainability. More critically the authors argued that the cruise companies' commitments to sustainability are driven by the search for efficiency gains and are couched within existing business models centred on continuing growth than on maintaining the viability of natural ecosystems and communities. As such the leading UK retailers are, at best, currently pursuing a ‘weak’ rather than a ‘strong’ model of sustainability. The paper provides an accessible exploratory review of sustainability reporting in the cruise industry, and it will interest professional working in the cruise industry and more generally in the hospitality industry as well as academics and students interested in public relations, business studies and hospitality management. © 2016 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

THE HOUSE OF COMMONS LOOKS AT THE CIVIL SERVICE*

Abstract: The 1977 report on the Civil Service by the Expenditure Committee of the U.K. House of Commons contains much to interest Australian readers. It recommends abolition of the Administration Trainee Scheme and an extension of the “Open Structure” to Assistant Secretary level; the establishment of a higher management course; the re-activation of the Pay Research Unit; and the appointment of part-time “outsiders” to the Civil Service Commission. Although luke-warm to the Fulton doctrine of “hiving-off”, the Committee favours the creation of more “accountable units” in departments. The centrepiece of the Report is the recommended return of key Civil Service Department functions—manpower control; management services; and internal responsibility for monitoring efficiency—to Treasury. The role of Parliament in improving efficiency is not neglected; it is proposed that the Exchequer and Audit Department conduct audits of management efficiency and effectiveness and that the use of select committees to review Executive activity be extended. The Committee was divided on the issue of whether officials serve ministers as well as they should, but the Report does contain proposals which are seen as “strengthening the minister's arm”. Overall the Report reflects the Committee's limited resources; analysis is often inconclusive, or at best, partial (particularly in areas such as the central organization of government and relations between the centre and departments), and the document seems to lack a clear strategy and sense of direction. However, the Committee's work does compare favourably with that of many other inquiries into the Civil Service.     

The 'Preferred Plan': The Anglo-American Working Group Report on Covert Action in Syria, 1957

Taking as its central focus the contents of the September 1957 Anglo-American Working Group Report on Syria, this article examines the background to the covert action plans that were drawn up to topple the incumbent regime in Damascus. By drawing on the contents of the report, it shows how US and British officials hoped to stir up unrest within Syria and instigate border incidents that would provide a pretext for armed intervention by the pro-Western governments of Iraq and Jordan (with possible Turkish support). The article also brings to light the fact that the 'elimination' of named Syrian figures was included as a recommendation in the report. The article concludes by explaining why the report's so-called 'Preferred Plan' was never implemented and reflects on the 'special political action' culture that still prevailed in SIS during the latter 1950s.     

Why Performance Information Use Varies Among Public Managers: Testing Manager-Related Explanations

ABSTRACT

This article examines the use of performance information by public managers. It begins with a systematic review of the literature which concludes that we know relatively little about the individual characteristics of managers who report a frequent use of these data. Studies that have focused on people-related explanations have mostly tested socio-demographic variables but have only found inconclusive evidence. This article suggests theorizing more complex individual explanations. Drawing from other fields' middle-range theories, the article speculates about the effects of thus far disregarded manager-related factors. An empirical test based on survey data from German cities reveals the following preliminary findings: performance information use is explained by a high level of data ownership, creative cognitive learning preferences, the absence of cynicism, and a distinct public service motivation. Identity and emotional intelligence were found to be insignificant along with the managers' socio-demographic characteristics.     

Experimentalist governance in the European Union: A commentary

Sabel and Zeitlin's Experimentalist Governance offers an insight into European governance in those cases where the EU institutions do not have clear competence and where member states are not prepared to accept a unified policy on a problem at hand. Experimentalist Governance identifies four steps of action: agree on common goals, have lower levels propose ways to meet goals, then report on their meeting of goals, and, finally, periodically reevaluate the review procedures. By looking at the developments in EU policymaking through the lens of experimentalist governance (EG), one obtains an appreciation of how goals might be achieved that would otherwise not likely have been achieved through the community method. Sabel and Zeitlin highlight how EG can be effective in obtaining results, integrating peers, and incorporating deliberation, and offer a different way to deal with accountability and legitimacy. This article closes by taking the next step, namely, asking what challenges EG poses to democratic processes.     

Transforming the FBI: A Challenge of Culture, Resources, and Mission

A recent review of restructuring efforts at the Federal Bureau of Investigation published by the National Academy of Public Administration examines several studies that precipitated the reorganization and discusses the current state of counterterrorism, intelligence, and internal security functions within the agency. However, the report fails to seriously engage the benefits of restructuring federal agencies to separate criminal investigation from antiterrorism or to address the financial implications of the current reorganization. Although it provides a useful overview of current changes within the FBI, it lacks theoretical linkages.     

‘… the Defence of the Realm and Nothing Else’: Sir Findlater Stewart,Labour Ministers and the Security Service

In May 2013, a report on the British Security Service (MI5) by Sir Samuel Findlater Stewart was released by the Cabinet Office. Dated November 1945, the report on the future organization and activities of MI5 was significant in that it defined the Service's post-war remit, accountability and relations with the Secret Intelligence Service (SIS), laying the groundwork of MI5's mandate until the introduction of the Security Service Act in 1989. The article also suggests that the report is significant, not just because it sheds important light on MI5's wartime and post-war role, but because it helps question existing assumptions about the relationship between the Security Service and the post-war Labour Government of Clement Attlee, often viewed as a troubled one.