Question
FEDERALISM RESEARCH PAPER OR PRESENTATION INSTRUCTIONS
After carefully reading this module/week’s assigned materials related to federalism and the effects of federal agencies on public spending and budgeting, you will conduct your own research on federalism and draft a research paper analyzing the potential implications of federalism on the policies and politics of public budgeting. You are required to choose between producing a PowerPoint or video presentation or writing a research paper analyzing the concept of federalism as it applies to the politics and policy of public budgeting. Specifically, you will need to provide a nuanced analysis and explanation of
1) the role and/or impact of federalism in maintaining constitutionally limited federal government,
2) the potential impact of federalism on federal level public budgeting;
3) the impacts of federal agency spending on public budgeting; and
4) a Judeo-Christian analysis of the concepts of federalism in public budgeting.
Option 1: Research Paper
Write a research paper analyzing and evaluating the legal systems of the US, Israel, and a Middle East country of your choice as described above.
Sample paper
Federalism
Different countries have different forms of government largely based on the type of constitution of the country. Federalism in the world today comprises of two forms of government where the central or the federal government in a country shares the power and authority with state and regional governments. In simple terms, federalism can be defined as that form of government where there is division of power and authority. Notably, there is a great difference between a federal government and confederation which the general level of government is subordinate to the regional governments in a country. Research shows that there is a close relationship between federal government and a limited government. A limited government is that form of government whose powers and authority are controlled and restricted by the constitution of the country. However, even though the powers of a limited government are based on the constitution of a country, it is worth noting that some people argue and believe that these types of governments are not limited enough as they sometimes violate the constitution (Srithongrung, 2017). Notably, a limited government cannot intervene and control the lives of the people in a country without violating the provisions of the constitution. A good example of a limited government in the world today is the united states of America. According to history, the independence constitution of the united states, which was made back in the days was meant to control and limit the powers of the government to eliminate or reduce the likelihood of anarchy or misuse of power in the country. This assignment will attempt to identify and describe the impact and influence of federalism on a limited government.
Public budgeting
Public budgeting is one of the many functions of the government as it attempts to improve the lives of the people in the nation through the provision of goods and services that are important to their lives. Therefore, the government has a responsibility of matching the revenues of the company to its expenses which in turn ensures that they prioritize the need for the people. However, the powers of the government to provide such services and products to the public entirely depend on the constitution of a country. This means that federalism of any country significantly affects the lives of the people both politically and economically (Lynch et al., 2009). There are different ways to which the powers of a government can be limited that include the bill of rights as well as federalism. The division of power between the central and regional governments ensures that each party in the federation is restricted in its exercise of power by the existence of other units. Research shows that the main exploitive power is the government. Therefore, the division of power and authority in a country ensures that those in powerful positions do not operate exploitatively and unfairly, but rather puts the needs and desires of all people in the country into consideration. Notably, the constitution of the country lays down the permissible field of power and a government. However, the same constitution lays a clear plan of what those in power can and cannot do through restrictions on the exercise of power in the country. The American constitution, which is widely regarded as one of the most democratic constitutions in the globe today, as well as amendments incorporating fundamental, provides such provisions and restrictions to ensure that the federal government of the country does not misuse its powers and authority to suit personal endeavors and interests. However, in the recent years, the American constitutions, as well as fundamental amendments incorporating the bill of rights, have come under criticism from different people and organizations because of the way the judiciary of the country interprets the amendments and the constitution (Smith, 2014). According to the opposing camp, the constitution, particularly the bill of rights contained substantial brakes on the power and authority of the government and the Congress, which have been devalued by the judiciary in its new interpretation of the constitution. As significantly mentioned in the first amendment and throughout the bill of rights, the United States government is banned from directly influencing particular areas of the lives of the people such as religion, speech, and freedom of association and expression.
Government expenditure has been one of the major sources of public goods and services in most countries. Government spending comprises of all government consumptions, investment, and transfer payments. According to economist all government acquisitions in the form of products and services for current use, to directly satisfy the individual and collective needs of the community is always classified as government spending (In Rubin, 2015). However, the government and those in power cannot be left on their own to decide a number of funds that the government can spend on the provision of goods and services to the nation. Therefore, all government spending must be included in the national budget, which in turn helps to distribute the scarce resources to achieve the goals and aims of an organization or a country. Public budgeting is often characterized by its approaches, function, formation and the type of budget adopted by the government. Notably, the constitution of the country through fiscal policies helps to limit and control government expenditure. The primary emphasis on the rule-based fiscal rules in the country at the state level is meant to attain debt sustainability through the numerical ceiling on borrowing and the use of borrowed resources for public spending. Research shows that one of the primary functions of the united states congress is to prevent the executive arm of the government from taking over the control of all the country’s legislative activities, rules, and regulations Musick & United States, 2010). Therefore, the Congress has to ensure that all the government spending is within the stipulated system by the constitution for public spending directly affects the lives of ordinary Americans. Therefore, the congress posses the sole power and authority to draft and pass budget policies thus leaving the president with the power to signing the said laws. Through this division of power and authority in the country, the constitution ensures that no one single individual can sway the direction in which the country is governed and ruled. Thus, it is correct to state that the Congress often acts as the oversight of all government spending considering that they must approve each government budget and expenditure to ensure that those in power stay in line. Additionally, the Congress helps to hold both state and federal governments accountable for all their spending by ensuring that they account for every single cent allocated to them Smith, 2014).
To assist in ensuring that they meet the needs and demands of all citizens in the country, the United States government often appoints agencies in various fields to provide the much-needed services to the people. Government agencies largely comprise of state-appointed commissions that are permanent or semi-permanent organizations that must oversee and control the operations and particular functions, for example, the intelligence agency. Notably, there are different types of agencies in the country that have different functions that help in improving the lives of the people in the country (WetFeet (Firm), 2008). Research shows that the United States expenditure consists of a number expenditure that includes fundamental expenditure such as Medicare and social security programs. Therefore, it is evident that federal agencies in the country can increase government expenditure considering that employees of these agencies and commissions have to be paid. However, their benefits to the society and the government, in general, cannot be compared to the cost incurred in sustaining these agencies. For example, the largest percentage of the United States public expenditure goes to health care and military. With the military, which can be described as one of the largest government agencies, it provides security and intelligence that helps to keep people living and working in the United States safe from external attacks. On the other side, the Medicare programs in the country help in improving the health standards of the people in the country if not maintaining the standard requirements. Therefore, government agencies assist in ensuring that there are transparency and accountability in all government spending as well as ensuring that all the needs and demands of the common citizen are meant. Without these agencies, products and services provided through public spending may not reach the people in the villages and on the ground (Srithongrung, 2017).
Judeo-Christian
Judeo-Christian is one of the major concepts in the world today that rules and influences most of the decisions and beliefs of the people particularly the Christians. According to research Judeo-Christian reforms and replaces the traditional Judaism as it seeks to move away from the traditional beliefs of the Jews. According to this worldview, all Christians should create budgets to allocate resources in their order of priority and needs to ensure that they meet their needs and improves the lives of the people. According to this perspective, the piece of timeless, practical wisdom, planning and preparation are significant to the achievement of individual and organizational goals and objectives (Wimbush, 2008). According to them, plans, particularly financial planning are essential to the human life considering that it helps to allocate the scarce resource to serve the needs of the people as well as serving God through tithes and offerings. Jesus stressed on creating a plan to ensure that people complete what is expected of them on time and within the designated budget.
From the above-detailed study, it is evident that public spending and budgeting is one of the common practices in human life. Notably, through the sharing of power and authority between the state and federal government as well as between the three arms of government, the American Constitution helps to limit and control public budgeting and maintains constitutionally limited government. The Congress is known to control all government budgets as well as holding those in power responsible and accountable for public spending. Moreover, Judeo-Christian believes that through planning and budgeting both individual and organizations or countries for that matter stand a better chance of achieving their goals on time and within the budget. Therefore, public budgeting is important to the lives of ordinary citizens.
References
In Rubin, I. (2015). Public budgeting: Policy, process, and politics.
Lynch, E., Brink, L., Flores, C., Mittelstet, S. K., Dowe, D., Dallas County Community College District, & KERA Dallas/Ft. Worth (Television station). (2009). Federalism. Dallas: Dallas County Community College District.
Musick, N., & United States. (2010). Public spending on transportation and water infrastructure. Washington, D.C.: Congress of the U.S., Congressional Budget Office.
Smith, J. (2014). Federalism. Vancouver: UBC Press.
Srithongrung, A. (2017). Capital Budgeting and Management Practices: Smoothing Out Rough Spots in Government Outlays. Public Budgeting & Finance. doi:10.1111/pbaf.12167
WetFeet (Firm). (2008). Careers in nonprofit and government agencies. San Francisco, CA: WetFeet, Inc.
Wimbush, V. L. (2008). Theorizing Scriptures: New Critical Orientations to a Cultural Phenomenon. New Brunswick, NJ: Rutgers University Press.
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