Advocacy in Public Administration
October 11-14 and November 29-December 2
PPD 547: USC School of Public Administration
Professor Jonathan Brown
Phone: 916 446 7626
The URL for this course is http://learn.usc.edu

Legislative process often seems both complex and unseemly. Bismarck once said, "One loses an appreciation for the making of sausage and legislation, when the process is viewed up close". But the problems that most casual observers encounter with the legislative behaviors is grounded not in the process itself but their lack of understanding of the rules and rhythms of the process. In essence, while Bismarck offered an interesting aphorism, the reality might be just the opposite--an increase in understanding of the details might increase oneÿs appreciation.

Legislating is made up of formal and informal processes. There are at least, three separate areas in the process that one must understand to appreciate how things work; the rules, both formal and informal, that govern the process; the techniques of persuasion and the underlying issues that drive the process in each area. This course is designed to concentrate on those areas. At the end of the eight sessions, you will have a working knowledge of the legislative process but you should also know something about what works in the process. The course will also give you an understanding of how to research issues and some effective techniques that will help you become more effective in presenting a point of view.

The cynical view of politics assumes that all of the transactions are bounded on "blue smoke and mirrors." With a system that starts from an assumption of citizen involvement, that vision degrades the system. But the idealized view of the process does not serve to understand it either. This course will discuss some of the concepts of Public Choice Economics. Public Choice applies analytical techniques to some actions in the system that may help to explain behaviors. Even if you start with an appreciation for the democratic system, Public Choice offers analytical models that can help to explain decisions and actions by players in the system.

This course may also differ from other courses you have taken at USC because of the requirement for most of the work to be completed electronically. In order to participate you will need to get a user name and password. That can be obtained be sending me an Email at brown@aiccu.edu. All assignments must be submitted electronically. If you do not have a computer, the Center's library has several. In addition, some of the key concepts and diagrams will be posted on our class site. I have also developed a list of hotlinks to other key websites that should aid you in this process. Finally, I have posted a couple of Etexts on the site for your use.

In the last few years the electronic end of the lobbying has become more important. It is now possible to track the legislative process, including issue developments, bill text and hearing schedules electronically. Part of your coursework will be getting acquainted with these methods. Thus, the electronic nature of this course will be helpful in understanding the new ways of working the legislative process. If you have not had experience with electronic messaging, please read the section on the electronic elements of the course carefully. If you have questions or concerns before the first day of class, please send me an EMAIL message.

In order to improve the quality of our class sessions, you will need to do some preliminary preparation. In Display 1, please find a form that must be turned in one week before the first session. That assignment should be submitted via Email or by posting it to the class website. That can be done in the Electronic Drop Box, which is an option on the site. During the course, each student will be required to concentrate on one area of legislative activity. (As defined in Display 1) This will allow you to apply skills in an actual area of legislative activity. Choose an area that is of interest to you, but try to choose one that is outside of your normal professional responsibilities. The assignments are designed to give you an appreciation of a number of skills that can be transferred to any area of legislative activity.

This course includes attention to theory and practice of legislative activity. The readings cover both. I have included a list of required readings as well as some supplemental readings. A short description of each of the required texts is presented below.

During the course a number of additional sources will be presented for those students that are interested in a particular element of legislative practice. There are numerous þwarú stories of how a bill becomes a law; some are even worth reading. The best for facts and sheer entertainment is Showdown at Gucci Gulch, (Jeffrey Birnbaum and Alan S. Murray, Random House, 1987) that explains the development of the Tax Reform Act of 1986. Unfortunately, the book is out of print.

Required Outside Texts:

Rosenthal, Alan, The Third House, Congressional Quarterly, 1993
Rosenthal's book is the best study of state level lobbying that is available. While it is a bit dated, for example one of his California key contacts was indicted in Shrimpscam and another dropped out of lobbying soon after the book was originally published, his research is still on point. A later book by the same author (The Decline of Representative Democracy : Process, Participation, and Power in State Legislatures) is also well done.

McChesney, Fred, Money for Nothing, Harvard, 1998
This book is a Public Choice approach to lobbying that grew out of an article that the author did for The Wall Street Journal. It is a bit polemic at points. What you want to understand here are the key concepts of Rent Seeking.

Fisher, Roger, Getting to Yes
Fisher is the director of the Harvard Center on Negotiations. This is a simple but filled with useful tips on negotiations.

Choose one:
Berry, Jeffrey, The New Liberalism: the Rising Power of Citizen Groups
OR
Birnbaum, Jeffrey, Showdown at Gucci Gulch: Lawmakers, Lobbyists and the Unlikely Triumph of Tax Reform
You have a choice here. The first book is relatively new and describes how citizen groups have begun to become important in the political process. His emphasis is Washington--but the lessons are no less relevant here. The Birnbaum book is older but reads like a detective novel. It is the best short description of how a bill becomes a law that I have read.

Riordon, William, Plunkett of Tamany Hall, Dutton
Plunkett is a classic. Don't read this seriously. It is a bit of a personal memoir but it is more than that. For all of the vilification of the Tamany machine, (most of which was justified) Plunkett lays out a case for this kind of machine politics. Look especially for his discussion of honest and dishonest graft.

Postrel, Virginia, The Future and Its Enemies, Free Press, 1998
This is the best short treatment of differences in approach to government that has been written in recent years. Perhaps Sowell's A Conflict of Visions is a close second. Postrel tries to begin with a question that many on the left and the right never encounter--namely, what is the purpose of the enterprise we are trying to affect?

Required other text: Several essays from the Federalist should be read before the class begins. Those are noted below. The individual essays that will be read have been posted in PDF format on the site. You can use the Site Based Essays or you can consult the Thomas Site on the House of Representatives for an electronic copy of the appropriate papers. Finally, you could buy a copy of the Federalist.

Grading for the course will come from three sources. The assignments will count for 35% of your grade. In class written exercises will account for 25% and the final exam will count 40%. If it is possible, I will try to get some of your assignments returned to you by the end of the first four days.

A key discussion for this year's course will be redistricting. The decennial process is important to figuring out how the next decade of the Legislature will progress. Redistricting is an interesting topic because it requires an intense technical knowledge that must be combined with a similarly intense partisan concern. Even with the latter, many of the best laid plans from both sides are defeated by the odd propensity of voters to not follow conventional wisdom.

We will also spend time on the issues in the fall 2000 elections. While the election is long over, it produced both some interesting issues as well as some potential long term trends that are worth understanding.

On several days, near the end of the day, the class will have an in class written assignment called a focus question. The questions are similar to qualifying questions, except that you are allowed to use any source available. Usually, the focus question will ask you to reflect on a question raised during class discussions during the day. You will be asked to submit this through the website.

A Note about sources of Legislative Information

Many of the key sources of information about legislative activities and members are available electronically. The California Senate and Assembly have established electronic bulletin boards that are available either through the World Wide Web. At the end of this outline there are a number of web addresses for you to consult. Use this as an initial guide, then use standard web search utilities to find additional sources. The California Legislature's pages are among the best in the country. On these sites you can find the text of legislative proposals, committee analyses, biographies of members and committee lists, as well as images of the Legislature. You can also "subscribe" to an issue to track its progress. We will have some discussion about how to use these services in class, but you are expected to have, at least, a basic understanding of the world wide web before class starts.

The California Legislature is one of the most open processes in the country. Publications, including bills, files and journals from each house are available from the legislative bill room that is located in the basement of the Capitol. Committees in both houses are also ready sources of information. Generally, member's offices and lobbying offices are willing to help provide information on issues in their areas of interest. If you need assistance, please call me.

A note about the use of technology in the course

This course utilizes a new type of web based software called Blackboard. It allows all class members to communicate using EMAIL and the Internet. All assignments should be submitted using the software. The software can be utilized from any computer platform that can use a web browser. Remember to send me an Email so that I can give you a password for the class site.

Assignments should be posted in the Electronic Drop Box. I will post some of the papers for students to review.

The site also lists a series of helpful websites that you might want to consult including a series of ones on the 2000 election, that we will use in the second Saturday of our class. Please familiarize yourself with the website before the first class.

The Course of Study

Legislative process in this country comes from two traditions; British parliamentary tradition and a long developed history in the American context. Legislatures are organic; thus, while they rely on traditions, they are also influenced by changes in membership. As Madison commented in the Federalist, legislatures are also subject to the "passions of the people." During some periods in our history, changes in legislative process have been very small. In the last decade, in many legislatures across the country, the pace of change has accelerated.

After a short orientation we will begin with a discussion of the historic traditions of the legislative process. NOTE; You should consult the following papers from the Federalist (any edition) 30-36, 45-46,52-66. We will be covering the substance of the papers in class, if you have not read the Federalist previously, this would be a good chance to begin. We will also spend some time on the issues raised by Samuelson.

The California process has often been called a trend setter. Beginning in the late seventies California led the nation in the development of fiscal limits, term limits and the widespread use of the initiative process. At the same time the stateÿs economy was changing from one reliant on defense industries to one based on services. Finally, the state has evolved demographically, so that soon after the turn of the century California will become the first "minority-majority" state. All of those trends continue to influence the process.

The day will also include a tour of the Capitol. The purpose of the tour is to orient you to the environment for legislative activity.

Assignments:
1) Complete Display #1 and EMAIL it to me. Your displays will be posted on the website. This assignment is due one week before the first class session.
2) Read Rosenthal.
3) Read Postrel
4) Read the Federalist discussions on the structure of the legislative branch. (Essays 30-36 are more appropriate for the second four days.)
4) Written Assignment #2: In the early part of this year California was recognized as the fifth largest economy in the world. Its population is among the most diverse in the country. Technology is a strong driver for our economy. Which of those factors has the most important effect on the legislative process. Write a short (not to exceed three typewritten pages) paper explaining your response.

The second day of class will review structure of the Legislature. Each legislative body creates slightly different rules and committee structures. During the 1960s many legislative bodies began a subtle but significant change. State legislative bodies went from part time operations to near full time. California adopted the full time format as a part of the Constitutional revision process of 1966. In the 1970s, Congress established a series of new rules and procedures that changed the way they did business and at the same time altered the balance of power between the legislative and executive branches. The last several years have also wrought changes in the process in California.

We will spend part of the day discussing legislative process. How does a bill become law? What are the steps from introduction to enactment? How does the California process differ from Congressional process? The Legislative Bill Room has a chart on legislative process in California, which would be helpful in orienting you to the maze.

As legislatures evolved into longer sessions, they also beefed up their professional expertise. California was a leader in those changes. Many legislatures began to create bodies like the Legislative Analyst Office in California or the Congressional Budget Office. During this period, committee staffs began to include individuals who could provide technical advice to legislators. We should understand the thinking of the new majorities in Washington and Sacramento, who seem to have reduced the level of staff assistance for the process.

Assignments:
1) Get a list of the legislative deadlines for the California process. How will those deadlines affect proposals in your issue area?.
2) List all key committee members by name and party affiliation for Senate and Assembly Committees that deal with your issue area. In a paragraph, explain where you could find biographical information about members of the Legislature? Differentiate between formal and informal sources. As an initial comment, you could consult member offices and the California Journal. Some member web sites also have biographical material.
3) Include all of the above in your second peer evaluated paper and then write a short analysis of the reasoning that would have lead at least five members of the key committee members in your issue area. This paper should be posted to the website before the opening of class.

Individuals dominate legislative process, but it is also dominated by ideas. There is some fashion in the process that is reflective of groups that are trying to influence the process but the process also represents larger trends in society. For example, in the area of consumer issues, all sorts of groups get involved. Organized citizen groups present their views. So do the producers of products. So do trial attorneys of several types. Research comes from independent laboratories as well as institutions that are more tied to a particular point of view. The point here is that a culture develops around each issue. Players, even though they may be on different sides, may use common linguistic shorthand that is almost incomprehensible to the general public.

Since the rules of evidence, that apply in courtroom procedure, do not apply in public policy debates some presentations use novel ways to "inform" the debate. Part of the work of advocacy is establishing credibility.

Legislative process is often incremental in orientation - ideas and trends develop from past practice. Each legislative session tends to build on past practices. However, at times, especially when the legislative process has moved in an unpopular way, the process can be quite reactive and can move outside the narrow bounds of incrementalism.

Assignment:
1) Read Birnbaum or Berry
2) Describe the major sources of ideas in your legislative area. Explain how each of those sources might be useful to legislative staff, members and other members of the third house.
3) List at least three major sources of independent information about your issue area. Where do outside experts come from in your area?
4) List the most significant codes of statutes that your chosen area considers on a regular basis.
5) List the major sources of independent information for your issue area (think tanks, advocacy organizations outside the normal legislative process, etc.)
6) Include all of the information in 2-6 above and then choose an issue from your area and develop a working memorandum that explains to a person outside the legislative process. This assignment should be posted to the website before the start of class.

There are three distinct periods in the California Legislature, relating to lobbyists. The first is pre-1974, before the enactment of Proposition 9; the Political Reform Initiative. In at least two stages of that early period California came to national attention. At the turn of the century, the role of the railroads was pervasive in determining what happened in the Legislature. In the 1940s a Collier's Magazine article on Artie Samish, who claimed to be able to manipulate the Legislature like a puppeteer, caused a national scandal.

In the 1960s, with the adoption of Proposition 1A and the creation of a fulltime legislature, California again went into the spotlight. At first the record was generally positive, but in a short time the perceptions turned negative. The Speaker of the Assembly, in the early part of that period, Jess Unruh, helped to create the notions of both effectiveness and of sleaziness.

The professional legislature created by Proposition 1A created a division between "expert" and "popular" opinion. Experts from around the country credited the California Legislature as among the best in the nation; at the same time a large portion of the general public found Sacramento to be indifferent to major needs of large groups of voters. The public simultaneously spent more in building the role of interest groups to represent them and at the same time decried the increased influence of þspecial interestsú in the process. In 1974, the voters adopted Proposition 9 to clean up the activities of some lobbyists. Proposition 9 was neither as effective as its supporters claimed nor as horrible as opponents claimed.

The second period can be dated from the voterÿs adoption of Proposition 9 and ended recently. While the Proposition was supposed to reduce the "influence of special interests," the favorable perceptions about the Legislature continued to decline. The start of the third period might be dated coincident with the convictions of several legislators, staff and lobbyists in the FBI probe of the Legislature called "Shrimp Scam". It is still developing. We will spend time discussing legislative history relating to those periods and the differences in practice that developed during the periods. We will also focus on the disclosures required by Proposition 9. We may look at proposed curbs on lobbying activity at the state and federal levels. Finally, we will take a close look at the lobbying corps. There are several kinds of lobbyists. Each has a different style.

In the afternoon we will look at the role of evidence in the process. We will try to understand the types of information that can influence the process and the role of internal and external experts in the process.

Assignment:
1) Read Riordan
2) Read McChesney
3) List key lobbying organizations that deal with the issue area you have chosen. Describe which type of lobbyists are predominant in your area (contract, employee, association). Describe how issues develop in your area. Note any groups that are always on opposite sides to each other in your area. Finally, provide some analysis of how issues develop in your area. Why do issues develop in this way? The responses to these questions should be posted to the website before the start of class. Please notice that the first three questions require a description. The final questions ask for some simple analysis. The analysis should flow from your descriptions and from any digging you have done with experts in the field. Your response to these questions should not exceed three typewritten pages.

A major part of lobbying activity is working with interests, including outside groups, legislators and staff, administrative representatives and other interested parties. Part of the skill of a lobbyist is identifying and engaging individuals who might be interested in your areas or in discouraging groups that might be opposed to your position to stay out of the fight.

We will spend some time discussing the theory of negotiation including early works like those of Mary Parker Follett and more current technique based work of Roger Fisher. We will do some simulation exercises in the afternoon. This day will not substitute for a good course in negotiation but it will give you some of the basics.

Assignment:
1) Read Fisher
2) One week before the second session, please post an issue in your area of the legislature or in your current professional responsibilities that might be subject to negotiations. In the summary that you post on the class site, please indicate the parties at interest and the major issues involved. Finally, present some conclusions about why the situation you are describing has not been resolved and whether you believe that it could be successfully negotiated. Bring a copy of your paper to class on November 29.

1998 marked the twentieth anniversary of the passage of Proposition 13. In the years immediately following 13, there were a number of other propositions proposed and several adopted, that reshaped the fiscal rules of California government. The California process has special rules for activities related to taxation and spending. We will spend part of this day discussing the rules for raising of taxes and appropriating public revenues. There was a movement to change those rules that resulted in a Constitutional Revision Commission. However, after a couple of years of work, and numerous recommendations, the process came to naught. The perspective on why that movement failed should help us understand the current fiscal environment for government in California. With the changes brought about by the 1998 elections, the Proposition 13 voting limits may again be under pressure.

We will also spend time discussing the effects of term limits and other changes wrought by Proposition 140. Term limits and spending limits have altered how legislative business proceeds. Some commentators have argued that the Proposition would "cripple" the Legislature while others have suggested that it will "democratize" the process. Some have suggested that the Proposition would lessen or enhance the position of staff and lobbyists. During the last session, when the first crop of term limited freshmen members entered the process, there were some preliminary signs of change in the way both houses proceeded on some very knotty issues. We will explore all of these speculations to discover whether there is a clear trend emerging.

Assignments:
1) Describe the limitations required for elected officials under Proposition 140. How long can each elected official serve (Assembly members, Senators, Members of Congress, Governors and other Constitutional officials)?
2) Briefly describe some of the ideas that have been proposed to change the current system.
3) In a brief that should not exceed two typewritten pages, write a case for or against term limits. Present evidence rather than opinions. If you support term limits what are the positive arguments for their continuation? If you oppose term limits, what are the arguments for their elimination? This assignment should be posted to the website before class begins on November 30.

The passage of legislative term limits makes it less possible to develop long term relationships between members of the Legislature and the Third House. The limits also impede the ability of members of the Legislature to build expertise in a particular issue area. Both trends increase the need for grassroots lobbying. What methods of grass roots development could be useful in promoting an interest before the Legislature? We will discuss techniques for developing grass roots support.

Assignment:
Prepare a list of grass roots resources that might be useful in your issue area. Identify groups that might be mobilized. Also consider special events or activities that could highlight an issue. List ways that these resources could be mobilized in the process. Prepare a two page brief for either a member of the Legislature or the Executive Committee of a lobbying organization that describes a grassroots campaign for any issue related to your chosen issue of specialization. This assignment should be posted to the website before the start of class. Review the hotlinks to the 2000 election on the Class Site and develop a series of questions that would be useful in understanding how the election results of the 2000 election might help you prepare to think about reapportionment in 2001. Bring the questions with you to class.

The final class session will be divided between a roundtable discussion on the legislative process and a final exam. In order to prepare for the roundtable discussion, please prepare a summary of the major issues and players in your area. During the first session of class we will discuss items that should be included on this summary sheet and also places where you can find the information. Please come prepared to share your information with others.

The examination will be available on the website beginning on the morning of December 2. It is an open book exam.

Key sites for Legislative Information on the Worldwide Web

Common Search Engines

http://www.excite.com

http://www.altavista.com

http://www.google.com/

http://www.lycos.com/

Legislative Sites

Assembly - http://www.assembly.ca.gov

Senate - http://www.senate.ca.gov/

Legislative Analyst - http://www.lao.ca.gov/

Department of Finance - http://www.dof.ca.gov/

Congress - http://thomas.loc.gov/ (One location for the ETEXT version of the Federalist Papers)

ASSIGNMENT ONE

Name

Phone

FAX

EMAIL

WORD PROCESSING SOFTWARE AND PLATFORM

1. Choose a committee jurisdiction where you would like to focus your research. You may choose the work of either a Senate or Assembly Committee. Do not choose a specific issue such as childcare or the environment. Choose a legislative committee Please do not choose an area that parallels your current employment responsibilities.

The Committee I would like to research is

It is a committee of the California ASSEMBLY SENATE (Circle one)

2. Please briefly describe your current job responsibilities.

3. Which interest groups would you expect to be the major players in the area you have chosen?

4. Where would you expect to find sources of information about the issue area you have chosen?

5. What governmental agencies would be interested in the area you have chosen?

6. What are the major issues you would expect to be discussed in this area?

NOTE : This assignment is due one week before class starts