Social and Behavioral Sciences Commons^™

Hot Topic: Changes In Federal Reimbursement Rates For Travel, Dick Phebus

MTAS Publications: Hot Topics

Summary of changes in the federal and state reimbursement rates for travel.

Hot Topic: Joint Economic Development Boards Must Comply With Requirements Of Public Chapter 1101, Don Darden

MTAS Publications: Hot Topics

By July 1, 2004, every local government applying for a state grant administered by ECD must provide records that document a minimum of four board meetings and eight executive committee meetings were held during the previous 12 months.

Hot Topic: Updating Occupational Safety And Health Programs, Steve Lobertini

MTAS Publications: Hot Topics

This Hot Topic presents a brief review of certain provisions of the Tennessee Occupational Safety and Health Act of 1972, as amended, that are applicable to local governments. Includes model ordinance to provide guidelines and procedures for an occupational safety and health program.

Recruiting And Selection Of Police Officers: A Case Study Of The Clark County School District Police Department, Anthony A. York

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

This paper is a case study of the Clark County School District (CCSD) Police Department recruitment and selection process. The case study examines and evaluates the human resource function in the recruiting and hiring of police officers. The case study addresses the issue of line-staff relations and how it was best resolved in this organization in order to effectively recruit and select CCSD Police Officers. The paper addresses the historical, structural, and philosophical factors of the Clark County School District Police Department in discussing the possible organizational strategies for recruiting and selection of police officers. This paper uses a specific …

Hot Topic: Tennessee Building And Fire Codes, Ray Crouch

MTAS Publications: Hot Topics

The proposed rules provide for the adoption of the 2002 International Building Code and the 2003 NFPA Uniform Fire Code.

How Safe Do Individuals Feel In Clayton County?, Scott M. Clemens

Theses and Dissertations

To determine if individuals feel safe in their communities, a self- administered questionnaire was distributed to six hundred residents of Clayton County, Georgia. In addition to overall safety, the survey sought to measure how being a victim of a burglary or rape and the level of income impacts the individuals' feeling of safety. The survey also sought to measure how safe those same individuals believed the community was for their children and how likely a terrorist attack was in the county. Non- probability sampling, specifically the accidental sample, was used for conducting the research. The results of the survey show …

Tennessee Public Acts 2003: Summaries Of Interest To Municipal Officials, Dennis Huffer

MTAS Publications: Full Publications

Summarizes the year's public acts and provides date they become effective.

Funding Women And Girls (2003 - Fall), Maine Women's Fund Staff

Maine Women's Publications - All

No abstract provided.

Hot Topic: Mental Evaluations For City Employees: Tennessee Enters Into A Consent Decree With The United States Department Of Justice, Rex Barton

MTAS Publications: Hot Topics

The State of Tennessee has entered into a consent decree with the United States Department of Justice to settle an Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) case contesting the validity of several statutes concerning the minimum qualifications for certain public safety employees.

Street Improvement Funding For Tennessee Cities, Ron Darden

MTAS Publications: Full Publications

This report discusses street projects available for Tennessee cities, the transportation planning process for cities, transportation programs that may assist cities, and participation in a Metropolitan Planning Organization (MPO).

Feasibility Of The New Public Management In Mexico, Yolanda Camacho-Zapata

MPA Major Research Papers

This paper examines New Public Management in the Mexican context and the reasons why the implementation of foreign public sector management practices may present difficulties in Mexico. The core themes of the approach are analyzed and applied to the country in order to determine their feasibility. The findings reveal that most of the techniques proposed by New Public Management would not be successful in Mexico because they are incompatible with the cultural values and practices in the country.

How Are We To Govern Ourselves?: The Engagement Of Citizens In The Local Government Policy Process, Ron Coristine

MPA Major Research Papers

This paper examines the effectiveness of citizen engagement as a complementary process to the representative nature of local democracy based on case studies of two policy issues that used different methods of citizen participation in Kincardine, Ontario. Interviews with the mayor and seven of eight councillors in the municipality were conducted. The findings reveal that the traditional method of top-down consultation processes is inferior to deliberative approaches and interactive forms of engagement can achieve more satisfactory outcomes.

A Grand Experiment In Municipal Governance: Toronto’S Board Of Management, 1996–1997, David Hutcheon

MPA Major Research Papers

This paper examines why the Toronto Board of Management was created and why it is unique based on the recollections and thoughts of the researcher and other significant players in the changes to governance that were made in the 1990s. The findings reveal that the Board of Management had rapid success in such a short amount of time because politicians and bureaucrats trusted each other, the areas of responsibility were clearly defined, and the governance system was designed to foster creative and thoughtful solutions.

Municipal Structures, Camille Burnett

MPA Major Research Papers

This paper examines whether political institutions affect the way municipalities are managed based on case studies of the different municipal structures adopted by 24 cities across North America. The aim is to provide recommendations to the London Chamber of Commerce with respect to municipal management. The findings reveal that municipal governance is dependent upon the structure of the corporation and the way in which the structure affects governance is determined by the roles of the key players.

Health Systems Restructuring In Ontario: Public Participation And Regionalization – The Un-Traveled Road, Sarah Padfield

MPA Major Research Papers

This paper examines whether the healthcare system in Ontario can integrate the principles of public participation and citizen engagement with the regionalization of health authorities based on an extensive literature review, case studies, and personal interviews. The findings reveal that the goals of public participation and citizen engagement can be reconciled with the goals of cost containment and efficiency by instituting regional health authorities.

Hot Topic: Formula Rate Of Interest Changes To 8.25% On Delinquent Taxes Collected Or Administered By The State Of Tennessee, Dick Phebus

MTAS Publications: Hot Topics

The rate in effect for the fiscal year beginning July 1, 2003, and ending June 30, 2004, has been set at eight and one-quarter percent (8.25%), which is a decrease from last year.

Hot Topic: 2003-2004 State Revenue Estimates, Dick Phebus

MTAS Publications: Hot Topics

The Tennessee General Assembly adopted the state budget for fiscal year 2003-2004; adopting revenue and spending bills that call for no new tax increases, but state shared revenues going back to cities and counties were cut by an estimated $35.5 million.

Essential Elements Of An Implementation Process For Grant-Funded Projects/Programs In Nonprofit Organizations, Margaret M. Bernhard

Dissertations

Grant seeking is a source of funding for many nonprofit organizations. If a proposal is funded, the organization must contend with the responsibility of project implementation and the expectations of successful project outcomes. A project implementation process with strategic and tactical steps that clearly define the path that leads to positive grant outcomes would assist the grant administrator. Using the Delphi Method as a methodological tool for facilitating dialog among anonymous experts, 12 foundation program officers identified, ranked, and rated the essential elements and barriers of grant implementation. The process revealed 13 essential elements of implementation and 11 barriers to …

What's Need Got To Do With It? Barriers To Use Of Nonprofit Social Services, Rebecca Joyce Kissane

The Journal of Sociology & Social Welfare

In recent years, legislators have called upon private nonprofit and proprietary organizations to assume a larger role in provision of public benefits to poor persons. Little research, however, has examined poor people's willingness to use nonprofit agencies in lieu of public welfare. This analysis draws data from over 2 years of fieldwork and in-depth interviews with twenty poor women in Philadelphia. I demonstrate that decisions to use nonprofits are contingent upon stigma, information, practical predicaments (e.g., agency hours), and perceived need. I explore the implications of these impediments in a post-welfare reform landscape, while focusing on how decisions to use …

Ownership And Stewardship: Attitudes Among Michigan’S Voters Impacting Opposition To Great Lakes Water Diversions, Bruce A. Nanzer

Dissertations

The problem addressed by this research can be demonstrated through the following scenario: If we were to ask randomly chosen voters in the state of Michigan if they possessed sufficient knowledge of Great Lakes water diversion policy, the answer would likely be no. Yet, if after a short description of the purpose for this type of policy, the voter was questioned about supporting such actions he or she would likely voice strong support for strategies that would prevent water diversions.

The objective of this research was to understand why Michigan's voters would readily voice opposition to Great Lakes water diversions …

Hot Topic: The U.S. Communities Government Purchasing Alliance: A Money-Saving Purchasing Source Available To Tennessee Cities, Jim Finane

MTAS Publications: Hot Topics

There is a pooled purchasing organization of U.S. cities and counties that could potentially offer local Tennessee governments very competitive prices on commonly purchased supplies and equipment.

Portrayals Of Disability In The Professional Preparation Of Speech-Language Pathologists, Jane Eric Sleeper Gravel

Dissertations and Theses

The purpose of this dissertation research was to discover, describe, and analyze how disability is portrayed to students attending graduate programs with the objective of becoming certified to practice the profession of speech-language pathology (SLP). Curricular materials drawn from the 228 SLP graduate programs in the United States were analyzed, using qualitative research strategies, to shed light on the processes by which portrayals of disability affect the presuppositions and practices of professionals who work in disability services.

The analysis provided supporting evidence for the claims of disability scholars and activists that the concept “disability” is a malleable social construction that …

Drug Fund Manual, Ralph Cross, Rex Barton

MTAS Publications: Full Publications

The Drug Fund is a special revenue fund where revenues and expenditures must be accounted for separately from the General Fund.

What Every City Needs To Know About Health, Dental And Life Insurance, Don Darden

MTAS Publications: Full Publications

This publication explains the various kinds of health, dental, and life insurance programs that are available to municipal employees and how to procure them.

Technical Bulletins: Tennessee Amusement Tax, Al Major

MTAS Publications: Technical Bulletins

The State of Tennessee taxes certain types of amusements, and these taxes are levied in different ways and authorized under different sections of the Tennessee Code Annotated.

Technical Bulletins: Fire (And Police) Departments Liable For Negligent Response, Sid Hemsley

MTAS Publications: Technical Bulletins

Under the Tennessee Governmental Tort Liability Act municipalities are liable for the negligence of their employees, with some exceptions. One of those exceptions is “discretionary functions” (Tennessee Code Annotated (T.C.A.) 29-20-205). However, the act does not define that term. The Tennessee Supreme Court has grappled with both a definition and application of the term in Gordon, et al. vs. City of Henderson, 766 S.W.2d 784 (1988). Although that case involved the delivery of municipal fire services, it contains some language that should cause Tennessee municipalities to look closely at the manner in which they deliver all public safety services.

Technical Bulletins: Municipal And Personal Liability Under Tennessee Governmental Tort Liability Act, Ronnie Neill

MTAS Publications: Technical Bulletins

The TGTLA provides that municipalities can be sued for injuries caused by their employees only in a limited number of areas and immunizes municipal employees or limits their liability for injuries they cause in certain cases.

Technical Bulletins: Tva Set To Increase Wholesale Power Rates To Distributors, Bill Young

MTAS Publications: Technical Bulletins

TVA will decide at its August 2003 board meeting on changes to the wholesale power rate (the rate charged to power distributors) and could increase rates that affect residential and some commercial and industrial customers by approximately eight percent.

Vulnerability Assessment And Mitigation Planning In Clark County, Nevada: The Challenges Of Policy Implementation In The Intergovernmental Arena, Angelina L. Evans

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

As a result of recent federal legislation, Clark County, Nevada has been charged with conducting a comprehensive vulnerability assessment and implementing a hazard mitigation policy. This research paper identifies the challenges of intergovernmental relations and policy implementation, defines the mitigation and assessment process, and describes the steps taken by Clark County to date. Definition of the legislation, emergency management, and terms relating to the process are provided. Findings reveal that the attempt to implement a federal program in an intergovernmental arena meet predicted challenges and describes how these challenges have affected Clark County’s ability to successfully implement policy.

Third Stage E-Government And County Employees: A Case Study Of The Clark County Business License Department, Benjamin B. Bond Iii

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

This study presents the results of research designed to evaluate attitudes of county-level employees who are working within government departments that have undertaken electronic government (e-government) initiatives. Specifically, the guiding question addressed throughout this study has been: “How do county employees perceive third stage e-government initiatives?” Additionally, this paper will examine multiple factors that have been identified as key components of slowing the implementation process such as: resistance to technology, insufficient participation of employees in e-government development initiatives and management/ employee interaction in regard to e-government implementation. This paper is based on research gathered using a self-administered survey of thirty …