Public Policy Commons^™

Shelter Poverty In Boston: Problem And Program, Michael E. Stone

McCormack Graduate School General Publications (active until 2013)

This paper argues, first, that most housing problems—in Boston and throughout the nation—are ultimately the result of the squeeze between inadequate incomes, on the one hand, and the cost of profitably providing housing on the other. It is also argued that housing cost and incomes together are the most decisive determinants of the overall quality of life of families and communities. Third, it is contended that the long history of inadequate attempts to cope with the affordabiiity problem have not only failed to solve the problem, but have indeed contributed significantly to the broader and serious problems of the overall …

Boston's Fiscal Future: Prognosis And Policy Options For 1984 To 1986, Joseph S. Slavet, Raymond G. Torto

McCormack Graduate School General Publications (active until 2013)

The finances of the City of Boston have been variously affected throughout its long history by regional and national economic cycles, by legal constraints and changes in the state-local tax system and by inter-municipal resource and expenditure disparities.

In more recent years, however, a series of tremors converged to propel Boston's seemingly chronic fiscal problem to the crisis stage. As inflation climbed to unprecedented double-digit levels, an overwhelming majority of the state's populace supported specific limits on property taxes, the primary source of municipal revenue. As a result, Boston was forced to reduce property tax levies by $144 million during …

Housing Issues In Boston: Guidelines For New Policy And Program Perspectives, Joseph S. Slavet, Boston Urban Observatory, University Of Massachusetts Boston

Boston Urban Observatory Publications

Urban stagnation and turbulence, the roller-coaster trends In the national and local economy and the vicissitudes of national, state and local public policies have left their mark on Boston's residential neighborhoods and housing markets.

Boston's response to the new opportunities of public policy during the sixties and seventies was to take full advantage of urban renewal, assis ted-housing production and housing rehabilitation. Large-scale activities reshaped the occupancy patterns and market strengths of residential neighborhoods. By mid-1975, however, except for continuing growth in the City's subsidized housing stock, Boston's housing future looked bleak. There was pervasive evidence of a growing housing …

Black And White Perceptions Of Quality Of Life In Boston, Floyd J. Fowler Jr.

Center for Survey Research Publications

It is difficult, probably impossible, to compare objectively the seriousness of racial problems and tensions in Boston with those in other cities. However, there can be little doubt that there is a widespread perception that relationships between blacks and whites in Boston constitute a serious problem. Specifically, one image is that Boston is a community in which blacks are not welcome and in which they are treated with unusual hostility and abuse. Another image is that whites in Boston are unfairly maligned as racists and bigots.

In 1980, following several race-related incidents, The Boston Committee was formed. The purpose of …

Evaluation Of City Of Boston Fair Housing Programs: The Final Report, Boston Urban Observatory, University Of Massachusetts Boston

Boston Urban Observatory Publications

The City of Boston's 3-year Pair Housing Plan (1981-83) identifies the following six goals for achieving greater freedom of choice in housing for its minority residents: 1) To improve the delivery of services relative to the enhancement of freedom of choice to all minorities in Boston as they relate to fair housing; 2) To increase enforcement of fair housing laws; 3) To increase public safety and security to assure equal access throughout the City of Boston; 4) To Increase the participation of all minorities and low-and moderate-income people in all City of Boston housing programs; 5) To increase low-cost housing …

The Massachusetts Fiscal System: Structure And Performance, Padraig O'Malley, Raymond G. Torto

Center for Studies in Policy and the Public Interest Publications

On November 4, 1980 the citizens of Massachusetts, by a vote of 59% to 41%, resoundingly endorsed a tax reduction plan known as Proposition 2 1/2. All communities in the Commonwealth were faced with an immediate reduction in their local revenues due to the immediate cut in the excise tax that Proposition 2 1/2 called for, and up to 130 communities will have to implement a 15% reduction in their tax levies for FY 1982.

Already there are protestations from many local officials that they cannot make the required tax cuts without severely reducing the level of local services. The …

The Elderly Have Spoken: Is Anybody Listening? The Impact Of Fuel Costs On The Elderly, Scott A. Bass, Richard Rowland

Gerontology Faculty Publication Series

This report contains the findings of a study carried out by the Gerontology Program at the University of Massachusetts Boston concerning the effects of the escalating fuel costs on the lives of the elderly who must pay for their own heat. Through the use of an interview format known as "modified critical incident" technique, a team of mostly elderly students spent several weeks during the winter of 1980 eliciting responses from more than 100 elderly individuals from throughout the greater Boston area. Not surprisingly , this study has revealed a number of profound impacts that the radical turn of economic …

A Fact Book On Proposition 2 1/2, Padraig O'Malley

Center for Studies in Policy and the Public Interest Publications

In this age of inflation many tax reduction plans have been proposed throughout the nation. This November Massachusetts voters will vote on Proposition 2 1/2 - a tax reduction proposal sponsored by a coalition of citizens.

This booklet describes the costs and benefits of Proposition 2 1/2 in an objective way, so that you can make an informed decision when you cast your vote. The University of Massachusetts' Center for Studies in Policy and the Public Interest and the Massachusetts Cooperative Extension Service believe that when you have access to unbiased information you will make better decisions and participate more …

Understanding The Health And Social Service Needs Of People Over Age 65, Laurence G. Branch

Center for Survey Research Publications

The complexity of the issues involved with providing appropriate health care and social services from the appropriate setting to people over age 65 can hardly be overstated. One of the present debates in the field focuses on the value of institutions as the customary setting for providing health care; the arguments are based on considerations of economic efficiency and the recipient's quality of life. Some of the debators suggest deinstitutionalizing as many of the health care recipients as possible, while simultaneously upgrading the quality and quantity of home based support services. The logic of deinstitutionalization is often buttressed by claims …

Reallocation Of Responsibilities And/Or Financing For Selected Municipal Services To The State: A Municipal Finance Alternative, Joseph S. Slavet, Katharine L. Bradbury, Philip I. Moss, Boston Urban Observatory, University Of Massachusetts Boston

Boston Urban Observatory Publications

This report recommends that the administration and/or financing of a selected group of public services be shifted from municipalities to the state government in Massachusetts.

Several criteria are used to identify local functions and local fiscal responsibilities which are more suitable for state than local financing. The first criterion is the efficiency of delivery of the service: for some functions, such as solid waste disposal, technology makes it more costly per capita to provide the service separately through individual municipalities than to operate regionally-based waste disposal facilities. The second criterion is the degree to which residents of the service area …

Substandard Housing And The Cost Of Providing Housing-Related Services, David Podoff, Daniel A. Primont, Louis Esposito, Boston Urban Observatory, University Of Massachusetts Boston

Boston Urban Observatory Publications

Designed as a comparative undertaking by the National League of Cities (NLC) , this study is officially entitled "National Research Agenda Project No. 5: Substandard Housing and the Cost of Providing Housing-Related Services." A similar study was carried out by the urban observatories in Denver and Nashville. According to the study scope of services, the NLC was interested in the cost of "a wide variety of local government activities ... required to support and service urban housing," and how these costs "are affected by housing quality, housing location, age and type of structures. ..." It was also suggested that attention …

Municipal Manpower Policies For The City Of Boston: Guidelines For The Seventies, Boston Urban Observatory, University Of Massachusetts Boston

Boston Urban Observatory Publications

This report on municipal manpower in the City of Boston is one of a series of Urban Observatory studies designed to improve the effectiveness of City policies and programs. Focusing on the City's requirements for administrative, professional and technical staff, the study examines current patterns and problems, identifies existing strengths and weaknesses, and offers a number of recommendations aimed at upgrading municipal performance by expanding the cadres of qualified staff. While the findings identify serious deficiencies, they also point to opportunities for effecting substantial change over the next decade. In particular, the study points to the potentially large attrition of …

The Impact Of Housing Inspectional Services On Housing Maintenance In The City Of Boston: A Preliminary Evaluation, Boston Urban Observatory, University Of Massachusetts Boston

Boston Urban Observatory Publications

This study is a preliminary evaluation of the relative impacts of various City policies and programs related to the enforcement of housing codes and to the maintenance and upgrading of the existing supply of housing. It analyzes code enforcement functions at both the level of central administration and field procedures. City departments covered by the study include Housing Inspection (HID), Building, and the environmental unit of Health and Hospitals. Also reviewed are newer approaches to housing code enforcement, including civil remedies and federally-assisted concentrated code enforcement projects.