The preservation of federal priorities connecticut and the cdbg small cities program
This article examines the impact of state assumption of federal grant programs on the state of Connecticut. The administrative process created by Connecticut to implement the Small Cities CDBG program is examined and followed by a comparison of programmatic activities before and after state assumption. Unlike many other states, Connecticut adopted priorities similar to those of the federal government. Connecticut's preservation of federal priorties is most likely due to the choice of state implementing agency and a unique policy bias at the state level.
Redistributive Policy and Devolution: Is State Administration a Road Block (Grant) to Equitable Access to Federal Funds?
Over the last several decades, block grants have been a key instrument by which policy authority is devolved from federal to state governments. Whether the block grant approach produces more effective redistributive policy management (on equity or efficiency grounds) is an open and central question. We focus on the equity dimension by positing an explanatory framework that links access to federal block grant funding to the transaction costs associated with intergovernmental grant contracting. We argue that grant access is a function of both state-level institutional choices and the administrative capacity of local governments-which combine to influence the salient transaction costs associated with grant contracting. We apply our theoretic framework to the non-entitlement portion of the Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) program and analyze granting data across distinct institutional settings. We find that local administrative capacity is a key to access, indicating that some localities most in need are least equipped to capture grants, which raises equity concerns. However, the specific way in which states structure arenas of grant competition can make access more equitable. In short, we show that state-level institutional arrangements critically affect access to federal block grant funds when those funds are allocated through competitive grant contracting to local governments.
Cultural constraints on the delivery of HIV/AIDS prevention in Ireland.
HIV appeared in Ireland following an opiate epidemic in the early 1980s. Initially, however, the gay community mounted the only response to the spread of the virus while the implementation of early actions by the government was hampered by the constructions of the disease within Irish society. This paper considers the influence of the religious hierarchy in both the development of AIDS policy and in the shaping of public perceptions of the disease and those affected. A qualitative methodology is used to examine the role of such cultural constraints in an evaluation of the social context within which the prevention of HIV infection occurs. Three key issues pertinent to the policy context in Ireland are explored in depth. These are the role of the Catholic Church, the influences on health education programmes, particularly information giving, and the development of services and other interventions. These findings are discussed within the social and political contexts in which health policy is formulated.