POLS 207 Test 3 Review

What is gross domestic product?

The total value of all the goods and services produced in the United States in a year; a measure of the size of the U.S economy.

What are progressive taxes?

As income goes up, the percent you pay in taxes goes up, your tax burden goes up. Taxes that require high-income groups to pay a larger percentage of their income in taxes than low-income groups.

What are regressive taxes?

As income goes up, the percent you pay in taxes goes down, your tax burden goes down. Taxes that take a larger share of the income of low-income groups than of high-income groups.

What are the different sources of tax revenue for both state and local governments?

1. Local property taxes:

2. State sales taxes:

3. Selective sales (excise) taxes:

4. Corporate taxes:

5. Lottery and gambling revenue

6. User charges

Go in depth with the sources of tax revenue

1. Local property taxes: Largest source of revenue for local governments; are usually regressive

2. State sales taxes: Most important source of revenue for state governments

3. State income taxes: imposed by all but seven states, may be progressive or flat, with various exemptions.

4. Corporate taxes: in 44 states; popular with voters but may cause business to relocate

5. Lottery and gambling revenue: administrative costs take 50%

6. User charges: fastest growing source of state and local revenue (ex: charges for water, sewage, garbage collection, transit fares, toll roads, airport landings, stadium fees, parks, zoos, ect.)

How are property tax exemptions used?

Properties that are exempt from taxation are usually used for nonprofit, charitable, religious, educational, and other public purposes.

- Can be seen as subsides. Exemptions are sometimes given to businesses to encourage them to establish themselves in city.

- Exemptions for religious properties are sometimes controversial because they are seen as subsides.

Which taxes are considered regressive?

States that rely heavily on sales and property taxes (like Texas) are inherently regressive and put a higher burden on low income individuals.

- This is based on the assumption that renters are actually paying for the taxes through increased rental rates set by the landlords in order to cover the expenses of the property tax.

- Local property taxes are considered regressive

What are excise taxes?

Selective sales taxes, used to govern and curve behavior (ex: cigarette and alcohol taxes)

Why do states look to keep their corporate taxes low?

High taxes cause relocation for corporations or higher costs on the consumers. Lower taxes draw in industries or corporations to their state or community.

What is meant by tax burden?

Taxes as a percent of a person's income; the larger the income paid in taxes-> the larger the tax burden.

Which level of government is affected the most by limitations on taxation?

Local, it increases reliance of local governments on sate aid as well as fees and charges

How do most Americans feel about taxes?

Most Americans want less taxation; there is a popular opposition to rising taxes

What are debt ceilings?

Restricts debt by limiting the amount of money a government can borrow to a proportion of the tax base.

What are the different types of bonds?

1. General Obligation (GO) bonds

2. Revenue bonds

What are general obligation bonds?

Bonds issued by governments that pledge their "full faith and credit," including tax revenues, to repayment.

What are Revenue bonds?

Bonds issued by governments for specific projects and backed only by whatever revenues the projects generate.

How is academic performance measured?

1. Education attainment

- Measured by the years of school completed rather than student's knowledge

2. Dropout rates

- Event dropouts

- Status dropouts

- High school graduation rate

3. SAT scores

What are charter schools?

Schools operated with public funds by private community groups under a charter from public school districts or other granting agency; have freedom but have to prove student achievement.

What are magnet schools?

Schools emphasizing instructions in particular areas in an effort to improve quality and attract students.

When can money be given to religious educational institutions?

When it benefits ALL student and doesn't support a specific religion; non-religious textbooks, lunches, transportation, etc.

What are the criticisms of No Child Left Behind?

1. Fundamentally flawed

2. Professional educators say that testing for basic skills leads to narrow test-taking education rather than comprehensive preparation for life

3. States, school districts, and schools should all participate in developing accountability systems and have better flexibility.

4. Minority group leaders say that the tests are racially biased

How do states ensure local compliance with state educational policy?

- Bureaucratic oversight, involving state boards of education, state commissioners, etc

- Financial control through state allocation of funds to local school districts

What body typically controls education within a state?

State boards of education

Where do most states get their revenue from?

Property taxes

What do school superintendents do?

a. Set agenda for school board decisions

b. Make policy recommendations

c. Implements board decisions

What are the functions of college boards of trustees?

1. Insulate higher education from politics

2. Expected to champion higher education with the public and the legislature

3. Set overall policy guideline for colleges and universities

4. Consolidate the budget requests of each institution

5. Determine statewide priorities

6. Present a single budget for higher education to the governor and the legislature

What is tenure?

Ensure faculty members who have demonstrated their competence in a college/university position for 3-7 yrs cannot thereafter be dismissed except for "cause"- a serious infraction of established rules or dereliction of duty, provable in an open hearing.

What is the Morrill Land-Grant Acts?

Are United States statutes that allowed for the creation of land-grant colleges in U.S states using the proceeds of federal land sales.

What is the purpose of the Morrill Land-Grant colleges?

W/out excluding other scientific and classical studies and including military tactic, to teach such branches of learning as are related to agriculture and the mechanic arts, in such manner as the legislatures of the States may respectively prescribe, in order to promote the liberal and practical education of the industrial classes in the several pursuits and professions in life.

What are Pell Grants?

Directed grants awarded through participating institutions to students w/financial need who have not received their first bachelor's degree or who are enrolled in certain post baccalaureate programs that lead to teacher certification or license.

- Participating institutions either credit the Federal Pell Grant funds to the student's school account, pay the student directly (usually by check) or combine these methods.

What is the Lemon test?

Result of the Lemon v Kurtzman case (1971)?

- Three part test for determining whether a particular state law constitutes "establishment" of religion and thus violates the 1st amendment.

1. Must have secular purpose

2. Must neither advance nor inhibit religion

3. Must not entangle government with religion

What is the Supreme Court of Engle v. Vitale ?

School prayer ruled unconstitutional (1962).

What is the poverty rate?

The percentage of the population whose annual cash income falls below that which is required, according to the federal government, to maintain a decent standard of living.

What is the "feminization of poverty?"

The concept that poverty is most common among female-headed families.

How do we measure wealth?

Wealth: the net worth of all one's possessions

The sum of:

- home value minus mortgage

- auto value minus loans

- business value minus debt

- money in back accounts, savings, stocks, bonds, and real estate

Who is responsible for public welfare?

The federal government

What is the payroll tax?

Tax that is levied on and withheld from an employee's wages

What has been the effect of Social Security?

Important indirect effect on state and local welfare programs by removing people in whole or in part from welfare roles . Reduced the welfare problems that state and local governments would otherwise face.

Which health programs do state and local governments provide?

1. Medicare (for elderly)

2. Medicaid (for the poor)

3. Extensive tax-supported hospital care

4. Generalized and specialized hospitals, health centers and nursing homes

What changes occurred with the intro. of the TANF program?

Discussions about the effectiveness of TANF by policymakers and proponents of welfare reform has centered on the rapid decline in the number of families on welfare since TANF went into effect.

- Indeed, if measured by the reduction in welfare caseloads, TANF has been a success.

- Between 1996-2000, the number of welfare recipients plunged by 6.5 million, or 53% nationally.

- Furthermore, the number of caseloads was lower in 2000 than at any time since 1969 and the percentages of persons receiving public assistance income (less than 3%) was the lowest on record.

What is Medicare?

Provides prepaid hospital insurance for the aged and low cost voluntary medical insurance for the aged under federal administration.

Which public assistance program do states spend the most on?

Medicaid

- Sates must pay about 45% of medicaid's costs, with the federal government paying the remainder

What is the relationship of states spending on Education and the strength of the economy?

- State and local officials extol a well-educated workforce as essential to economic development.

- There is little systematic evidence that state spending for education has many direct impact on economic growth rates in the states.

Children's health insurance program (CHIP) and what it does?

SCHIP (State Children's Health Insurance Program)- Federal grants to states to extend health insurance to children who would not otherwise qualify for Medicaid (targeted toward families with incomes below 200% of the poverty level).

What is the central dilemma issue?When are we trying to reform our healthcare system?

Containing the nation's burgeoning health care costs. Goal is to EXPAND access and LOWER costs but, in expanding access, costs INCREASE.

What is the most costly function of local government?

Education

Know the largest tax revenue source for each level of government?

Local: property taxes

State: General sales tax

Federal: income tax

What have been the effects of welfare reform?

-The devolution of financial welfare responsibility to the state

- Benefits and eligibility were decided by the states

What did the 16th Amendment do?

Creates the federal income tax, a progressive tax based on ability to pay.