SIAM’s Blog & Newsletter Sponsored By the University of Illinois at Chicago, Department of Public Administration
Annual SIAM Awards at ASPA 2023
At the recent virtual ASPA conference, SIAM awarded the following:
Donald C. Stone Awards
Distinguished Scholar Award: Kathleen Hale
Professor Hale’s award recognizes her significant scholarly contributions to intergovernmental relations, including her impactful scholarly and applied work on election administration and her ongoing leadership at Auburn University.
Best Student Paper Award: Shuwen Zhang
University of Illinois Chicago doctoral candidate Shuwen Zhang is recognized for her excellent paper, titled: “How Does Cities’ Engagement Affect the Function of Regional Intergovernmental Organizations (RIGO’s) in Metropolitan Areas?” which was presented at ASPA 2022 in Jacksonville.
Practitioner Award: Mark Fowler
Mark Fowler’s award recognizes his significant contributions to inter-governmental relations. Mark’s nomination highlighted his wide-ranging work in the Chicago Metropolitan Area and the State of Illinois; in particular, and his current work as the Executive Director of the Northwest Municipal Conference.
SIAM Legacy Award
This award recognizes Professor Carl Stenberg’s long-standing work on intergovernmental relations, his support and effort with the Deil Wright Symposium, and his contributions to both to the academic and professional sides of the field.
Congratulations to all the award recipients!
Call for Papers: SIAM-SLGR Joint ASPA Panel Featuring Graduate Student Research
The Section on Intergovernmental Administration and Management (SIAM), in collaboration with State and Local Government Review (SLGR), invite current Ph.D students to submit proposals for papers to be presented at the 2023 American Society for Public Administration (ASPA) conference (virtual, March 20-24).
Among the goals of the 2023 SIAM-SLGR collaboration panel are:
- Provide an opportunity for Ph.D students to present their current work on subjects that are of interest to SIAM members
- Provide a space for new conversations between scholars, students, and practitioners of public administration who may not be in regular dialogue with one another
- Facilitate feedback on student work
Potential paper themes may include:
- Current or emerging trends in intergovernmental management and governance
- Contemporary trends in the administration of major state or local policies
- Impact of political institutions, political behavior, or recent economic and demographic shifts on intergovernmental policy and management.
- Impact of changes in policy on state and local governments and their relations
- Domestic or international policy areas involving intergovernmental relations and associated management tools and strategies
Submission Guidelines
Individual Paper Proposals. The committee welcomes individual paper proposals of 400 words or less. Proposed papers may feature theoretical, qualitative, or quantitative research. The program committee may alter or remove individual papers that do not meet review criteria or to add an individual paper submission that fits well with the objectives of the SIAM-SLRG joint panel.
Submission Process
Proposals for the panel should be submitted by email to Chris Hawkins (christopher.hawkins@ucf.edu) by November 1, 2022. We welcome proposals from student members and nonmembers of SIAM.
CALL TO PARTICIPATE IN ENCYCLOPEDIA OF LOCAL AND REGIONAL GOVERNMENT AND POLITICS
I (Ed Benton, University of South Florida), along with John Kincaid (Lafayette College), am preparing an Encyclopedia of Local and Regional Government and Politics to be published by Edward Elgar by 2024. It is important to note that we already have a contract to produce this book. We propose to include in the encyclopedia new and original short articles on all pertinent topics/subject areas related to the existence and operation of local and regional governments around the world and their ensuing relevant politics, policies, programs, etc.
We invite you to be part of this monumental and ground-breaking work. There are three ways you can contribute to this encyclopedia. First, you can send us pertinent topics or subject areas that should be covered in the encyclopedia. (A tentative, initial list of topics is provided below.) Second, you can suggest topics or subject areas on which you would like to write one or more entries. Third, you can provide us names of, and contact information for, scholars who could contribute to the volume; please also provide their subject-matter expertise or specific topics they are qualified to write on. This volume has a global perspective and will, tentatively, cover the following countries: United States, Canada, Mexico, Brazil, Argentina, Columbia, United Kingdom, France, Spain, Portugal, Belgium, Germany, Netherlands, Denmark, Italy, Switzerland, Austria, Romania, Poland, Czech Republic, Greece, Norway, Sweden, Finland, Hungary, Serbia, Bulgaria, Slovakia, Russia, Nigeria, South Africa, Ethiopia, Egypt, Kenya, Tanzania, Turkey, Iran, Iraq, Saudi Arabia, China, India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Indonesia, and Australia.
We need to hear from you as soon as possible so we can finalize the topics and invite contributors in order to publish the encyclopedia in a timely manner so as to make the volume as current and relevant as possible to a wide and diverse audience. You can contact Ed Benton at jbenton@usf.edu and/or John Kincaid at kincaidj@lafayette.edu We encourage you to contact us as soon as you see this notice. Thank you.
List of Tentative Topics and Subject Areas
cantons
länder
provinces
republics
states
intergovernmental relations, generally
national government-local government relations
national government-regional government relations
regional-local government relations
interlocal relations
centralization of authority
decentralization of authority
federalism
unitary form of government
confederal form of government
federal form of government
counties
municipalities (cities)
towns
township
panchayats
special districts
legislative authorities
school districts
villages
regions
districts
shires
wards
parishes
departments
oblasts
prefectures
hamlets
boroughs
precincts
councils of governments
types of local government structure
sovereignty
tribal authority
eminent domain
government finances
local government budgeting
revenues
expenditures
grants-in aid
government borrowing and debt management
immunity
service provision, generally
public safety services
fire suppression and prevention services
health care services
public welfare services
hazardous material collection and disposal
parks and recreational programs and facilities
public/private partnerships in service provision
library services
utility (water provision, sewer collection and disposal services, natural gas provision, electric power provision
Internet and cable TV service
road and street construction and repair
provision of sidewalks and street lights
stormwater management
planning and zoning services
solid waste collection and disposal service
environmental protection and conservation services
consumer affairs and citizen protection services
government borrowing policies
types of bonds (general obligation, revenue, mortgage)
human resource policies and procedures
local government officials (mayors, council-persons, commissioners,
mutual aid agreements (pacts)
incorporation
ultra vires
citizenship
interjurisdictional cooperation
interjurisdictional conflict
administrative agencies and departments
bureaucracy
administrative procedures, rules, and regulations
administrative efficiency
elections, generally
at-large elections
district or ward elections
election campaigns
powers of elective officials
balanced budgets
bicameral legislatures
bill of rights
democratic regimes
autocratic regimes
Communist regimes
Civil service or merit system
Patronage system
Bureaucratic discretion
Bureaucratic responsiveness
Political campaigns
Campaign finances
Capacity of governments
Capital budgets
general fund budgets
citizens access to government
constitutional conventions
constitutions
Call for Nominations: SIAM Executive Committee Members (TWO)
The Section on Intergovernmental Administration and Management (SIAM) of the American Society for Public Administration (ASPA) is seeking nominations for its Executive Committee. The SIAM Nominations Committee, chaired by Jayce Farmer and committee members Meghan Rubado, and Kendra Stewart, is seeking nominees for two Executive Committee members. Members of the committee will serve a three-year term (2022-2025). Please see our SIAM blog for the full list of current executive officers as well as the bylaws governing elections.
Executive committee members are actively engaged in the governance and work of the section, often contributing service to the Section’s committees and events. Together with the Chair, Chair-Elect, Secretary and Treasurer, Executive Committee members help guide SIAM’s ongoing contributions to the fields of intergovernmental administration and management. The Chair facilitates the work of the section, chairs executive committee meetings and business meetings, and serves as a primary channel of communication with ASPA.
Please submit your nominations for two Executive Committee members to Jayce Farmer (jayce.farmer@unlv.edu) on or before January 31, 2022.
The Nominations Committee will share a slate of nominees with the SIAM membership by February 4, 2022. After this, the Nominating Committee will receive additional nominations through membership petitions between February 4 and February 18, 2022. Additional nominations during the petition period must be signed by 25 members of SIAM and accompanied by a statement from the nominee expressing interest and willingness to serve the Section. Election ballots will be distributed to the membership after February 18 and election results will be announced at the annual business meeting at the ASPA conference in March 2022.
Deil S. Wright Symposium: “Intergovernmental Issues of the Biden Presidency”
March 18, 2022
PROGRAM:
9:00-9:30AM
Introductions, Mingling, and Welcome (9:20AM)
9:30–11:00AM
PANEL TITLE: Diverse Methods Investigating Regional and Interlocal Governance Mechanisms for Physical and Human Infrastructure
The impacts of the federal bipartisan physical infrastructure bill (Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act, 2021-2022) will be a story of not just intergovernmental implementation through federal-state or state-local relations. It will also require an understanding of how local governments and the constellations of interlocal mechanisms that operate at the substate level function as resources are deployed. Scholars often consider special districts, regional public sector organizations, interlocal agreements, and other collective action mechanisms in isolation. While developing a rigorous understanding of the components requires narrow focus, the larger network is not nearly as siloed.
The Build Back Better bill focusing on human infrastructure–in whatever final resulting form—will rely on many of the same overlapping constellations of local governments and interlocal mechanisms, as well as partnerships with civic sector providers. The governance and implementation of programs through Area Agencies on Aging, multijurisdictional opioid addiction response partnerships, watershed coalitions, and educational partnerships operate within some of these same regional public sector organizations. The special districts and interlocal agreements impacted by investments in human infrastructure may involve many of the same local government and civic sector partners as the physical infrastructure investments. Our panelists will discuss ongoing governance research focused on four areas central to physical and human infrastructure needs in the U.S.: water systems management, broadband deployment, behavioral health care, and sustainability planning. Each panelist applies different research techniques to capture these questions: network analysis, individual case study, interview data analysis, and survey data analysis.
Putting fragmentation back together again: Advancing a typology of successful water
system governance
Kate Albrecht, University of Illinois-Chicago (presenter)
Thomas Skuzinski, Northern Illinois University
Jason Michnick, University of Illinois-Chicago
Carolina Velandia Hernandez, Northern Illinois University
Rural Broadband and Co-Regional Activity in Southwestern North Carolina
Jay Rickabaugh, Appalachian State University (presenter, confirmed)
Jen Luetkemeyer, Appalachian State University
Outcome Insights: Applying an NPG lens to examine a capacity building initiative among
the government and its partners
Sapna Varkey, University of Missouri-Saint Louis (presenter)
Kara Lawrence, North Carolina State University
Leila Chelbi, North Carolina State University
Amanda J. Stewart, North Carolina State University
Richard M. Clerkin, North Carolina State University
Infrastructure Regionalism and Sustainability Planning in Illinois Municipalities
Thomas Skuzinski, Northern Illinois University
11:00-11:15: BREAK
11:15-12:15: Roundtable Discussion: Future Research Questions and Idea Brainstorm
Professor Deil Wright was a true master of mentorship and research collaboration. As such, to honor his legacy to the section and to the field, we will dedicate an hour of the day to an open conversation among attendees about their research in progress. Attendees are invited to share about current research, their future ideas, any stumbling blocks they may be grappling with on their projects, and other topics related to federalism, intergovernmental relations, intergovernmental management, or general professional development in the field.
12:15-1:30PM
Lunch Break
1:30–3:00PM
PANEL TITLE: COVID-19, Policy, and Outcomes in the Federal System
Negativity Bias in City Councilors’ Responsibility Attribution for COVID-19 Outcomes
Ulrich Jensen, Akheil Singla, Justin Stritch, and David Swindell*
Arizona State University
School of Public Affairs
Presenter: David Swindell (david.swindell@asu.edu)
Public health services in the United States are collaboratively provided by all levels of U.S. governments, creating a complicated and often conflicted policy environment during a pandemic like COVID-19. When facing poor-COVID-19 outcomes (e.g., high case and death rates), elected officials can deflect blame up or down the vertical hierarchy of government instead of accepting responsibility. The result may worsen intergovernmental service delivery and result in an erosion of accountability and trust among citizens. To explore whether such blame shifting occurs, we manipulated the saliency of states’ relative performance on central COVID-19 outcomes as part of a survey experiment among 339 political decision makers serving on city councils across the United States. Drawing on the concept of “negativity bias,” we show that elected officials are highly motivated to shift blame to external factors instead of assuming responsibility when poor performance is made salient. Elected officials in better-performing states, however, do not claim credit for lower COVID-19 case and fatality rates, supporting the notion that political leaders place disproportionate weight on negative information when attributing responsibility for policy outcomes. Our findings have extensive ramifications, as failure to assume responsibility when it is needed the most can further erode citizen trust in public institutions and exacerbate resistance to the very public health measures prescribed by these institutions to combat COVID-19.
Policymaking During COVID-19: Preemptive State Interventions and the Factors Influencing Policy Implementation Success
Seungkyu Choi, Michelle Allgood (Presenter), and David Swindell
Arizona State University
School of Public Affairs
COVID-19 not only sparked a public health crisis, but created a series of policy preemption battles. This article examines how COVID-19 interventions played out at the state level given the absence of guidance to create a coordinated national response. Specifically, we examine how four specific interventions (i.e., masking, school closures, restaurant closures, and travel restrictions) traveled through the policy creation and implementation process as outlined by a modified version of Kingdon’s multiple streams approach. We focus on how the level of policy rigidness and enforcement of behavioral interventions helps us understand the success and failures of reducing the number of positive test rates over a 20 week period (March – July, 2020). Our findings suggest that highly restrictive policies are effective in controlling the spread of COVID-19, but the mechanisms and dynamics vary based on the specific intervention. We also find a strong association between the states’ political orientation and a governor’s inclination to use restrictive interventions. Governors from conservative states are less likely to employ preemptive actions such as face mask regulations and travel restrictions and more likely to preempt local governments from exceeding state-specified responses.
Defining Urban Sustainability: An Examination of U.S. Cities
Chris Hawkins
University of Central Florida
Sustainability has become an umbrella concept under which urban environmental quality, resource conservation, equity, climate mitigation, economic health and environmental justice all occur. As such, research has sought to gain a deeper understanding of how cities are pursuing these and other objectives. To this end, a relatively large scholarly literature has emerged on city sustainability policies and programmatic efforts. However, how city officials define sustainability is also critical; such conceptualizations reflects the city’s sustainability agenda and guide the city’s operationalization of sustainability objectives.
This study uses a unique collection of qualitative data from over 400 US cities collected at two points in time: 2015 and 2020. Specifically, local government staff with sustainability-related responsibilities provided open-ended descriptions of sustainability as it is practiced in their communities. We develop and apply a coding protocol to the definitions in order to assess patterns and generate groupings of similar cities. We present descriptive statistics illustrating how cities’ conceptualizations of sustainability have shifted over time and present the results of a multivariate analysis that differentiate groups of cities based on community characteristics.
Preliminary results suggest that although some cities define sustainability in relatively comprehensive terms and reflect a future oriented perspective, other cities define sustainability more programmatically. Results also point toward the challenges of pursuing sustainability without generating co-benefits, a lack of political support, and limited resources. These and other findings add new evidence of how sustainability is practiced and the similarities and differences across cities.
3:00PM: Program Concludes
5:00PM: SIAM Business Meeting
2022 Deil S. Wright Symposium: Call for Proposals
Deil S. Wright Symposium
2022 Call for Proposals
“Intergovernmental Issues of the Biden Presidency”
The Section on Intergovernmental Administration and Management invites scholars and practitioners to submit proposals for papers to be presented at the 8th annual Deil S. Wright Symposium. The symposium honors the career and contributions of Professor Deil S. Wright, who was a charter member of the Section and remained active until his passing in 2009. The Wright Symposium will be held at the national conference of the American Society for Public Administration in Jacksonville, FL. The date is still being finalized, but it is typically the day before the conference begins. The theme of the all-day 2022 Wright Symposium will be “Intergovernmental Issues of the Biden Presidency.”
Submission Guidelines
Individual Paper Proposals. The committee welcomes individual paper proposals of 400 words or less. Proposed papers should feature high-quality theoretical, qualitative, or quantitative research. Proposals should make their connection to the symposium theme direct and clear.
Full Panel Proposals. The committee also welcomes the submission of complete panels consisting of four papers and a chair. Panel submissions should bring together complementary papers that tackle compelling research questions or theoretical frameworks related to the symposium theme.
Panel proposals should include a panel title and description (400 words or less), the panel chair, and four individual paper proposals (400 words or less each). Each paper proposal will be evaluated separately on whether it meets the criteria for individual paper submissions.
Panel chairs are encouraged to incorporate diverse participants in panels, whether in gender, race, institution, rank, disciplinary perspective, or methodology.
The program committee may alter panels to remove individual papers that do not meet review criteria or to add an individual paper submission that fits well with the panel, particularly if dropouts occur. The program committee plans to do so sparingly.
Submission Process
Proposals for the symposium should be submitted by email to Christine Palus (christine.palus@villanova.edu) before November 13, 2021. The Wright Symposium planning committee – Christine Palus (Villanova University), Chris Hawkins (University of Central Florida), and David Swindell (Arizona State University), will review proposals and make decisions by December 1, 2021. Questions can be directed to committee members. Please circulate this call for papers among interested colleagues.
Open Search for Dean of the College of Urban Planning and Public Affairs (CUPPA)
The College of Urban Planning and Public Affairs, invites applications and nominations for the position of Dean of the College of Urban Planning and Public Affairs.
“The University of Illinois Chicago (UIC) invites applications and nominations for the position of Dean of the College of Urban Planning and Public Affairs (CUPPA). The university seeks an experienced, committed, and visionary leader. The newly appointed Dean will help realize CUPPA’s mission building on its highly-regarded, cutting-edge research and scholarship, academic programs, public policy development, and community partnerships. The Dean reports to the Provost and Vice Chancellor for Academic Affairs, is the Executive Officer for the College, and is a member of the University Deans Council.” Read more about the position here: https://adminsearches.uic.edu/current/cuppa/
For fullest consideration, please complete an electronic application, including a letter of interest, curriculum vitae, and the names and contact information for a minimum of three references by Monday, September 27th, addressed to the search committee chair, Dr. Rebecca Rugg, Dean and Professor, College of Architecture, Design and the Arts.
2021 ASPA Deil Wright Symposium
April 9, 2021
PROGRAM
8:45–9:00AM
Introductions and Welcome
9:00–10:30AM
The Future of Fiscal Federalism
Nicholas Jacobs
Colby College
If Congress Can’t Budget, Can It Influence Intergovernmental Relations?
Carmina Jimenez Quiroga & Heidi Jane M. Smith
CENTRUS/Universidad Iberoamericana
Fiscal Sustainability of Mexican Debt Decisions: Is Bad Behavior Rewarded?
Yoon-Jung Choi
Syracuse University
Too Many Governments and Not Enough Government: Does Citizen Voice Restrain Government Growth?
Discussant: Paul Chalekian
University of Nevada, Reno
10:30–10:45AM
Break
10:45AM–12:15PM
Rethinking Models of Intergovernmental Relations
Claudia Badulescu-Colfer
European University Institute
Overcoming dysfunctional integration through domestic administrative capacity building: a new approach to Europeanization
Ricardo A. Bello-Gomez
Indiana University
National and Subnational Bureaucracies’ Capacity for Service Provision: A Human-Capital Approach to Decentralized Governance
Sara Kuehlhorn Friedman
Portland State University
Immigration Federalism in the U.S.: A New Theoretical Model
Matt Bagwell
Tarleton State University
Intergovernmental Collaboration or Conflict?
Discussant: TBA
12:15–1:15PM
Lunch Break
1:15–2:45PM
Studying and Practicing Intergovernmental Relations and Federalism Across Fields
Carol Weissert and Matthew Uttermark
Florida State University
Going Deep: Studying Charter Schools from the Bottom Up
John Kincaid
Lafayette College
A Research Agenda for Federalism Studies
Jason Webb Yackee and Susan Webb Yackee
University of Wisconsin – Madison
Using Wright’s ASAP Data from 1964-2008 to Study Federalism and Intergovernmental Relations: New Data for Scholars and Practitioners
Discussant: TBA
2:45-3:00PM
Wrap Up
Call for Nominations: SIAM Chair Elect
Call for Nominations: SIAM Chair Elect
The Section on Intergovernmental Administration and Management (SIAM) of the American Society for Public Administration (ASPA) is seeking nominations for an executive officer. The SIAM Nominations Committee, chaired by Jayce Farmer and committee members Meghan Rubado and Kendra Stewart, is seeking nominees for the position of chair-elect. The chair-elect will serve a two year term (2022-2024) and then serve two years in the position of chair (2024-2026). Please see our SIAM blog for the full list of current Executive Committee members as well as the bylaws governing elections.
Executive committee members are actively engaged in the governance and work of the section, often contributing service to the Section’s committees and events. Together with the Chair, Chair-Elect, Secretary and Treasurer, Executive Committee members help guide SIAM’s ongoing contributions to the fields of intergovernmental administration and management. The Chair facilitates the work of the section, chairs executive committee meetings and business meetings, and serves as a primary channel of communication with ASPA.
Please submit your nominations for the Chair-Elect to Jayce Farmer (jayce.farmer@unlv.edu) on or before January 8, 2021.
The Nominations Committee will share a slate of nominees with the SIAM membership by January 9, 2021. After this, the Nominating Committee will receive additional nominations through membership petitions between January 9 and February 9, 2021. Additional nominations during the petition period must be signed by 25 members of SIAM and accompanied by a statement from the nominee expressing interest and willingness to serve the Section. Election ballots will be distributed to the membership after February 15 and election results will be announced at the annual business meeting at the virtual ASPA conference in April 2021.
Call for Proposals: New Editor of State and Local Government Review
SAGE Publishing and SLGR’s sponsor, SIAM, are seeking proposals for the editorship of SLGR, for the term beginning January 1, 2021.
State and Local Government Review (SLGR), peer-reviewed and published quarterly, provides a forum for the exchange of ideas among practitioners and academics that contributes to the knowledge and practice of state and local government politics, policy, and management. Of particular interest in SLGR are articles that focus on state and local governments and those that explore the intergovernmental dimensions of public-sector activity.
Founded by the Carl Vinson Institute of Government of the University of Georgia, State and Local Government Review is the official journal of the Section on Intergovernmental Administration and Management (SIAM) of the American Society for Public Administration. Since 1968 the Review has provided a forum for the exchange of ideas among practitioners and academics that contributes to the knowledge and practice of state and local government politics, policy, and management. Like the Vinson Institute, SIAM has an interest not only in state and local government, but also in the effective interaction among public officials in a federal system. It seeks to foster the dissemination of information about research and experience that contributes to the understanding and improvement of the intergovernmental system.
The Editor will be responsible for soliciting, reviewing, and making final decisions on submissions to the journal, and will manage all aspects of the publication and review process using the Manuscript Central electronic submission and review platform. Editor is expected to maintain timely and effective communication, advance journal performance, and work towards upholding SLGR’s high-quality standard.
In their proposals, candidates should discuss their vision for SLGR and how the journal can advance an interdisciplinary study of state and local government. They should also discuss how they will identify and promote new perspectives for the student of state and local government—including subtopics, research questions, framing, terminology, theoretical approaches, methodology, and data sources.
Applicants should send a letter of application which includes their vision for the future of the journal and a description of their qualifications for the editorship. Applicants should also include copies of their CV.
Applications, nominations, and requests for additional information should be sent electronically to Ian Balisy, Associate Editor, at Ian.Balisy@sagepub.com. Please put “SLGR Editor Application” in the subject line of your email.
Section on Intergovernmental Administration and Management 