State & Local Government

Since the first edition in 1978, this text has been relied upon as an up-to-date, readable, and concise examination of the structure and operation of state and local government in America. The new edition looks at ways in which state and local governments are meeting new challenges such as increasing diversity, maintaining institutions of representative government as direct democracy becomes more popular, and providing citizens with government services during the most severe budget crisis since World War II. With its engaging vignettes at the beginning of each chapter and its substantial new and expanded material, State and Local Government remains an essential text for the study of sub-national politics. "State and Local Differences" charts illustrate issues discussed in each chapter at both levels of government, to clarify jurisdiction of powers and issues. |Discussion of state and local government is integrated into the same chapters. |Pedagogical features include bold-faced key terms, chapter summaries, references to present-day issues, charts and tables, maps, an exceptional appendix, chapter- opening vignettes, and an "Interesting Web Sites" section in each chapter that leads students to additional relevant reading or research material. |"Points to Consider" and "Key Concepts" at the start of each chapter help students focus their attention and identify the most important issues. |Updated statistics in maps, graphs, and tables, and updated information about current political behavior and elections |New and expanded material on population change among the states in the 1990s, Supreme Court federalism decisions (including Bush v. Gore), the growth of the Republican party in the South, the expansion of voting rights for minority groups, the Help America Vote Act of 2002, legislative districting after the 2000 Census, the recall of California governor Gray Davis, state and local actions related to preventing terrorism, and the increase in state regulated gambling as a source of government revenue. |Seven new chapter-opening stories, covering topics such as Internet voting, new Supreme Court decisions, and the ethnic diversity of the U.S. population