Kevin B. Smith - Governing States and Localities

7th Edition

For my students.

Kevin B. Smith

For my son, Simon.

Alan Greenblatt

Governing States and Localities

7th Edition

• Kevin B. Smith
• University of Nebraska - Lincoln
• Alan Greenblatt
• Governing magazine

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Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

Names: Smith, Kevin B., author. | Greenblatt, Alan, author.

Title: Governing states and localities / Kevin B. Smith, University of

Nebraska-Lincoln, Alan Greenblatt, Governing magazine.

Description: Seventh Edition. | Thousand Oaks, California : SAGE | CQ PRESS, [2019] |

Includes bibliographical references and index.

Identifiers: LCCN 2018042302 | ISBN 9781544325422 (Paperback : acid-free

paper)

Subjects: LCSH: State governmentsUnited StatesTextbooks. | Local

governmentUnited StatesTextbooks. | Comparative governmentTextbooks.

Classification: LCC JK2408 .S57 2019 | DDC 320.473dc23 LC record available at https://lccn.loc.gov/2018042302

This book is printed on acid-free paper.

Executive Publisher: Monica Eckman

Editorial Assistant: Sam Rosenberg

Content Development Editor: Scott Harris

Production Editor: Laureen Gleason

Copy Editor: Melinda Masson

Typesetter: C&M Digitals (P) Ltd.

Proofreader: Susan Schon

Indexer: Maria Sosnowski

Cover Designer: Candice Harman

Marketing Manager: Erica DeLuca

The mission of the seventh edition of Governing States and Localities is the same as its predecessors: to provide a comprehensive introduction to state and local governments and to do it with a difference. This book is a unique collaboration between academic and professional writers that rests on a foundation of academic scholarship, more than two decades of experience teaching undergraduates about state and local governments, and the insight and experience of a journalist with decades of experience covering state and local politics.

This book provides fresh and contemporary perspective on state and local politics, not just in terms of coverage and content, but also in its look and feel. The text deliberately follows a newsmagazines crisp journalistic style, and the book employs magazine-quality, full-color layout and design. Our intent is to deliver a text that meets the highest academic and pedagogical standards while remaining engaging and easily accessible to undergraduates. Governing magazine remains an important partner for this edition, and many of the feature boxes draw directly from the work of its award-winning reporters, bloggers, and correspondents.

All chapters have been revised substantially, with the content updated throughout to reflect the latest issues, trends, and political changes, including the following:

Analysis of the results of the most recent legislative and gubernatorial elections

• Discussion of the most important state supreme court decisions and constitutional debates
• The growing impact of political polarization at the state and even local levels, and the implications of the nationalization of party politics for subnational governance
• The impact of the Donald Trump presidency on intergovernmental relations and issues of central interest to states and localities
• In-depth examination of recent events and issues that have had impacts on (and in some cases transformed) states and localities, such as the federalstate tugs of war over immigration reform, school shootings and gun control, and the impact of tax cuts on public services and economic performance
• Updates to The Latest Research sections at the ends of all chapters, where recent scholarship is put into the context of what students have just read

Although these represent significant revisions, the current edition retains the pedagogical philosophy of the comparative method. This approach compares similar units of analysis to explain why differences exist. As scholars know well, state and local governments make excellent units of analysis for comparison because they operate within a single political system. The similarities and differences that mark their institutional structures, laws and regulations, political cultures, histories, demographics, economies, and geographies make them exciting laboratories for asking and answering important questions about politics and government. Put simply, their differences make a difference.

The appeal of exploring state and local government through comparison is not just that it makes for good political science. It is also a great way to engage students because it gives undergraduates an accessible, practical, and systematic way to understand politics and policy in the real world. Students learn that even such seemingly personal concerns as why their tuition is so darned high are not just relevant to their particular situation and educational institution but also fundamental to the interaction of that institution with its states political culture, economy, history, and tax structure, and even to the schools geographic and demographic position within the state and region. Using the comparative method, this book gives students the resources they need to ask and answer such questions themselves.