P ADM 502: Governmental Fiscal Decision-Making (3 credits). Nature, function, and technique of governmental budgeting viewed as mechanism for allocating resources among alternative public uses.

Overview | Objectives | Technical Specifications | Materials| Library Resources | Evaluation | Grading | Schedule | Academic Integrity | Policies

 

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Course Overview

P ADM 502 serves as an introduction to governmental fiscal decision making at the federal, state, and local levels of government. It is designed to provide students with a general understanding of decision making about the acquisition and use of public resources in government contexts. Despite its emphasis on the public sector, many concepts covered in the course are also applicable to nonprofit organizations.

In this course you will become familiar with the general context that surround fiscal decision-making, key elements of the budget process, and major sources of funding used to finance public goods and services. Topics covered include (1) principles of public finance; (2) the budget process; (3) budget methods and practices; (4) budget reforms; (5) sources of public finance; and (6) debt administration. Most examples will draw upon the structure and processes associated with state and local governments in the United States.

With the exception of P ADM 500, there are no prerequisites for this course. Students will be enrolled from a wide variety of undergraduate majors. However, a familiarity with basic concepts of the social sciences, especially knowledge of American government and economics, is recommended.

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Learning Objectives

This course is designed to increase your ability to: 

• Describe key principles of public finance
• Define basic budgeting terminology
• Describe the basic steps associated with the budget process
• Prepare a budget request
• Apply basic capital budgeting tools
• Describe and distinguish historical and contemporary budget reform efforts
• Describe basic sources of public finance
• Perform basic revenue prediction tasks
• Analyze the inherent trade-offs of major funding/financing sources
• Describe basic concepts related to debt administration.

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Technical Specifications

Technical Requirements

Operating System	Windows Vista, Windows 7, Windows 8*; Mac OS X 10.5 or higher *Windows 8 support excludes the tablet only RT version
Processor	2 GHz or higher
Memory	1 GB of RAM
Hard Drive Space	20 GB free disk space
Browser	We recommend the latest ANGEL-supported version of Firefox or Internet Explorer. To determine if your browser fits this criterion, and for advice on downloading a supported version, please refer to the following ITS knowledge base article: Supported Browsers and Recommended Computers. Note: Cookies, Java, and JavaScript must be enabled. Pop-up blockers should be configured to permit new windows from Penn State websites. Due to nonstandard handling of CSS, JavaScript and caching, older versions of Internet Explorer (such as IE 6 or earlier) do not work with our courses.
Plug-ins	Adobe Reader [Download from Adobe] Flash Player (v7.0 or later) [Download from Adobe]
Additional Software	Microsoft Office (2007 or later)
Internet Connection	Broadband (cable or DSL) connection required
Printer	Access to graphics-capable printer
DVD-ROM	Required
Sound Card, Microphone, and Speakers	Required
Monitor	Capable of at least 1024 x 768 resolution

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Course Materials:

Most World Campus courses require that students purchase materials (e.g., textbooks, specific software, etc.). To learn about how to order materials, please see the Course Materials page. You should check LionPATH approximately 3–4 weeks before the course begins for a list of required materials.

Many of the University Libraries resources can be utilized from a distance. Through the Libraries website, you can

• access magazine, journal, and newspaper articles online using library databases;
• borrow materials and have them delivered to your doorstep—or even your desktop;
• get research help via email, chat, or phone using the Ask a Librarian service; and
• much more. 

You must have an active Penn State Access Account to take full advantage of the Libraries' resources and service.  The Off-Campus Users page has additional information about these free services.

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Library Resources

This course requires that you access Penn State library materials specifically reserved for this course. You can access these materials by selecting Library Resources in your course navigation, or by accessing the Library E-Reserves Search and search for your instructor's last name.

Many of Penn State's library resources can be utilized from a distance. Through the Library Resources and Services for World Campus and Distance Education Web site, you can...

• access magazine, journal, and newspaper articles online using library databases
• borrow materials and have them delivered to your doorstep...or even your desktop
• ask a librarian for research help via e-mail, chat, or phone using the ASK! service

...and much more!

NOTE: You must have an active Penn State Access Account and be registered with the University Libraries in order to take full advantage of the Libraries' resources and services. Registration and services are free!

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Course Requirements

Performance in the course is evaluated in four ways: (1) understanding, tested by a final examination, assignments and assessments of readings; (2) writing skills, through written article review and news article commentaries; (3) presentation skills, through the oral portion of article review; and (4) the ability to participate in a group. The latter of these (i.e., ability to participate in a group) is an important aspect of your education, since many professional work assignments in Public Administration are geared towards groups rather than individuals. The group work includes four group lesson assignments (part of Requirement 2 below), two news article commentaries (Requirement 3 below), and the group project (Requirement 4 below). As already noted, the groups will be randomly assigned during the second week of classes and you will be working with the same group throughout the semester.

The requirements for the course include the following:

• Requirement 1: Final Examination
• Requirement 2: Assignments and Assessments of Readings
• Requirement 3: New Article Commentaries and Responses
• Requirement 4: Group Project
• Requirement 5: Participation

Requirement 1: Final Examination (25 points)

The final exam will be scheduled within a two-day period toward the end of the semester. You can take the final exam anytime at the scheduled period. The exam will be open book. It will consist of:

1. two essay questions to test your knowledge of major concepts and themes developed in the course, and
2. three problems to test your understanding of major techniques/practices covered in the course.

The essay questions (you will be given the option to select one of two questions) will account for 40 percent of your final exam grade, and the three problems will account for 60 percent of your final exam grade. The exam will be graded on three equally important criteria: (a) accuracy of information presented, (b) ability to integrate material from various assigned readings, and (c) skill in communicating your ideas in a concise and well-organized manner.

Requirement 2: Assignments (30 points) and Assessments of Readings (10 points)

Assignments Related to Course Content

As part of the course you are required to complete 10 online assignments that will be related to the course material introduced in the lessons. These will be aimed at providing you with an opportunity to explore or analyze a particular topic area in more depth or practice major techniques and concepts covered in a particular lesson. Four of these assignments will be completed in groups (these will have to be completed as part of Lessons 3, 4, 5, and 7) and six on an individual basis (Lessons 1, 2, 6, 8, 10, and 11).

The assignments may take a variety of different forms, including but not limited to analysis of a select reading, completion of an exercise that covers a particular technique or concept covered in the session, or reflect on a video segment that expands on a particular topic. Some of these assignments will be graded on a pass/fail basis. To receive full credit on assignment that are graded on a pass/fail basis you need to meet all the stated requirements. Failure to do this might result in deductions toward your grade.

Please note that the individual assignments related to the course content will be graded on a pass/fail basis. Although the system will automatically give you the full points to those assignments once you submit them, the instructor will contact you or will adjust the grades if your submissions do not meet the requirements.

Assessments of Readings

There will be multiple-choice assessments of the readings as part of each lesson (starting from Lesson 2) to make sure that you have carefully read and understood key concepts discussed and reviewed in the main textbook. You will be required to complete this assessment towards the end of each lesson before the given deadline. These assessments will be regarded as completed only if you get all the answers correct before the given deadline. If you get an answer wrong, you will be given two additional attempts to get the answer correct. In other words, you will be able to "backtrack" your answer twice. You will not be able to complete the assessment after the given deadline. However, you can drop the one lowest assessment scores out of the eleven that you will be required to take.

Requirement 3: New Article Sharing

In this course you will be required to keep up-to-date on current and relevant news stories that are related to fiscal decision making by reading major newspapers including, but not limited to the New York Times, Washington Post, and the Wall Street Journal. Keeping up-to-date on news stories related to fiscal decision-making is important for the purpose of connecting the topics covered in class to what is going on outside the "classroom." It is also important for the purposes of making you aware of the current issues and problems faced in the area of fiscal decision making. Toward this end, you will be required to select two news articles and write a commentary on each. This commentary needs to be prepared in groups. You will also be required to post responses to news article commentaries posted by other groups. Please note that the responses should be posted on an individual basis (i.e., it is only the preparation of the commentaries that needs to be prepared in groups). The specific requirements are discussed below.

Commentaries (5 points)

As part of this requirement you are expected to use the course wikispace to post two separate commentaries for two relevant news articles related to fiscal decision making.

This requirement needs to be completed in groups and the expectation is that your group posts a commentary on an article that you have selected together before a given due date. You will be randomly assigned to a group, and each group will be assigned to post commentaries and responses starting from Lesson 3.

For each of the two articles that your group selects, the group's posting needs to include the following information:

• The reference of the article (if it can be accessed via the Web, please provide the URL)
• Summary of the major issue/topic discussed in the article (approximately 150 words in length)
• Discussion of your view/opinion of the issue (approximately 150 words in length)
• Discussion about how the article relates to fiscal decision making (approximately 100 words in length)

In formulating your summary of the issue please describe the topic/issue, its current significance, and any suggested solutions for resolving the issue that might be outlined in the article. When preparing your view/opinion of the issue, please provide support for any arguments that you make. Finally, in your discussion about how the article relates to fiscal decision making, please reference one or more of the topic areas that are discussed in class.

Responses (5 points)

In addition to posting a commentary on an assigned article, you are also required to post responses to news article commentaries posted by other groups (Note: during the week when your group is assigned to post a commentary, you do not need to respond to the other article commentaries).

In contrast to the commentary postings, which are prepared in groups, the responses that you post are an individual effort. The expectation is that you post, during this semester, thoughtful responses to all eight different article commentaries posted by the other groups. Although there are no specific due dates for when you need to post your responses, you will not be able to post comments to any commentaries two weeks after they are due (i.e.,you only have two weeks to post your comments responses once the commentary is open for commenting).

Your responses should shed further light on the articles and commentaries. As such, your responses might

• focus on aspects of the article or commentary that you agree or disagree with, or
• seek to add further substance to a particular point made in a commentary.

Please keep your posted responses to approximately 100 words in length. In addition, when preparing your responses, it is important that you keep a professional and constructive tone. This is important for creating a learning community where we can learn from each other.

Your news article commentaries contibute 5 points, and responses, 5 points towards your final grade.

Requirement 4: Group Project - Written and Oral Review of Academic Article (25 points)

In this group project, you are required to write and orally present a review of an assigned academic article. The purpose of this assignment is to allow you to grasp and discuss one of the required readings in more depth. Hence, the article that you will be assigned is one of the required readings. All the written reviews will be due Lesson 10. Please use the drop box and not my personal email address for all submissions.

Requirements for Writing Review

Written reviews should take the form of briefing papers in which

1. the major theme or topic is identified:
2. the author(s) method of inquiry and approach is briefly summarized;
3. findings and conclusions noted; and you
4. add some personal assessment of the quality of the argument, significance of the conclusions, and so on.

Briefing reports are the most common professional writing assignments, so mastery of this sort of professional writing is an essential part of the MPA education. Guiding question for organizing and getting started with your review include, but should not be limited to the following:

• What is the goal/purpose of the article?
• Why is it important to pursue/write about the topical area covered?
• What are the major conclusions drawn from the research?
• What is your view of (a) the major contribution(s) of article,
• Did the author(s) offer clear conclusions and was s/he able to support these?
• Do the findings appear to be controversial or mainstream?

Use the style guide for the American Psychological Association (APA) for proper form. Be sure to include citations for all direct quotes and paraphrases. Turn in all assignments as Word files to the appropriate drop box in ANGEL by midnight (Eastern Time) of the due date. In addition, on a separate title page, clearly specify your name and the bibliographical information of the article reviewed. The written review should be 3-4 single-spaced pages in length, excluding the title page and references. Examples of effective briefing papers will be provided to help you understand this type of writing.

Requirements for Oral Presentation

In addition to preparing the written review, your group needs to present your review orally, via VoiceThread. This will entail the following for each group:

• Each group will prepare a brief PowerPoint presentation with narration, based on the information provided in their written review. Each slide should include four or five bullet points at most. The presentation should begin with a slide that provides an overview of the article and end with a slide presenting a list of no more than three questions. These questions are directed to the other groups, who must comment on them. The presentation should consist of approximately 6 slides (not including the title and question slides) and be 10-12 minutes in length.
• The presentation will be open to the entire class to view by the midnight (Eastern Time) of Wednesday in the assigned presentation week. From Thursday to Saturday, each of you should independently review other groups' presentations, and provide your comments to two of the other groups both regarding their general feedback to the presentations (the comments should be added to the topic slide), and responses to the questions (the responses should be added to the questions slide). If a group has the comments from ten students, please choose another group.
• Each group has to review the comments, and submit a summary (approximately 500 words) by Tuesday of the final presentation week.

Your written review contribute 10 points and oral reviews will contribute 5 points toward your final grade. In addition, to assure that everyone participates, an additional 5 points will be assigned based on peer evaluation. That is, group members will grade each other on contributions made toward the review. Each of the 3 parts will be graded on a 1-100 scale that adheres to the grading scheme, listed below.

Requirement 5: Participation (5 points)

The success of this course will to a large extent depend upon your and your classmates' active participation in all of the above discussed activities. This includes carefully preparing for class, posting thoughtful comments, engaging productively in all class assignments and interacting with your group members in a professional manner.

There will be ungraded watercooler discussions throughout the course. Participation is strongly encouraged and will contribute toward your class participation grade. In order to provide enough time to create a fluid conversation, please submit your initial posting no later than Thursday 11:59 p.m. Eastern Time. Also, comment on at least two other posts by the end of the week.

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Grading Scheme

All facets of student's performance are taken into account for grading purposes. The graded activities and the percentage of your course grade associated with the activities are as follows.

Graded Activities		Grade Points
Final Exam		25
Readings
	Assignments	30
	Assessments	10
New Article	Commentaries	5
	Responses	5
Group Project	Written Review	10
	Oral Presentation	5
	Peer Evaluation	5
Participation		5
Total		100

 

Based on the points earned on each of the graded activities, your course grade will be determined by the scales presented in the table below:

GRADING SCALE
Percentage	Grade	Percentage	Grade
94.00 and Above	A	77.00-79.99	C+
90.00-93.99	A-	70.00-76.99	C
87.00-89.99	B+	60.00-69.99	D
83.00-86.99	B	Below 60	F
80.00-82.99	B-

 

Performance is evaluated on the basis of your course work on the assignments listed in the syllabus. Your course grade depends on the points accumulated during the semester. Use the table above to keep a record of your progress.

Note: Your grade on assignments will be reduced by 5% for each day of tardiness in receipt of work by the Instructor. Submit your work on time as scheduled.

Please refer to the University Grading Policy for Graduate Courses for additional information about University grading policies.

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Course Schedule

• Course length: 16 weeks

Note: Deadlines will be defined as 11:59 p.m. Eastern Time on the last day of the lesson timeframe, unless noted different!

Lesson 1: Introduction to Fiscal Decision-Making
Readings:	Cleveland (1915) Smith and Lynch (2004) Mauriello, T. (2009, October 10)
Assignments:	Complete Assignment 1 Budget Impasse. Note: All the assignments in this week are due by 11:59 p.m., Eastern Time, on Sunday.

 

Lesson 2:  Principles of Public Finance - The Role of Government
Readings:	Mikesell -Chapter 1 Walsh (2007) Caro (1998) Hayek (1945)
Assignments:	Complete the required readings. Complete Lesson 2 Assessment of Readings. Do review exercise on Page 5. Complete Assignment 2 Market Failures.

 

Lesson 3: Public Budgeting - An Introduction
Readings:	Mikesell: Chapter 2 (excluding pages 73-77) and Chapter 3 Key (1940) The Pennsylvania budget process. In Pennsylvania Office of the Budget.
Assignments:	Complete the required readings. Complete Lesson 3 Assessment of Readings. Do review exercise on Page 4. Complete Assignment 3 Budget Data Analysis (Note: this is a group assignment).

 

Lesson 4: Budget Methods and Practices - Part I
Readings:	Mikesell: Chapter 4 NCSL Fiscal Brief: State Balanced Budget Provision (2010) The 2009-2010 budget adopted by the city of Dalles
Assignments:	Complete the required readings. Complete Lesson 4 Assessment of Readings. Do review exercises on Page 5 and 6. Participate in the Water Cooler discussion on Page 8. Complete Assignment 4 Budget Content (Note: this is a group assignment).

 

Lesson 5: Budget Methods and Practices - Part II
Readings:	Mikesell Chapter 5 Moynihan (2006) Cothran (1993, Sep/Oct). Dull, M. (2009). Stalebrink & Frisco (2011). U.S. Government Accountability Office. (2008). Fiscal Year 2009-10 Adopted Budget by the city of Dalles,
Assignments:	Complete the required readings. Complete Lesson 5 Assessment of Readings. Participate in the "Water Cooler" Discussions on Page 6. Complete Assignment 5 Program Performance Rating Tool (Note: this is a group assignment).

 

Lesson 6: Capital Budgeting
Readings:	Mikesell Chapter 6 Samuelson (2010) Listen to the radio segment on Lesson Learned from 35W Bridge Collapse
Assignments:	Complete the required readings. Complete Lesson 6 Assessment of Readings. Do review exercises on Pages 4, 5, and 6. Complete Assignment 6 Benefit-Cost Analysis.

 

Lesson 7: Taxation - Criteria for Evaluating Revenue Options
Readings:	Mikesell Chapter 7 Harper, Hawkins, & Sjolander (2003) Davey (2011)
Assignments:	Complete the required readings. Complete Lesson 7 Assessment of Readings. Participate in the Water Cooler discussion on Page 6. Complete Assignment 7 Tax Policy (Note: this is a group assignment).

 

Lesson 8: Taxation - Income Taxes
Readings:	Mikesell Chapter 8 Edwards & Wallace (2004).
Assignments:	Complete the required readings. Complete Lesson 8 Assessment of Readings. Do review exercises on Pages 5 and 6. Participate in the Watercooler Discussion on Page 7. Complete Assignment 8 Calculation of Effective Tax Rate.

 

Lesson 9: Taxation – Taxes on Goods and Services
Readings:	Mikesell Chapter 9 State, Federal, and Local Taxes by National Conference of State Legislatures (NCSL) Davis et al. (2009)
Assignments:	Complete the required readings. Complete Lesson 9 Assessment of Readings. Participate in the Water Cooler Discussion on Page 6. Continue to work on the group written review, which is due by the end of next week.

 

Lesson 10: Taxation – Property Taxes
Readings:	Mikesell Chapter 10 O'Leary (2009) Business: Trying to change an unfair tax. (1971)
Assignments:	Complete the required readings. Complete Lesson 10 Assessment of Readings. Participate in the Water Cooler discussion on Page 5. Do review exercise on Page 6. Complete Assignment 10 Property Tax. Submit Group Written Review.

 

Lesson 11: Predicting Revenues
Readings:	Mikesell Chapter 11 Lauth & Robbins (2002) Cook (2010) Hughes. (2007)
Assignments:	Complete the required readings. Complete Lesson 11 Assessment of Readings. Participate in the Water Cooler discussions on Pages 4 and 6. Complete Assignment 11 Gambling and Educational Funding.

 

Lesson 12: Debt Administration
Readings:	Mikesell: Chapter 12
Assignments:	Complete the required readings Complete Lesson 12 Assessment of Readings. Do review exercises on Pages 4 and 5. Participate in the "Water Cooler" discussion on Page 6.

 

Group Presentation
Readings:	None.
Assignments:	The presentation will be open to the entire class to view by the 11:59 p.m. (Eastern Time) of Wednesday via VoiceThread. From Thursday to Saturday, review other groups' presentations, and provide your comments to two of the other groups regarding their general feedback to the presentations, and responses to the questions. Fill out the Peer Evaluation form (Note: you can access it via the Activities link on the left-hand menu).

 

Final Week
Readings:	None.
Assignments:	Submit a group summary by Tuesday, 11:59 p.m. Eastern Time. Take the exam (Note: you must submit the exam no later than Friday, 11:59 p.m. Eastern Time.

 

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Academic Integrity

 

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Policies

• Accommodating Disabilities
• Student Responsibilities
• Late Policy

 

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Disclaimer: Please note that the specifics of this Course Syllabus are subject to change, and you will be responsible for abiding by any such changes. Your instructor will notify you of any changes.

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