Faculty Publications

State-Local Relations In Policy Implementation: The Case Of Highway Transportation In Iowa

Document Type

Article

Journal/Book/Conference Title

Publius

Volume

18

Issue

1

First Page

79

Last Page

95

Abstract

This article examines relationships between state agencies and local communities, using survey and interview data from a case study of the Iowa Department of Transportation. It argues that these relationships often parallel the agency-clientele relationships observed by public administration scholars. The agency derives similar benefits from local government support as from private clientele support, namely, an independent power base that helps to preserve its flow of resources and its administrative autonomy. IDOT possesses formidable political resources in the breadth and intensity of its clientele, but the key to IDOT's success is the skillful utilization of those resources through an administrative strategy stressing the development of widely accepted technical decision-criteria and an administrative style emphasizing accessibility, responsiveness, and flexibility. A survey of mayors and local business leaders shows that this strategy has generated widespread positive perceptions of the department among these clientele groups. © 1988, CSF Associates, Philadelphia.

Department

Department of Political Science

Original Publication Date

1-1-1988

DOI of published version

10.2307/3330382

Link to Full Text

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