Disaster Relief - Research Paper Example

When the government relief operations machine hums efficiently, we see our government at work and conclude that its disaster relief policies are working. But how are these public policies on disaster relief formulated? What happens behind the great doors of congress that makes the policy as it is? What happens at the oval office that makes a difference in the public policies of the United States government? However, the most critical is the last question: What happens outside of these government offices that affect the outcome of our public policies?

In this paper, I shall attempt to evaluate the different roles performed by different agencies in the formulation of our public policy on disaster relief, including the dynamics between and among these entities. Public policy is defined simply as “whatever governments choose to do or not to do.”2 In other words, every action by the government’s three branches – the executive, legislative and judicial – is governed by a pre-determined course of action. It necessarily includes the decision not to do anything about a certain issue.

Interestingly, this interpretation also works in reverse wherein government action and inaction results in public policy. That is, in the form of lessons learned from its previous mistakes. There have been identified distinct stages in the policymaking process. These are problem identification, agenda setting, policy formulation, policy legitimation, policy implementation, and policy evaluation.3 For each of the aforementioned stage, a different group of actors is involved and a different dynamics between these concurring and opposing interest occur.

Each actor is espousing a specific opinion or direction for the policy being formulated, each trying to promote its interests. It is the democratic process’ hopeful expectation that when different groups try to put into the policy their