Policy-making process - Essay Example

Policy-Making Process: Immigration Policy The five processes in policy-making include identification of objectives, policy formation, adoption of the best solution, implementation, and evaluation of the policy directives. Policymakers identify the issues the policy is intended to solve in the first stage of policy-making. The issue proceeds to the second stage if it gains sufficient attention. In the second stage, the policy-makers strategize and brainstorm the ways of addressing the unresolved issues. The agenda is set that paves way for the alternative selection. The third stage entails the development of the alternative policy responses to the public problems. At this stage, the makers select the policy tools to use to address the problem after the enactment (Birkland 26). The enactment implies the passage of the law and issuance of regulation that take a particular course to solve the problem. Reaching the formal decision leads the implementation stage. Publicizing the policy is critical in the implementation stage. The policymakers create statements that consist of clear parameters including the targets, conditions, and restrictions (Birkland 27). Evaluation is the last stage in the policymaking process, and results of the assessment provide feedback to the process. The members can decide to change or create a new policy.
The Immigration Policy in the United States typifies the five stages of policy-making policy. The policy has attracted spirited debates, and key citizens, including the president call for changes in immigration policy. The formation of the Immigration Policy dates back in 1924 although various reforms have taken place after the evaluation stage of the policy-making process. The policy-makers identified that illegal immigrants of African and Asian origin were getting into the United States in enormous numbers (Renwick and Lee). The natives were extremely hostile towards the immigrants. Hence, the identification stage intended to control the influx of the immigrants. After the identification of the immigrants menace in US, the policymakers brainstormed on the methods to control the entry of the immigrants to the US. The proponents suggested that the immigrants provided cheap labor while opponents contended the aliens posed a threat to the job market. The policymakers set restrictions on the immigrants and established methods of banning the immigrants from the Asian continent. The policymakers settled for the enactment of the laws to govern the immigration. The best alternative imposed limits on the influx of immigrants, especially from Mexico.
The immigration policy became practical after the government published it and offered guidelines on the way to restrict immigrants from entering the United States. The immigration law restricted the immigrants. The proponents have been claiming that the policy threats to disrupt the labor provided by the immigrants (Renwick and Lee). In essence, the contradictions of the immigration law and economic realities have compelled constant evaluation of the immigrant policy. The evaluation stage has prompted various amendments to the immigration policy. President Obama has urged the policymakers to reexamine the immigration policy. Similarly, the anxiety and public fears have agitated for the adjustment of the immigration policy. The Congress has been reluctant to pass any reforms to the immigration policy.
Works Cited
Birkland, Thomas. Introduction to the Policy Process. London: M. E. Sharp, 2011. Print.
Renwick, Danielle and Lee, Brianna. The US Immigration Debate. Web. 25 Mar 2015 < http://www.cfr.org/immigration/us-immigration-debate/p11149> Read More