Influence of Politics on Leisure Policy Development

1. Chapter 11 C H A P T E R 11 Leisure, Politics,and Public Policy Robert Barcelona

2. Learning Outcomes • Understand the concept of politics and its connection with leisure behavior. • Understand the government’s role in leisure services provision. • Understand how politics influences the development of public policy. • Become familiar with the key public policy areas affecting leisure behavior.

3. Leisure and Politics • Personal preferences • Developmental experiences • Freedom • Intrinsic reward • Positive effect • Power • Control • Influence • Policy • Stakeholders • Government

4. Leisure and Political Decisions • Leisure is experienced individually and socially. • Leisure takes place in public spaces (e.g., parks, playgrounds, schools, recreation centers). • Decisions must be made about public leisure services provision.

5. Government’s Role • Formal levels of government • Executive branch • Legislative branch • Judicial branch • Form of these branches may differ by political system

6. Legislative Branch • Introduce bills • Make laws • Control budget and allocate funds • Serve as check on executive branch (continued)

7. Legislative Branch (continued) • Legislation: National Park Service Act of 1916, Multiple Use Act, Wilderness Act, Federal Water Protection Act, Wild and Scenic Rivers Act, National Trails Systems Act • Enabling legislation at federal and state levels • Blue laws and other laws regulating and controlling leisure behavior (continued)

8. Legislative Branch (continued) • Separation of powers in the United States • Parliamentary forms of government (Great Britain and Canada) have stronger legislatures that both make and execute laws.

9. Executive Branch • Sets policy • Carries out the work of the legislature • Many public policy priorities related to recreation and leisure carried out by the executive branch in the U.S. (National Park Service) • No coordinated, federal policy focused on leisure, recreation, or sport in the United States, unlike other Western democracies

10. Judicial Branch • State systems and federal systems both set up to try both civil and criminal cases • Supremacy Clause in the U.S. Constitution: federal system takes precedence when state and federal laws conflict • In the U.S., federal judiciary made up of three tiers: district courts, circuit courts of appeals, Supreme Court (continued)

11. Judicial Branch (continued) • Most cases involving parks and recreation heard in district courts or circuit courts of appeal • Examples: • District Court of the District of Columbia: snowmobile bans in Yellowstone National Park • District Court of Northern District of California: restricted access of off-road vehicles in Imperial Sand Dunes

12. Federalism • Constitutional arrangement of balancing and sharing rights and powers between different levels of government • Government has significant responsibility in managing recreation resources and delivering leisure services (continued)

13. Federalism (continued) • Five characteristics: • Shared rule and local self-rule • Constitutionally protected autonomy of each government unit • Written constitution and courts to settle disputes • Constitution amendment process • Central government that represents various units of government in federal system (continued)

14. Federalism (continued) • Important for students to understand concepts of federalism because of the connection between political units and leisure services provision • In U.S., three levels of government: federal, state, and local

15. Federal Government • Plays large role in land and natural resources management for recreation and conservation: National Park Service, National Forest Service, Bureau of Land Management, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Army Corps of Engineers • Provides funding for federal, state, and local recreation projects: Land and Water Conservation Fund, Community Development Block Grant Program, 21st Century Community Learning Centers Program (continued)

16. Federal Government (continued) • Responsible for program delivery: Armed Forces morale, welfare (or well-being), and recreation programs (MWR); therapeutic recreation services through U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs

17. State Government • Mirrors or parallels federal government priorities • Manages large outdoor recreation areas, state parks, forests, nature areas, historical sites, trail systems • Often assists in land acquisition and development for state priorities through matching grant programs (e.g., LWCF) • Provides regulation and oversight (e.g., environment, safety codes, licensing)

18. Local Government: Municipalities • Cities, towns, and villages • Smallest unit of government • Mayor and city council (mayor or city manager–council forms of governance) • Provides a broad range of programs and facilities for citizens • Funded through combination of tax dollars, user fees, and other forms of funding (e.g., sponsorships, grants)

19. Local Government: Counties • Offer park and recreation services generally focused on rural or unincorporated areas • Parallel services to those found in municipalities • Often work together with municipalities to coordinate efforts and avoid duplication of services • In the U.S., county-level government is stronger or weaker depending on the state and region of the country

20. Local Government: Special Districts • Created by enabling legislation • Have authority to tax and administer specific services • Example is Greenville County (South Carolina) Recreation District

21. Pluralism • Political activity can work outside the boundaries of formal government. • Individuals and interest groups organize to support and advocate for their interests and to influence public policy. • Citizen action is an important component of public policy formation in parks, recreation, and leisure services.

22. Politics • The process of various interest groups working, and sometimes competing, to influence the institutions of government to advance ideas and policies that reflect their goals • Involves formal government and political institutions, interest groups, and individuals

23. Politics and Leisure • Life politics: a nonparty form of social and cultural orientation focusing on issues of lifestyle, environment, and globalization • Citizens advocate for the kind of world they want to live in and engage the political process to make these changes

24. Civic Engagement Continuum

25. Public Policy • Activities of government, working directly or through its agents, that have an influence on the lives of citizens • Three levels of policy that affect citizens • Policy choices • Policy outputs • Policy impacts

26. Justification for Public Recreation • Historically, recreation seen as a means of social reform • Government is in the best position to build capacity for recreation services delivery, develop infrastructure, and conserve land • Recreation seen as a social good: benefits of recreation accrue to both users and nonusers • Efficiency, equity, preservation of resources