To explain the fundamentals of public policy, this best-selling text focuses on the process behind the crafting of legislation. By examining the individual steps--from identifying a problem, to agenda setting, to evaluation, revision, or termination of a policy--students are able to see how different factors influence the creation of policy. Each chapter features at least one case study to illustrate how general ideas are applied to specific policy issues. The Sixth Edition has been restructured to make the text more accessible; updated examples and expanded discussion of recent policy decisions and events, including Election 2004, have also been added. New! "The Plan of this Book" has been moved to the beginning of Chapter 1 to more clearly delineate the approach and goals of the text to the student reader. New! Recent policy enactments are dissected for discussion. Topics include the 2002 Bipartisan Campaign Reform Act, the 2002 National Commission on Terrorist Attacks, 1996 Federal Agricultural Improvement and Reform Act, and the PATRIOT Act. New! Updated examples--including coverage of Election 2004--help students make sense of difficult topics. New! Chapter 7 has been reorganized to present material more intuitively, focusing first on impact, then evaluation including methods, processes (who evaluates policy) and problems relating to the evaluation of policy, then change. A process-oriented approach helps the student understand public policy by viewing it as a sequence of functional activities--beginning with identification and concluding with evaluation, revision, or termination of a policy. This approach is generally preferred by instructors over the policy-oriented approach.