Top-Down Federalism: State Policy Responses to National Government Discussions

Pamela J. Clouser McCann, Charles R. Shipan and Craig Volden

Publius: The Journal of Federalism, 2015, vol. 45, issue 4, 495-525

Abstract: The national government can influence state-level policymaking by adopting laws that specifically direct the states to take certain actions or by providing financial incentives. But can national institutions also influence state-level policy change by drawing attention to an issue and by providing information about it, even when these activities do not produce new national laws? In other words, do policy ideas diffuse from the national government to the states? In this article, we examine whether hearings and the introduction of bills in Congress about antismoking restrictions influenced state-level adoptions between 1975 and 2000. Our findings reveal that national policy activities stimulated state policy adoptions, but only for states with professionalized legislatures and strong policy advocates.

Date: 2015
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