Public and private section partnerships in the global context :

VOLUNTAS: International Journal of Voluntary and Nonprofit Organizations - Food banks are a particular type of voluntary sector organization that bridges the government sector, private sector, and...     

Food Banking and Food Insecurity in High-Income Countries

VOLUNTAS: International Journal of Voluntary and Nonprofit Organizations - Food banks are a particular type of voluntary sector organization that bridges the government sector, private sector, and...     

The importance of demographic analyses in state- and local-level policy evaluations: A case study analysis of property taxes in Texas,USA

The reluctance of policy-makers to incorporate detailed demographic analyses in policy analyses often means that population composition is ignored in state and local policy evaluations. This article uses standard demographic projection, standardization and rate decomposition techniques to examine the implications of changing population composition for the property tax revenue base of Texas. The authors find that if current socioeconomic differentials persist into the future, projected compositional changes in the household population of Texas will significantly impact property tax revenues. Thus revenue projections based on aggregate growth and current average property value would seriously overestimate future property tax revenues in Texas because changes in the composition of the population lead to disproportionate growth in households likely to live in lower valued housing unite. The results indicate that the continuing focus of state and local policy-makers on changes in population size alone may be ill-advised and demonstrate the increasing importance of local- and state-level demographic analysis in a period of increasing Federal devolution of service provision.     

Support for Waste Facility Siting: Differences between Community Leaders and Residents

Abstract Decisions regarding hazardous waste facility siting are now open to extensive public debate. Efforts on the part of public officials and private companies to site waste management facilities have been thwarted by public opposition. Using survey data from leaders and residents in communities which are hosting or siting facilities, this study examines their sociodemographic characteristics, knowledge, levels of trust, perceptions of risk, perceptions of economic impacts, perceptions of equity issues and the differential effects of these factors on acceptance of local waste facility siting. Leaders in these communities were more supportive of local waste facility siting than were other community residents. The major determinant of leaders' acceptance of waste siting was their perceptions of the economic benefits of a facility to the community. Although this was also important to residents, perceptions of health, safety, and environmental contamination risks had larger effects on their acceptance of such facilities.     

An assessment of the accuracy of a regional economic-demographic projection model

A large number of regional economic-demographic projection models have been developed but their accuracy has seldom been evaluated. This article examines the accuracy of one such model in projecting total populations for 1980, using 1970 base data, for 106 counties and 553 places in two states. Comparisons of the model's projections to 1980 Census counts reveal mean percentage absolute differences of 10 percent for counties and 14 percent for places. In addition, the model's accuracy was comparable to that for alternative projection systems. When projections for places of less than 1,000 are excluded, differences are substantially reduced. Economic-demographic models appear to be quite useful and deserve further attention.     

Toward Client-Centered Service: Asking Clients for Their Views of TANF,Food Stamps,Child Care,and Medicaid Services

ABSTRACT

This article presents the results of a randomized study that asked Division of Family and Children Services' (DFCS) clients throughout the state of Georgia to rate their satisfaction with Temporary Assistance to Needy Families (TANF), food stamps, child care services, and Medicaid services, as well as their perspectives of the customer service they received through their county DFCS offices. Telephone interviews were conducted with 2,408 clients. Overall client satisfaction percentages are: TANF, 80%; food stamps, 88%; child care, 92%; and Medicaid, 94%. Satisfaction indices were also created from the data collected. Client suggestions for improvement are presented as well as practice and educational implications.     

The Implications of Change in Population Size,Distribution, and Composition on the Number of Overweight and Obese Adults and the Direct and Indirect Cost Associated with Overweight and Obese Adults in Texas Through 2040

Changes in population characteristics are associated with changes in the prevalence of physical and related health conditions with alternative types of population change leading to change in the prevalence of certain conditions. Examination of the effects of future demographic change on such conditions is, in turn, critical for understanding the future need for various types of health-related facilities and services. This article provides an example of how future demographic changes are likely to impact overweight and obese status in Texas, a rapidly growing and diversifying state. Specifically it uses population decomposition techniques to examine the relative impacts of population growth, aging and changes in the racial/ethnic composition of the population on increases in the prevalence and related costs of overweight and obesity in Texas, an important input for the formulation of statewide health policies. The number of overweight adults in Texas is projected to increase from 5.5 million in 2000 to 16.0 million in 2040, and the number of obese adults to increase from 3.5 million in 2000 to 14.6 million in 2040. The largest projected increases occur among Hispanics and other minority populations and for all race/ethnicity groups the increases are largest among those who are 65 years of age and older. Decomposition analysis indicates that of the projected increase of 10.5 million overweight adults from 2000 to 2040, 54.0% is attributable to population increase, 15.0% to change in age distribution, and 31.0% to change in racial/ethnic composition. Of the projected increase in the number of obese adults, 61.6% is due to population change and 38.4% to change in racial/ethnic composition. The annual costs associated with overweight and obesity prevalence are expected to increase from $10.5 billion in 2000 to $10.5 billion in 2000 to 40.3 billion in 2040. The results suggest that services to address these conditions will need to be widely dispersed across the state with particular concentrations of the elderly, Hispanics, and Other minority populations.     

ETHNIC ENCLOSURE OR ETHNIC COMPETITION: Ethnic Identification Among Hispanics in Texas

Recent theoretical debates have focused on the utility of two alternative perspectives on ethnic identification. However, empirical support for either is neither consistent nor conclusive and previous analyses seldom conceptually or empirically examine the aggregate macrostructural determinants of ethnic identification. This study reevaluates the relative merits of the ethnic enclosure and ethnic competition perspectives among Texan Hispanics using aggregate 1980 Census of Population data for 139 Texas cities with large Hispanic populations. The rejection of the ethnic enclosure thesis in some recent research is unwarranted, as the empirical evidence provides it substantial support and little for the ethnic competition perspective. Further analyses of structural factors in ethnic identification are merited.     

Natural Resource Availability and Social Change

Environmental sociology is founded on the assumption that the natural resource base of a society establishes the limits or constraints within which that society must operate. Thus, a change in the resource base on which a society depends will necessitate changes or adaptations within that society. This study attempts to empirically test these assumptions by looking at the effects of groundwater availability in the Great Plains of the United States from 1940 to 1980. Using a model derived from human ecology theory, it was found that irrigation development had major implications on nonmetropolitan counties during the time period studied. Irrigation development resulted in increased agricultural production, variations in the structure of farm enterprises, and in increased retention of both farm and nonfarm populations.