This is an edited excerpt from remarks by Dean Henry Brady on Monday, May 14, at the graduation ceremonies for the Goldman School of Public Policy Public policy analysis deals with the hard problems faced in the public and non-profit sectors where we must bring political values to bear in the most effective way to solve difficult public problems. In the process, we are often confronted with difficult moral dilemmas. Let me give an example. As with every year, and as…

Gene Bardach’s classic Eight Fold Path tells us that doing policy analysis requires eight steps:  identifying problems, assessing their severity, constructing alternative approaches, evaluating them, projecting likely outcomes, confronting tradeoffs, deciding, and telling a story.   Some academics focus on the first four or five of these steps, and never confront tradeoffs, decide, and tell a story that leads to policy changes.   GSPP’s faculty excel at these first steps, but they also…

I am very pleased to announce that the American Academy of Arts and Sciences announced today that Professor Hilary Hoynes of the Goldman School has been elected to the American Academy of Arts and Sciences. The American Academy is one of the oldest and most prestigious honorary societies in America, and it is a leading center for independent policy research in the United States. Election to the Academy is considered one of the nation's highest honors since its founding…

• States should reconsider credits, exemptions, deductions  • Volatile revenue, pressure to cut taxes are factors  • Some states are more transparent than others  (Bloomberg Law) -- States must reconsider every part of their own tax codes as they figure out the impact the new federal tax act will have on their finances, an official with a government excellence and efficiency group said. As states evaluate changes in taxpayer behavior and state revenue, they…

Imagine that you’ve been given a map of the entire rail system in India with the assignment to determine where to place grain silos in order to maximize utility and minimize transportation costs. Or perhaps you’ve been tasked with determining how many coast guard helicopters are needed to monitor the Hawaiian coastline and where they should be located. How would you go about solving such problems? These are the kinds of policy challenges tackled in Professor…

NEW YORK, Feb. 16, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- The Goldman School of Public Policy at the University of California, Berkeley and the Volcker Alliance will host a half-day discussion in Sacramento on Wednesday, February 21, featuring three panels on California's budgeting and transparency practices, the state's unique fiscal landscape, and the fiscal challenges it will face this year and in years to come. The event will be open to the…

After more than two years of debate, the California State Legislature passed and Governor Jerry Brown signed into law Senate Bill 1 (Beall & Frazier), a bipartisan transportation funding measure designed to address California’s growing backlog of deferred maintenance on local streets and roads, state highways and public transit systems. The measure, which will generate $52.4 billion over the next ten years from increases in various taxes and fees, was a top priority for Governor Brown in a year that…

Every morning, when we open our front door, whether we drive or bike to work, take our kids to school, take the bus or train, or go to the farmer’s market, we begin our trip on a city street or county road.  But these are challenging times due to increased demand and unreliable funding. In California, there is a significant focus on climate change and building sustainable communities, yet sustainable communities cannot function without a well-maintained local…

Christian Arana (MPP '17) is the Policy Director for the Latino Community Foundation. In partnership with Univision, he organized a nationally televised debate with the top six candidates in the California governor's race.  How did you end up being tasked with organizing the first gubernatorial debate of this election season? The idea behind the Gubernatorial Debate actually came out of my job interview process. When asked how we could elevate the status of the foundation in the civic engagement…

The Goldman School welcomes Anne Campbell Washington (MPP '00), a graduate of the Goldman School of Public Policy and currently an Oakland City Council Member, as the new Executive Director of the Master of Public Affairs program.  During her 12 year career in the City of Oakland, Annie was Chief of Staff to Mayor Jerry Brown, Chief of Staff to Mayor Jean Quan, Assistant to three City Administrators, Chief of Staff to the Fire Chief, and a Budget and Policy Analyst.…