From time to time, we use the OK Policy blog to post contributions that offer interesting perspectives on important policy issues for the state. Michael Lipsky is a Distinguished Senior Fellow at Demos, a non-partisan public policy research and advocacy organization. An expanded 30th Anniversary edition of Michael’s book, Street Level Bureaucracy, will be published this month. This post originally ran on the Demos blog, ideasactionblog.org

The first week in May was Public Service Recognition Week. Although the week in principle is dedicated to all public service workers, most of the attention went to the civilian federal workers who number two million throughout the country and overseas.

But there are other public service workers who deserve more than passing recognition: the 15 million men and women who work in state, county and municipal governments around the country. Read the rest of this entry »

From time to time, we will use the OK Policy blog to post submissions we receive from Oklahomans who have interesting perspectives on important policy issues for the state. This submission is from Karin Brandenburg, an Oklahoman who works in the homeland security field and counts seven Oklahoma military families in her family lineage, and Wanda deBruler, an Oklahoman who monitors legislation that affects policy on families. The opinions stated below are not necessarily the opinions of OK Policy, its staff, or its board. This blog is a venue to help promote the discussion of ideas from a variety of different points of view.

A bill that could have a huge impact on 400,000 military families in Oklahoma fell short of passage during the last legislative session but is still under consideration. Anyone concerned with the welfare of Oklahoma families should be paying this issue close attention. Read the rest of this entry »

The Brookings Institution recently released a study of the continuing shift of jobs away from cities and toward the suburbs. According to Job Sprawl Revisited: The Changing Geography of Metropolitan Employment, only 21 percent of Americans who live in metropolitan areas work within three miles of a downtown area. All but three of the 98 areas studied have seen jobs move further away from the city center from 1998 to 2006. Nearly every industry is involved in this outward shift.

Only 21 percent of employees in the largest 98 metro areas work within three miles of downtown, while over twice that share (45 percent) work more than 10 miles away from the city center.

Oklahoma’s major metropolitan areas are joining in this trend. Our jobs are not as spread out as most metro areas, but lately they have been spreading faster. Just under a quarter of Oklahoma City (23.9 percent) and Tulsa (23.1 percent) jobs are 10 or more miles from the city center, compared to the national average of 45 percent. From 1998-2006, Oklahoma City share of jobs in this “outer ring” has grown by 4.6 percentage points; in Tulsa it grew by 3.8 percentage points. Both are considerably higher than the national average growth of 2.6 percent.

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It’s taken me awhile, but I finally made it to the White House blog, which has been up and running since President Obama’s inauguration. For those interested in paying attention to what is going on in the White House, the blog, which is updated several times daily and includes a wide range of contributors, is an invaluable source of materials and information. In addition to entries tied to press releases coming from the President or members of his Administration, the blog includes transcripts and videos of press conferences, public speeches, town hall meetings, and the President’s weekly radio address, along with lots and lots of pictures. When the President makes a major announcement, as with last week’s commitment to cut $17 billion in federal spending as part of the FY’10 budget, the blog provides a space for the Administration to lay out its case and guide the public to more detailed information.

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