The Politics of Public Budgeting.

• Author: McElravy, Jeff
• Position: Book Reviews

Irene S. Rubin

New York, NY: Chatham House Publishers, 2000. (310 pp)

Reviewed by Jeff McElravy, policy analyst, GFOA Research and Consulting Center, Chicago, Illinois.

The fourth edition of Irene Rubin's best-known text updates her previous work and focuses on the evolution of public budgeting. She emphasizes recent efforts to improve accountability and to achieve budgetary balance at all levels of government. Four themes permeate the book: that the budget process has rigid constraints, engages multiple actors with differing goals, expresses the current environment, and attempts to resolve the tension generated by the separation of those who pay from those who make the decisions.

The book is organized around Rubin's five "decision clusters" of budgeting: revenues, process, expenditures, balance, and implementation. As with previous editions, minicases are spread throughout the text to bring a real-world context to each chapter. The introductory chapter covers the basics, explaining how public budgeting is both political and unique, and discussing the actors and the environment that characterize the process.

The discussion of revenue politics explores the value of fiscal transparency and effective communication of public needs. Rubin also addresses the means by which governments raise revenue, as well as strategies for increasing tax revenue. However, the focus of the chapter is on tax expenditures at all levels of government, especially their fairness, effectiveness, and long-term impact on revenues.

The chapters on process strongly assert that process drives outcomes. Focusing on the federal budget, Rubin uses examples of budgetary behavior that cross all levels of government. She is careful to point out where state and local processes differ from those of the federal government. Rubin examines efforts designed to change the process, as well as those designed to change outcomes. Of the most value to students is the excellent description of the competition among actors for key positions and influence. Rubin succinctly covers the budgetary actors, their motivations, and how the process allocates power among stakeholders. She then devotes an entire...