Publication Date

Spring 2025

Degree Type

Master's Project

Degree Name

Master of Public Administration (MPA)

Department

Urban and Regional Planning

First Advisor

Laureen Hom

Keywords

Collaborative governmance, Intergovernmental relations, Santa Clara country

Abstract

In the United States, intergovernmental relations (IGR) is rooted in the principles of American federalism, which focuses on the constitutional power dynamics between national, state, and local governments. While federalism outlines the structural framework, IGR specifically focuses on how federal, state, and local governments interact administratively, financially, and politically within the federal system. Beginning in the 1960’s, governments across the U.S. began to rely on non-governmental and private sector organizations for program implementation (Boyd & Fauntroy, 2000). This shift gave rise to the concept of collaborative governance, which expanded the scope of IGR by incorporating traditionally excluded groups from the governmental process. Today, a reliance on collaboration between governmental and non-governmental actors has become standard practice in public administration, therefore, understanding how best to use IGR as a tool for effective governance is critical for public administrators and policy makers nationwide.

This study will focus on the policy to eliminate youth access to tobacco, as it has high levels of engagement from the other cities in the County. As of 2025, five of the thirteen cities (excluding Monte Sereno and Los Altos Hills) in Santa Clara County have implemented a tobacco retail license ordinance that aligns with the County ordinance. This research will examine how the intergovernmental relationships between the County and each of the thirteen cities affects policy adoption and implementation using a model framework on collaborative governance. The framework, developed by Emerson, Nabatchi, and Balogh (2012), outlines a set of components they propose as necessary for successful collaborative governance and policy implementation, including 10 propositions about what leads to collaboration and effective outcomes. Using the framework and the propositions, this study will analyze the SCC HCI program, using data from the County’s online dashboard and publicly available documents, to compare cities in three different categories; 1) those who have fully implemented the policy, 2) those who have started but not finished, and 3) those who have not yet started. Information was collected from city council documents, news articles, and city webpages to indicate whether specific elements were present in each city's policy adoption process. These findings will show whether or not cities followed all or some of the propositions from the Emerson et al. (2012) model and the analysis will identify whether or not patterns arise from this review that can be recommended to the SCC HCI program.

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