This instance may make the school unable to obtain the best price on a piece of property if the landowner is able to search public records to find out bargaining information to use as leverage in obtaining full price on the sale.
One of the duties of public administration is to oversee benefit programs for those members of the community who need public assistance. A government program that requires payment to anyone who meets specific qualifications is called an entitlement program. Those members of the community who meet criteria set up as guidelines to the programs are 'entitled' to the benefits of such plans as Social Security, Medicare, food stamps, etc. There are many more people entitled to these benefits at the present time because the economy is still struggling. As it improves there will be fewer people who will need these kinds of programs, but there will always be members of society who need them, and it is unrealistic to believe that these programs can ever be phased out.
The Food Stamp program, for example, was first started during the Great Depression in 1939 and still continues to serve needy families today with food purchase benefits. Families who qualify financially for this program are awarded monthly benefits for food purchases. This used to be in the form of...
This reduces some of the uncomfortable stigma that a lot of people felt when they were required to present their food stamps to the cashier and also makes the entire transaction faster and easier. The program is overseen by the Department of Agriculture and serves millions of households each year.
The benefits of the program are obvious, as it helps to combat poverty and hunger in the United States, however one disadvantage of the program is the presence of fraud and people who seem to "abuse the system" and come to rely heavily on it. In the 1980's, critics of the program blamed food stamps and other welfare programs for enticing illegal and nonworking legal immigrants to the United States. A major reform act in 1996 helped to cut spending in the program and re-allocate many benefit dollars to local food charities. While there is still waste within the system, it is not nearly as bad as it used to be. Improvements have been made and continue to be made so that people who really need the benefits can get them, those who are trying to take advantage will be weeded out, and the system as a whole will run more efficiently and effectively for those who need it and those who oversee and regulate it.
