Assessing the DHEW Partnership Grants Program: A Study of State and Local Government Capacity Building

摘要

The partnership grants program was initiated by DHEW in 1974 to assist State and local governments in improving their capacities to plan and manage human services. Weaknesses in the Federal grant - in - aid system were defined as excessive fragmentation of program responsibility at all levels of government, piecemeal approaches to complex issues, overcentralization of decisionmaking at the Federal level, and lack of accountability of elected officials for program performance. An unintended consequence of Federal policies had resulted in the severe limitation of the role and authority of State and local governments in program planning and delivery. Projects were funded in chief officials' offices, controlling or planning agencies, umbrella human services departments, governance agencies, regional bodies, and public interest associations. A primary lesson of the partnership experience is that technology transfer becomes political when applied in pluralistic human services settings, and success depends on whether a jurisdiction is ready for the technology. Maintaining chief official support is a critical dimension in successful implementation of the reform. Line agencies or planning departments must confront difficulties of working effectively with control agencies. The success of the partnership project was limited; the grants were small, and sufficient interest in service reform was not generated among chief officials. Proposals for action suggest that DHEW conduct a training program for its personnel on intergovernmental issues and that attention be directed toward lessening the tension between national and regional offices within the Federal agencies. Appendices show procedures involved in data collection of the 20 partnership projects, and evaluation guidelines are provided. Portions of this document are not fully legible.