The study's objective is to examine the implementation of the Upward Mobility Program (UM) in the Atlanta Regional Office of Personnel Management (OPM) and other selected federal agencies. It is the writer's view that the spirit of the program is an admirable one since it attempts to qualitatively improve the skills and elevate lower GS grade employees to higher grades. In its analysis of the implementation of UM the study discovers important gaps between the promise and performance of the program. Management's commitment to the program varies from agency to agency. Employees participation in the program is low, largely because of insufficient knowledge about the program and general inactivity in some agencies. OPM, where the writer was interned, exhibited ineffective implementation and therefore few employees actually benefit from UM. Knowledge about OPM's ineffective Upward Mobility Program was obtained through participant observation and interviewing relevant employees. Information on the other agencies discussed in the study was obtained from secondary data.

The objective of this thesis is to present a rational plan of procedures designed to facilitate operation at the Fulton County Juvenile Court in the event of civil unrest, causing an influx of juveniles. Additionally, discussions have been presented to illustrate the need for this type of plan at the Fulton County Juvenile Court. During civil disorder, the Fulton County Juvenile Court increases the probability of reducing its effectiveness and efficiency without a plan which directs court personnel regarding who will do what, when, where, and for how long. In processing juveniles in a manner which underscores the seriousness of act they commit, legislated time-limits must also be observed lest the rights of juveniles be abridged. As the Wayne County Juvenile Court of Detroit, Michigan experienced with its plan during civil unrest, the following were invaluable: (1) a prior determination of what or who will declare an emergency, and, (2) outlined communication, detention, intake, judicial, security, and general procedures. This plan for the Fulton County Juvenile Court has the same inclusions. The primary sources of information included The Anatomy of a Riot by James H. Lincoln, Task Force studies on civil disorders and observations of juvenile court procedures by the writer. Other data was gathered from interviews and a juvenile court plan of Los Angeles, California.

Recent scholarship from political science, urban studies, and sociology conceptualizes the city as a space of decentralized democracy – a view emphasizing localization, participation, difference, and anti-hierarchical organizational form. Instead of conceiving the city as a place of atomized individuals and a locale for market exchange, this alternative framework recognizes the city‘s role as ―civitas‖ – a ―space of active democratic citizenship‖ and ―full human realization‖ based on open and free encounter and exchange with difference. The current research emerges from and fills a need within this perspective by examining how local urban contexts undergird and bolster new movement organizations (NMOs). Theory elaborates how urban density, land-use mix, housing age diversity, and connectivity generate and enable interaction with the social diversity fundamental to decentralized and anti-hierarchical NMOs. In addition, theory also examines how urban walking mediates the relationships between these urban contextual traits and NMOs. Linear regression is used to assess the direct effects of density, connectivity, land-use mix, and urban walking on NMO activity (measured as human rights, environmental, and social advocacy groups), and the Sobel test is employed to assess mediation. Data to measure the NMO dependent variable come from the 2007 ZIP Code Business Patterns, while urban contextual independent variables and socio-economic and demographic measures are drawn primarily from the 2000 U.S. Census. Regressions at the ZCTA level show that NMO activity is positively predicted by density, connectivity, and housing age diversity. Furthermore, Sobel tests indicate that walking mediates the relationships that NMOs have with density, connectivity, and land-use-mix. Several additional analyses are also performed. First, Guidestar Form 990 data are employed to validate the NMO dependent variable. Second, inclusion of an ideology measure in the regression estimations shows that the relationships of interest are not confounded by ―liberalism‖. Third, cross-lagged regressions are employed to investigate ―self-selection‖ effects. Finally, counterfactual cases are explored by estimating regressions with several alternative dependent variables. While coefficients on the independent variables of interest are typically larger and more often in the predicted direction when NMOs are employed as the dependent variable, results for several of the alternative dependent variables shed light on the main results by showing that urban contexts are conducive to specific kinds of activity.

<p> Throughout history there have been taxes. As Supreme Court Justice Oliver Wendell Holmes famously said in 1904, &ldquo;Taxes are what we pay for civilized society.&rdquo; From the recorded writings of the earliest civilizations to the front page of today&rsquo;s newspapers, taxes have been core to human existence. Governments require revenue. In the earliest civilizations governments raised revenue to fight wars and defend their citizens. Taxes were used to build roads, ports, and fortresses. As the world economy expanded, taxes were used to promote economic development, build factories, and encourage commerce. As social needs evolved over the last two decades, taxes have been used to provide for the poor and the needy, for education, and to improve the quality of life for a nation&rsquo;s citizenry. </p><p> Regardless of the spending agenda, governments all need revenue. From the first civilizations to today&rsquo;s modern government, the history of taxation has followed similar patterns and governments throughout history have faced similar challenges. What to tax? Should taxes be levied on property, income, or consumption? How to measure and determine the amount of tax to be paid? How to administer and collect tax? Should tax be direct to the citizen or indirect and collected at the source? How to find a balance in the fairness of tax? And how to deal with the inevitable strategies citizens develop to avoid tax? Should citizens self-report their tax liabilities with government systems to audit those reports? Or should government invest in the infrastructure required to collect taxes at the point of source? </p><p> This thesis will explore taxes: the history, the newest ideas, the abuses, and the reasons why tax policy today has become so cumbersome and legalistic that it takes thousands of pages to explain all the complexities of our tax system. (Abstract shortened by ProQuest.)</p>

<p> Background: CDC reports that the highest percentage of newly identified HIV positives are among transgender people. They are overburdened by HIV and relatively under-researched in studies and underserved by healthcare providers. </p><p> Methods: A secondary data analysis was performed using data from a special needs assessment survey of HIV positive transgender people conducted in 2012 by the Houston Area Ryan White HIV Planning Council. Pearson&rsquo;s chi-squared (&khgr;&sup2;) or Fisher&rsquo;s exact test was conducted to assess whether HIV service utilization and barriers vary statistically by demographic characteristics. Variables with statistically significant levels less than 0.25 (P &lt; 0.25) were selected to enter into the multivariable logistic regression models. Multivariable logistic regression with backward elimination process was used to identify the significant demographic variables that are associated with HIV service utilization and barriers.</p><p> Results: HIV positive transgender people with unstable housing status were less likely to use health insurance assistance services (P=0.012); but more likely to use substance abuse treatment services (P=0.017) and nutrition services (P=0.001) than those who owned or rented housing. They were also more likely to have difficult accessing primary health care services than those who owned/rented housing (P=0.007).</p><p> HIV positive African American transgender people were more likely to use mental health services than their white counterparts (P=0.019) and the unemployed were more likely to use mental health services than the employed (P=0.002).</p><p> More educated HIV positive transgender people were more likely to use case management services (P=0.039) and less likely to have difficulty accessing them (P=0.019) than the less educated. They had lower odds of difficulty in accessing primary HIV care (P=0.018) than the less educated.</p><p> Older transgender people (age group between 25-44) were more likely to use legal services than the younger ones (age group 18-24) (P=0.021).</p><p> Conclusion: Socioeconomic status may influence the utilization and barriers of HIV services among transgender people in the Houston Area. Housing assistance program need to be tailored to reach HIV positive transgender people of low socioeconomic status. Culturally appropriate and comprehensive transgender HIV care is recommended to meet the needs of transgender minorities in the area.</p>

Aerosol particles are important components in the Earth's atmosphere. They have been shown to have the following effects: (1) visibility reductions and degrading air quality; (2) negative impact on human health; (3) modification of cloud properties and the spatiotemporal distribution of precipitation; and (4) geochemical cycling of nutrients. It is projected that southern Arizona, which is a semi-arid area, will become drier, which can lead to an enhancement of wildfire and wind-blown dust. These resulting emissions will increase total aerosol particle loading and lead to a new physicochemical signature among the region's aerosol properties. The life cycle of aerosol particles still remains uncertain, which affects our ability to forecast air quality and climate change among other effects associated with particles. The organic fraction of aerosol particles has one of the largest uncertainties in terms of what species it is comprised of and how they are made, which is related to the research described in this dissertation. Another part of this dissertation is advancing knowledge about the interaction between aerosol particles and water vapor using ground measurements and models. The first research topic is that of the role of aqueous secondary organic aerosol (SOA) formation in a semi-arid region. Water-soluble organic carbon (WSOC) and its ratio to organic properties were used as proxies of SOA. Results from ground measurements are presented, which summarized SOA formation results from enhanced moisture in Monsoon season (July-September) and enhanced emissions of biogenic volatile organic compounds (BVOCs) due to rapid plant growth. A second research study was conducted to quantify aerosol and cloud water dimethylamine (DMA) in southern Arizona and by the California coast. The study results include a summary of the DMA size distribution and its ratio to ammonium in the two regions, relationship between PM1.0 DMA and potential influencing factors, and a summary of DMA concentrations in cloud water from the California coastal region. The last part of this study includes a detailed characterization of long-term cloud condensation nuclei (CCN) concentrations at 0.2% supersaturation, aerosol composition, and aerosol size distributions in southern Arizona. The results are used to show diurnal and seasonal patterns and variability. Measured CCN concentrations are compared with modeled values in the form of closure studies. A common thread through all studies presented in this dissertation is the characterization of atmospheric aerosol physicochemical properties in southern Arizona. It is hoped that this dissertation is able to provide an impetus for continuing research on air quality and public health in semi-arid regions such as southern Arizona.

This paper gives an analysis of the causes of the high level of vacancies in the various housing projects of the Atlanta Housing Authority. Problems related to overall management, repairs, maintenance and leasing process are seen as factors contributing to the vacancies. Recommendations are offered to correct the problems. Included among the recommendations is a complete revamping of the process by which prospective tenants ascend to eligibility for choosing or rejecting available units.

The primary intent of this degree paper is to analyze the fiscal impact of nonresidential development on annexed territory in the City of East Point, Georgia. The analysis projects the direct, current, public costs and revenues associated with nonresidential development on one hundred fifty (150) acres of annexed land. The analysis considers the current costs and revenues of the development as if it were completed and operating today. The Proportional Valuation Method (PVM), developed by Robert W. Burchell and David Listokin (1980) was used to conduct the analysis. PVM is an average costing approach used to project the impact of nonresidential development on local costs and revenues. The method assigns costs attributable to the share of the real property value that nonresidential use adds to a city's real property tax base. The method employs a two step process to assign a share of municipal costs to the new development. First, a share of the city's total operating expenditures is given to all local nonresidential uses. Second, a portion of these nonresidential costs is allocated to the incoming nonresidential facility. The purpose of this study is to determine the costs and revenues associated with the development of an office industrial park complex on 150 acres of nonresidential land acquired by the City of East Point, Georgia. This study is significant because of the fact that the analysis provides useful information which the officials of the City of East Point can use to determine whether the annexation will impact positively on the revenue base of the city. The findings indicate that there is the possibility that the city's goal of increasing its revenue base can be realized. The estimated costs that the city will incur from the development totaled $365,775 while estimated revenues to be generated totaled $12,381,452.36. A net surplus of $12,015,677.36 will therefore come to the city as a result of this acquisition.

The purpose of this study is to isolate some of the major managerial problems prevalent in the City of Muskegon Heights, Michigan, to elaborate on some of the contributing factors leading to these problems, and to make some recommendations on the fiscal future of this city in view of these problems. No effort is made to deal with the political situation of the City. The writer recognizes that the political problems are indeed serious and that they do impact on the managerial problems. However, the identification and magnification of the political problems require an independent effort altogether. It is virtually impossible to identify and illuminate of magnify each managerial problem as it effects service delivery. But the major ones are discussed to a considerable extent thus allowing the reader a broad view of this city's municipal operation.

This study dealt with a personnel problem which emanates from the ineffectiveness of the Career Ladder program for probation services within the Georgia Department of Offender Rehabilitation. Emphasis was upon the impact of the problem on the probation staff's provision of supervision and services for effective rehabilitation of offenders. Probation staff included positions of probation/parole aide, probation/parole officer I, probation/parole officer II, probation/ parole officer III and unit coordinator. Insufficient advancement Opportunities and an inadequate position/classification system were contributing factors to the ineffectiveness of the Career Ladder. Research and analysis were used to indicate that the ineffectiveness of the Career Ladder program was due to the agency's inability to attract and retain the most competent staff. An additional adverse effect of the Career Ladder program was the ineffective rehabilitation of offenders. To resolve this personnel problem, the implementation of a staff development program is recommended. The program should be designed to attract and retain the kind of staff needed to provide quality services to offenders.