The Impact of Policy Networks & Relationships on City-Level Migration Policy

• In Event: Local Immigrant Organizations, Community Sponsorship, and City Level Policies

Abstract

This research examines the transfer of city-level immigration policies between rust-belt cities in the United States. I will address the question, does the way in which policymakers build and utilize relationships with relevant actors between and within the cities of Pittsburgh, PA and Buffalo, NY, contribute to the creation and passage of city-level migration policies? I will ascertain whether the quality and quantity of these interactions has a significant impact on inclusive migration policy at the city level using semi-structured interviews, in-depth case studies, and social network analysis. Assessment of the content of person-to-person interactions is typically not included in standard network analyses, and distinguishes this study from the existing network analysis literature. The research explores whether the success of such policies in one city triggers similar actions in a partner city, and whether—as well as how and why—similar cities collaborate to address shared migration concerns.

Cities play a crucial role in immigrant resettlement, even while the federal government establishes entry quotas (International Organization for Migration 2015, as cited in Filomeno, 2017). National exclusionary policies adversely affect rust belt cities like Pittsburgh, PA, and Buffalo, NY, where leaders aim to counter population and economic declines by embracing immigration and fostering identities as welcoming destinations (de Graauw, 2019; Filomeno, 2017; Pottie-Sherman, 2019). Immigration fosters global connectivity and economic alignment for cities (Çağlar and Schiller, 2009; Filomeno, 2017; Eckstein and Peri, 2018). These migrant contributions are particularly impactful in mid-sized cities, influencing cultural dynamics and economic growth (Adelman, 2020). Cities have become pivotal spaces for local policymakers' collaboration. Particularly noteworthy and of national concern is the role of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania as one of the largest cities in a swing state during a Presidential election year, for which immigration policy is an issue of significant importance to voters and candidates.

The Advocacy Coalition Framework (ACF) helps us to understand the policy process in a way that emphasizes policy-oriented learning as a pathway to change, using the policy subsystem as the unit of analysis (Sabatier, 1988; Sabatier & Jenkins-Smith, 1994; Sabatier & Wieble, 2007; Jenkins-Smith et al. 2014). It allows for the involvement of any actors—governmental or non-governmental—trying to influence the affairs of a subsystem through advocacy coalitions. It is through these coalitions that policy changes are made. Policy does not diffuse only in the top-down, or bottom-up directions, and instead transfers both ways, gathering and spreading influence from many different directions and actors at work simultaneously (Shipan & Volden, 2008; Stone 2008 & 2012). Likewise, we now know that immigration policy influence does not flow solely from national level policy (Filomeno, 2017; Stone, 1993; McCann 2011). Emphasis on horizontal and vertical flows of information and policy are both appropriate, but with horizontal studies being much less frequently examined, there are essential scholarly and practical gaps to be filled by this study.

This research combines qualitative and quantitative methods in detailed case studies of Pittsburgh and Buffalo, and maps relationships in city-level migration policy in addition to exploring the organization Welcoming America’s impact on these dynamics and processes. Through interviews with officials from nonprofits, local government, and religious and business leaders, I will identify and quantify local migration policy network relationships (Granovetter, 1973; Rost, 2011; Zheng, 2010), unveiling key themes in migration policy goals. Process tracing (Van Evera, 1997; Meseguer and Gilardi, 2006; Marsh and Sharman, 2009) isolates variables that potentially affect inclusive migration policy adoption, offering a comprehensive examination of systems and sub-systems involved in policy innovation and transfer. Internal determinants are investigated through in-depth case studies for each city, while policy transfer processes are analyzed using thematic content analysis.

Immigration scholars have expressed that our understanding of local policies, specifically those that are inclusive toward im/migrants, are under-theorized (de Graauw, 2019, p. 168). Filomeno (2017, p. 199) outlines avenues for further research in our understandings of local immigration policy, stating that it should “…try to identify the conditions within, between and above localities that favor or hinder specific mechanisms of local immigration policy diffusion”.
By exploring relationships and interactions between city-level policymakers, I seek to respond to these calls for further research about how immigration policy at the city level might better be explained. This study will allow scholars and policymakers to better understand the dynamics of the public policy process in the context of city-level immigration policy.

Author

• Rachel Travis, University of Pittsburgh