he reality of the need to manage more effectively in an era of scarce resources continues to be reflected in the articles in this issue of Public Policy & Practice. Michael Sponhour's piece, "Turn Your Annual Report into an Engine of Change," describes how the South Carolina State Budget and Control Board is incorporating Malcolm Baldrige criteria into its annual accountability report as a way to improve its processes. Anna Berger and Bill Tomes' article on the South Carolina Municipal Benchmarking Project (the first part of which appeared in the June 2002 issue) details how another management tool – performance measurement – is being used by cities and towns across the state to improve service delivery.

In the article "Economic Aspects of Business Tax Incentives" Holley Ulbrich raises a number of interesting issues related to the most effective means for using tax incentives to spur economic development as well as to ensure local and state fiscal sustainability. Many of these issues will need to be taken into consideration as the General Assembly deliberates revisions to the state's tax system.

Nancy Pursley's observations on leadership are also particularly timely. For as she notes, "leaders are in the business of getting things done in a world of chaos and change." The principles articulated in this piece can help public managers to lead their organizations effectively in such an environment.

Finally, the article on public opinion outlines the role which the views of citizens play at various points in the policy process. The points made in this article on evaluating poll results should be useful to many public officials.

As always, we welcome your comments and suggestions on the contents of the journal. Please e-mail any comments to Young-Richard@sc.edu.