COLE D. TARATOOT Assistant Professor University of Miami Department of Political Science Miami, FL 33146 taratoot@miami.edu Updated 12/31/2016 EDUCATION Ph.D., Political Science Georgia State University 2008 M.P.A. University of West Georgia 2001 B.S., Political Science University of West Georgia 1999 RESEARCH GRANTS Principal Investigator: University of Alabama at Birmingham, Dean s Office Grant, 2013, ($3,000) The Politics of Administrative Law Judge Decision Making in the Federal Government. Principal Investigator: National Science Foundation Dissertation Improvement Grant SES 0719274, 2007 ($11,944) Administrative Law Judge Decision Making in a Political Environment 1991 2006. Principal Investigator: Dissertation Research Grant, Georgia State University, 2007 ($1,000). Administrative Law Judge Decision Making in a Political Environment 1991 2006. PUBLICATIONS Cole Taratoot. The Politics of Administrative Law Judge Decision Making at the Federal Communications Commission: 1979 2011, Justice System Journal. 38: 37 51. Cole Taratoot. 2014. The Influence of Administrative Law Judge and Political Appointee Decisions on Appellate Courts in National Labor Relations Board Cases. Law & Policy. 36: 35 67. Cole Taratoot. 2014. The Politics of Administrative Law Judge Decision Making in Civil Penalty Cases at the Environmental Protection Agency: 1992 2010. American Politics Research. 42: 114 140. Cole Taratoot. 2013. Review of Administrative Law Judge Decisions by the Political Appointees of the NLRB, 1991-2006. Journal of Public Administration Research and Theory. 41: 551 580. Cole Taratoot and Robert Howard. 2011. The Labor of Judging: Examining Administrative Law Judge Decisions. American Politics Research. 39: 832 858.
Cole Taratoot and David Nixon. 2011. With Strings Attached: Statutory Delegations of Authority to the Executive Branch. Public Administration Review. 71: 637 644. Cole Taratoot. 2002. E-Invasion of Privacy. Studies in the Social Sciences. 37: 11 17. Cole Taratoot (project report contributor). 2000. Wood Building Products, Surface Coating NESHAP: Small Communities Outreach Project for Environmental Issues. National Association of Schools of Public Affairs and Administration and the United States Environmental Protection Agency. WORKING PAPERS Presidential Control Versus Congressional Dominance: The Effects of Political Control in Individual Decision Making of Administrative Law Judges at the FTC. Public Statements of Nomination Support by Senate Judiciary Committee Members: Cheap Talk or Overlooked Strategy? with Paul Chen. The Effects of the Naturalization Process on Political Knowledge and Partisan Allegiances of Naturalized Citizens with Eric Whitaker. HHS Departmental Appeals Board: Protecting Institutional Interests with Joshua Boston (University of Buffalo) PROFESSIONAL AND TEACHING EXPERIENCE Assistant Professor, University of Miami (Begin data August 2015) Equity and Diversity in Public Administration (Undergraduate/Graduate) Issues in Judicial Politics (Undergraduate/Graduate) Introduction to Graduate Public Administration (Undergraduate/Graduate) Assistant Professor, University of Alabama at Birmingham (2012 2015) Administrative Law (Graduate) Quantitative Methods for Public Administrators (Graduate) Research Methods (Undergraduate) Civil Liberties and Rights (Undergraduate) Political Parties and Interest Groups (Undergraduate) Law in Film (Undergraduate) Visiting Assistant Professor, Western Washington University (2010 2012) Law and Society (Political Science) Introduction to Law and Judicial Process (Political Science) Bureaucratic Politics (Political Science) Criminal Justice Procedure (Fairhaven College/Sociology) Law and Stratification (Sociology) Social Statistics (Sociology) American Political System (Political Science) 2
Constitutional Law II: Civil Rights and Liberties (Political Science) Assistant Professor, Pre-Law Advisor, Western Kentucky University (2008 2010) American Government Civil Liberties Constitutional Law Criminal Justice Procedure Judicial Process Guest Lecturer, Linyi Normal University School of Law, Linyi, China (Winter 2009) Civil Rights and Liberties Georgia State University (2004 2008) Introduction to Public Administration/Bureaucratic Politics Introduction to American Government Judicial Process DISSERTATION: Administrative Law Judge Decision Making in a Political Environment: 1991 2006 Unelected bureaucrats make a broad range of important policy decisions raising concerns of accountability in a democratic society. Many classics in the literature highlight the need to understand agency decisions at stages prior to the final vote by agency appointees, but few studies of the bureaucracy do so. To this point, scholars have treated the issue of shirking as one where laziness and inefficiency are the driving forces. However, it is more realistic to expect that shirking comes in the form of ideological resistance by administrators. I develop a theory that the independence afforded to the bureaucracy is functionally comparable to that of the judiciary, allowing for the insertion of individual attitudinal preferences by bureaucrats. Drawing from the attitudinal model of judicial research, I look at whether attitudes affect the decision making of administrative law judges (ALJs) at the National Labor Relations Board, the influence administrative law judge decisions have on reviewing bodies, and whether attitudinal decision making can be controlled by external political and legal actors. Results demonstrate that attitudes play a strong role in ALJ decision making, administrative law judge decisions provide the basis for decisions of reviewing bodies, and that few political and legal controls exist over this set of bureaucrats. This research provides evidence that lower level bureaucrats make decisions based on their own political preferences and that these preferences have far ranging consequences for policy and law. Dissertation Committee: Robert M. Howard and David C. Nixon (Co-Chairs), Scott E. Graves and Richard N. Engstrom. CONFERENCE PAPERS AND PARTICIPATION Business, Religion, and Economic Development. Panel chair and discussant at the annual meeting of the Florida Political Science Association, Orlando, FL, April 1, 2017. The Politics of Administrative Law Judge Decision Making at the SEC. Paper to be presented at the annual meeting of the Midwest Political Science Association, Chicago, IL, April 3 6, 2014. 3
The Politics of Administrative Law Judge Decision Making at the FCC. Paper presented at the annual meeting of the Southern Political Science Association, New Orleans, LA, January 9 11, 2014. Advances in Court-Bureaucracy Research: Administrative Courts and Administrative Law Judges. Roundtable participant at the Annual Meeting of the Southern Political Science Association, Orlando, FL, January 3 5, 2013. The Politics of Administrative Law Judge Decision Making in EPA Civil Penalty Cases: 1992 2008. Paper presented at the Annual Meeting of the Western Political Science Association, Portland, OR, March 22 24, 2012. Nominated for the Pi Sigma Alpha best paper award. Attitudinal Decision Making at the NLRB and FCC. Paper to be presented at the Annual Meeting of the Midwest Political Science Association, Chicago, IL, April 12 15, 2012. Review of Administrative Law Judge Decisions by the Political Appointees of the National Labor Relations Board, 1991-2007. Paper presented at the Annual Meeting of the Midwest Political Science Association, Chicago, IL, April 2 5, 2009. The Politics of Administrative Law Judge Decision Making: 1991 2006. Paper presented at the annual meeting of the Midwest Political Science Association, Chicago, IL, April 3 6, 2009. The Effects of the Naturalization Process on Political Knowledge. Paper presented at the Annual Meeting of the Midwest Political Science Association, Chicago, IL, April 12 15, 2007. Comparing the Influence of the Courts on National Labor Relations Board Rulings (with Robert M. Howard). Paper to be presented at the Annual Meeting of the Midwest Political Science Association, Chicago, IL, April 12 15, 2007. Public Statements of Nomination Support by Senate Judiciary Committee Members: Cheap Talk or Overlooked Strategy? (with Eric Hurst). Paper presented at the Annual Meeting of the American Political Science Association, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, August 31 September 3, 2006. Divided Government and Agency Discretion 1946-1997: Congressional Control or Agency Freedom? (with David C. Nixon). Paper presented at the Annual Meeting of the Midwest Political Science Association, Chicago, IL, April 20 23, 2006. Nominated for the Patrick J. Fett Award for the best paper on the scientific study of Congress and the Presidency. A Dynamic Model of NLRB Commissioner Preferences (with David C. Nixon and Eric Hurst). Paper presented at the Annual Meeting of the Midwest Political Science Association, Chicago, IL, April 20 23, 2006. 4
The Political Socialization of Future Members of Congress: 1960 1996. Paper presented at the Annual Meeting of the Southwestern Political Science Association, San Antonio, Texas, April 11 15, 2006. Applying the Attitudinal Model to Administrative Law Judge Decision Making: The Case of the NLRB 1935 2004 (with David C. Nixon). Paper presented at the Annual Meeting of Midwest Political Science Association, Chicago, IL, April 7 10, 2005. Investigating the Stability of Political Preferences on the NLRB, 1985 2002. Paper presented at the Annual Meeting of the Georgia Political Science Association, Savannah, GA, November 10 12, 2005. Investigating the Freedom to Vote Preference on Federal Courts: A Cross-Judicial Study. Paper presented at the Annual Meeting of the Georgia Chapter of the American Society for Public Administration, Augusta, Georgia, March 5, 2004. MEDIA APPEARANCES AND CONTRIBUTIONS Appeared on TVW (Washington) as a moderator on discussion of Lobbying: Influence and Access as part of the Ralph Munro Institute for Civic Education seminar. 6/28/2012. Appeared on TVW (Washington) as panel member on discussion of Civics Education in Challenging Economic Times as part of the Ralph Munro Institute for Civic Education seminar. 7/11/2011. Quoted in article Grand Jury Will Not Indict in Castle Law Case by Michelle Day, College Heights Herald. 8/26/2008. Quoted in article America Celebrates Bill of Rights by Amber Dilley. Glasgow Times, December 15, 2008. Interviewed on WNKY s (NBC affiliate) Bowling Green Today to promote Western Kentucky University mock law school class in honor of American Bar Association s Law Day event: Lincoln: A Legacy of Liberty. AWARDS AND RECOGNITION Ronald Kleinknecht Excellence in Teaching Award for Outstanding Non-Tenure Track Faculty at Western Washington University (2011) Francis Glenn Abney Graduate Assistantship for Outstanding Student in Public Administration and Public Law from the Department of Political Science at Georgia State University (2006 2007) Nominated for Patrick J. Fett Award for the best paper on the scientific study of Congress and the Presidency. Midwest Political Science Association Annual Meeting (2006) 5
Recognition for Outstanding Achievement as a Graduate Teaching Assistant from the Center for Teaching and Learning at Georgia State University (2006) Bascom Quillian Award for Best Graduate Student Research presented at a professional conference from the Department of Political Science at Georgia State University (2005 2006) Graduate Assistantship from the Department of Political Science at Georgia State University (2003) Regents Opportunity Scholarship Recipient (2000 2001) Recipient of the League of Women Voter s Lee Walsh Award for Public Service (2001) SERVICE HIGHLIGHTS Faculty Advisor for Delta Pi Chapter of Pi Sigma Alpha (2015 present) Faculty Advisor to the UAB Political Science Club (2013 2015) Co-Faculty Advisor to the UAB Pre-Law Society (2013 2015) Panel Participant, United States Immigration Policy at Western Washington University with Carol Swain, Charles Hoffman, and Paul Chen (2011) Panel Chair, Leadership Styles and Motivation at the annual meeting of the Georgia Political Science Association (2009) Western Kentucky University, Potter College of Arts & Letters Curriculum Committee Member (2009 2010) Western Kentucky University Honors College Admissions Committee Member (2009) Chair of Undergraduate Committee for Departmental Review, Department of Political Science, Western Kentucky University (2009) Faculty Advisor to the Western Kentucky University Pre-Law Club (2009) Assistant Coach for the Western Kentucky University Mock Trial Team (2009) REFERENCES - Robert M. Howard, Professor. Department of Political Science. Georgia State University, Atlanta, GA 30303. (404) 413-6163. polrhh@langate.gsu.edu - Robert M Sanders, Professor. Department of Political Science. University of West Georgia, Carrollton, GA 30118. (678) 839-4995. bsanders@westga.edu 6
- Paul Chen, Associate Professor. Department of Political Science. Western Washington University. Bellingham, WA 98225. (360) 650-4876. paul.chen@wwu.edu 7