State actions related to the formulation of educational policy are treated from four distinct points of view. Tom Wiley, University of New Mexico, describes pressures upon the school system in New Mexico by the U.S. Office of Education, the State legislature, the governor's office, and teacher associations. Michael Manley, assistant to the Democratic floor leader of the California legislature, discusses specific legislation enacted by the California Assembly in areas of school finance (including support for special services, children's centers, and kindergartens), increasing local authority to develop local curricula, and a standardized statewide testing program. Joseph H. McGivney, Syracuse University, outlines and evaluates the main features of Planning-Programing-Budgeting Systems. Laurence Iannoccone, Harvard University, projects a basic shift in the governance of education, with authority through funding becoming less centralized in the Federal government and more actively expressed through political interest groups active at the State and local levels. (JK)