Interviews with persons responsible for interpreting and transmitting labor relations policy to negotiators at the local school district level in New York revealed considerable consistency in the ways the relevant laws, regulations, and legal opinions were assessed and used. Policy interpreters turned first to documents and then to consultants when faced with matters difficult to resolve. The techniques adopted for analyzing and disseminating policy information were found to be fairly uniform. The policy interpreters had a dual view of policy, regarding it both as a set of universalistic principles embodied in statute and decision, and as a set of devices to be used for tactical purposes as dictated by local circumstances. The authors of this report indicate that it is commonly understood that state interests in labor relations policies are to be subordinated to the needs of local situations. The authors suggest that this common understanding makes labor policies more effective at the local level than almost all other policies, which tend to be characterized by an insistence on the dominance of the state's interests over local interests. (Author/PGD)