Extension community resource development (CRD) is primarily public affairs education at the local level, dealing with local issues. Two methods of public policy education are the advocacy model which picks two people with opposing views on a subject and lets them debate the issue, and the public policy education process which provides all relevant information so that alternative solutions can be proposed and their consequences assessed. The public policy education process involves five steps: identifying the problem; developing alternative solutions; analyzing the consequences of the alternatives; choosing an alternative; and evaluating. This process can be entered at any point in the sequence. However, the earlier the process is entered, the more likely a positive contribution will be, and the more likely that one's participation will be met with more widespread approval. This process can be utilized when formulating decisions pertaining to the distribution of costs and benefits associated with community growth. The process model ignores the notion of gainers versus losers and concentrates on the problem. This publication discusses the public policy process model as it is used in Cooperative Extension and how it relates to CRD work in general and to community growth issues in particular. (NQA)