Policy Effectiveness Evaluation of Rural Environmental Sanitation Governance in China: Based on the PMC Index Model

YingDa Xu^*

• Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Wuhan, China

Rural environmental sanitation governance is vital for improving rural living standards and narrowing urbanrural gaps in China. However, the effectiveness of existing policies remains suboptimal due to structural design flaws. This study integrates the "Policy Modeling Consistency (PMC-Index)" with text-mining technology to quantitatively evaluate 24 local policies (7 representative samples selected via stratified sampling) from 7 Chinese cities. The study adopted a framework consisting of 9 primary variables and 37 subvariables. This framework was used to assess the integrity of policy texts systematically. The results show an average PMC index of 6.03, where 1 policy was rated "excellent", 4 "good", and 2 "unsatisfactory". Significant deficiencies were identified in X1 (Policy Nature), X2 (Policy Timeliness), X5 (Policy Targets), and X7 (Policy Functions), highlighting issues such as insufficient feedback mechanisms, lack of mid-term planning, and limited stakeholder inclusivity. The study makes three key innovations:(1) The pioneering application of the PMC model in rural environmental policy evaluation, which overcomes the subjectivity of traditional qualitative approaches ;(2) The identification of micro-level structural gaps through data-driven text analysis;(3) Actionable recommendations to enhance policy consistency, such as integrating phased timelines and expanding educational stakeholder engagement. This research offers a replicable framework for evidencebased policy design, bridging the gap between policy objectives and on-the-ground outcomes.