<![CDATA[This study aims to identify the primary causes of riparian buffer zone violations and formulate viable policy options for managing river setbacks in Jember Regency through a public policy analysis approach. The research addresses the limited studies that integrate root-cause analysis with assessments of local administrative feasibility. Using a qualitative method based on secondary data, this study examines 30 journal articles from 2020 to 2025 obtained through a systematic literature review and 43 online news articles published from 2024 to 2026. Data were analyzed using NVivo 12 Plus through coding, matrix analysis, and word clouds. Root-cause analysis was conducted using a fishbone diagram, while policy alternatives were evaluated through an administrative operability framework. The findings show that riverbank encroachment in Jember is driven by systemic and multidimensional factors, including regulatory inconsistencies, weak law enforcement, land-use planning problems, infrastructure limitations, and hydrological pressures. The study contributes to public policy analysis by linking diagnosis of interacting governance failures with a structured assessment of administrative feasibility, thereby connecting problem diagnosis with policy design. The Single Spatial Data Policy (SSDP) is identified as a feasible preventive option, while Risk-Based Licensing Reform serves as a complementary strategy to strengthen compliance and reduce violations. Because the study relies exclusively on secondary data, the findings should be interpreted in light of limitations associated with documentary coverage, media reporting bias, and the absence of direct stakeholder perspectives.]]>
