Chapter 15 Flashcards
Bureaucracy
According to Max Weber, a hierarchical authority structure that uses task specialization, operates on the merit principle, and behaves with impersonality. Bureaucracies govern modern states.
Patronage
One of the key inducements used by political machines. A patronage job, promotion, or contract is one that is given for political reasons rather than for merit or competence alone.
Pendleton Civil Service Act
Passed in 1883, an Act that created a federal civil service so that hiring and promotion would be based on merit rather than patronage
Civil service
A system of hiring and promotion based on the merit principle and the desire to create a nonpartisan government service
Merit principle
The idea that hiring should be based on entrance exams and promotion ratings to produce administration by people with talent and skill
Hatch Act
A federal law prohibiting government employees from active participation in partisan politics
Office of Personnel Management
The office in charge of hiring for most agencies of the federal government, using elaborate rules in the process
General Schedule (GS) rating
A schedule for federal employees, ranging from GS 1 to GS 18, by which salaries can be keyed to rating and experience
Senior Executive Service
An elite cadre of about 9,000 federal government managers, established by the Civil Service Reform Act of 1978, who are mostly career officials but include some political appointees who do not require Senate confirmation
Independent regulatory commission
A government agency responsible for some sector of the economy, making and enforcing rules to protect the public interest. It also judges disputes over these rules
Government corporations
A government organization that, like business corporations, provides a service that could be provided by the private sector and typically changes for its services. The U.S. Postal Service is an example.
Independent executive agency
The government not accounted for by cabinet departments, independent regulatory commissions, and government corporations. Its administrators are typically appointed by the president and serve at the president’s pleasure. NASA is an example.
Policy implementation
The stage of policymaking between the establishment of a policy and the consequences of the policy for the people whom it affects. Implementation involves translating the goals and objectives of a policy into an operating, ongoing program.
Administrative discretion
The authority of administrative actors to select among various responses to a given problem. Discretion is greatest when routines, or standard operating procedures, do not fit a case.
Regulation
The use of governmental authority to control or change some practice in the private sector. Regulations pervade the daily lives of people and institutions