Chapter 15: Federal Bureaucracy

Question 1

What’s a bureaucracy and what is it often referred to as?

Answer 1

An organization/hierarchy in government to regulate laws, businesses, and other organizations; “alphabet soup”

Question 2

Who is a bureaucrat?

Answer 2

Anyone who has a say in the hierarchy

Question 3

What is ‘red tape’?

Answer 3

Rules and regulations; standard operating procedures (SOP)

Question 4

Hierarchy:

Answer 4

• responsibility is top down
• discretion at the bottom
• experts have qualifications and certifications
• extensive rules

Question 5

What is the office of personnel management (OPM)?

Answer 5

It’s upper level, top tier, federal, and does hiring for agencies

Question 6

What is the Pendleton Civil Service act?

Answer 6

Ends the spoil system, and outlines the federal civil service program

Question 7

What is the Hatch act?

Answer 7

Prohibits federal employees from active partisan politics

Question 8

How are federal employees payed?

Answer 8

They’re payed on a General Schedule (GS); G1-G18, G16-G18 are top level

Question 9

Four types of bureaucracies:

Answer 9

1) all cabinets
2) regulatory agencies
3) government corporations
4) independent executive agencies

Question 10

Describe the bureaucracies under the cabinets

Answer 10

There are agencies under departments and cabinets that make laws

Question 11

What are regulatory agencies?

Answer 11

"Alphabet soup"
Oversees public interest
SEC- stocks and bonds
FCC- public airwaves
FDA- food and drug
OSHA- ensure workplace is safe and healthy

Question 12

What are government corporations?

Answer 12

United States postal service (USPS)
Amtrak (US railway)
Tennessee valley authority (TVA)

Question 13

What are independent executive agencies?

Answer 13

Not part of a cabinet, and not a regulatory agency
NASA
NSF (national science foundation)

Question 14

What are the key roles that bureaucrats play?

Answer 14

1) creation
2) translation
3) coordination

Question 15

What is Implementing when it comes to bureaucracies?

Answer 15

Goes through the president, congress, or the courts

The best implementation was the voting rights act of 1965, bc there were federal officers at voting posts

Question 16

What are some problems with implementing?

Answer 16

1) faulty design - NCLB
2) lack of clarity - Title IX
3) lack of resources (money and people) - ADA
4) administration routine
5) administrative discretion
6) fragmented - DEA

Question 17

What are the cons of bureaucracies as regulators?

Answer 17

1) government had too much power
2) you can’t regulate everything
3) crossover

Question 18

What were the first regulatory agencies?

Answer 18

ICC- interstate commerce commission

IRS- bc of 16th amendment

Question 19

Regulations…

Answer 19

Come from congress and the agencies set up guidelines

Question 20

How do you regulate?

Answer 20

Complaints (FCC & FDA)

Inspections (OSHA & FDA)

Question 21

How does the president control bureaucracies?

Answer 21

• executive orders
• appoint cabinet members
• in charge of the budget
• reorganize an agency (ex/ homeland security)

Question 22

How does congress control bureaucracies?

Answer 22

• create new laws
• senate confirms the appointment
• budget (house ways and means committee) - appropriation
• hold hearings

Question 23

Agencies…

Answer 23

Rise in agencies after new deal and Great Depression
20th century there’s a decrease in agencies and an increase in red tape bc there’s new laws which lead to new regulations

Question 24

Iron triangles (Subgovernments)…

Answer 24

Three primary players:

1) bureaucrats
2) interest groups
3) congress committees

Question 25

How iron triangles work:

Answer 25

1) interest groups can bypass congress with litigation/amicus curiae briefs (SC)
2) congress can get things done with legislation
3) bureaucracies enforce laws and have discretion with them