Chapter 15 – The Bureaucracy
“Bureaucracy is the death of all sound work.” – Albert Einstein
“I bought a doughnut and they gave me a receipt for the doughnut... I don't
need a receipt for the doughnut. I give you money and you give me the
doughnut, end of transaction. We don't need to bring ink and paper into
this. I can't imagine a scenario that I would have to prove that I bought a
doughnut. To some skeptical friend, 'Don't even act like I didn't get that
doughnut, I've got the documentation right here... It's in my file at home.
...Under "D".‘ – Mitch Hedberg
“Jerry, all these big corporations do is write things off.”
“You don’t even know what a write off is, do you?”
“No, but they do, and they’re the ones writing it off.” – Seinfeld, Season 8
AP US Government and Politics
Boucher
What is Bureaucracy?
• Max Weber definition:
– Has a chain of command
– Division of labor
– Clear line of authority
– Goal-oriented
– Impersonality
– Productivity established by
rules
• How is American bureaucracy
different?
– Political authority shared by
Congress and president
– Federal agencies share
functions with state and local
govt
– Little public ownership of
industry in the U.S.; regulation
of private industries
• Why do people HATE
bureaucracy?
Major Complaints About
Bureaucracy
• Similar to Congress, we often hate
“bureaucracy” as a whole, but have
positive experiences with individual
bureaucrats.
• Bureaucracies are growing bigger
each year – Half true, half false
– Growth comes from local and state
bureaucracies
• Bureaucracy is disconnected from
most Americans
– False, only 12% of bureaucrats work in
D.C.
• Bureaucracies are inefficient,
ineffective, and mired in “red tape”
– Only when they don’t work well!
The Game Show That is Sweeping the
Nation….Federal Agency or No Federal
Agency???
• Arthritis and Musculoskeletal Interagency
Coordinating Committee
• Grain Inspection, Packers, and Stockyards
Administration
• Bureau of Engraving and Printing
• Counterfeit Native American Art
Regulatory Commission
• Millennium Challenge Corporation
Growth of the Bureaucracy
•
•
•
Hey, Constitution, little help?
Spoils System to Merit System
– Jackson and the use of patronage
– Death of Pres. Garfield
– Reform efforts
• Pendleton Act and Civil Service
Commission
• Creation of the civil service
system
• Emphasis on merit
Growth of:
– Only 3 departments at beginning of
US
– Large rise during wartimes
• Becomes permanent during FDR
– Growth accepted as necessary
• Public demand for protection of
markets
– Oversee integrity of markets
• New problems arise (9/11)
Sounds Fun…How Do I Become a
Bureaucrat?
• Office of Personnel Management
(OPM) – Office in charge of hiring
for most agencies of the federal
govt.
– Each job is assigned a GS (General
Schedule) rating from 1 to 18
– Senior Executive Service (SES) – GS
16-18 jobs – “Cream of the crop”
• The Plum Book
– Congress publication that lists top
federal jobs available via POTUS
appointment
• Buddy System – Filled by a person
whom an agency has already
identified (what is this called?)
– Is this fair or unfair?
Structure of the Bureaucracy
Cabinet Agencies
Broad mission,
political focus,
leadership appointed
by the POTUS;
extremely
visible/political job
State Department
Independent Agencies
Smaller or more focused
mission, leadership
appointed by the
POTUS; long tenure in
office
NASA
Regulatory Commissions Specific function with
some judicial
responsibility; nonpolitical leadership
Federal Communications
Commission (FCC)
Powers of the Bureaucracy
• Implementation
• Rule-Making
– Creation of regulations and rules to govern
established programs
– Quasi-legislative process
• Administrative Discretion
– Decide best means to implement legislation
– Allows for flexibility in day-to-day activities
• Administrative Adjucation
– Quasi-judicial means of forcing compliance
Who Are Bureaucrats?
• Three types of
Bureaucrats:
– Careerist
• Spend a long period of time
working for a single agency.
Personal success = success
of agency
– Politician
• Work in agency for short
period of time, then move
onto something “bigger and
better.” Personal success =
self interest
– Professional
• Get rewards and standards
from professional groups
outside of agency (attorneys,
academics, doctors, etc.)
• What are the pros and
cons of each?
Bureaucracies as Regulators
• Regulation – The use of governmental
authority to control or change some
practice in the private sector
• Examples of regulation
– The Securities and Exchange Commission
(SEC) regulates buying and selling stock in an
auto company
– The EPA, Dept. of Transportation, and Natl.
Highway Traffic Safety Administration require
that cars include pollution-control, energysaving, and safety devices
• Deregulation – Lifting of govt. restrictions
(How can this be argued as a good thing?)
Iron Triangles / Issue Networks
Do They Sabotage Their Political
Bosses?
• What happens if I’m a
bureaucrat, and I
disagree with a
policy?
• Whistleblower
Protection Act (1989)
– allows workers to
be protected for
turning in superior’s
actions
• Culture varies from
agency to agency
Can We Reform the Bureaucracy?
• Checks on
Bureaucracy
– POTUS checks on bureaucracy?
– Congress checks on
bureaucracy?
• Privatization
– Outsourcing and
competition
– Examples: Diplomat
security, prisons, nonprofit
community health centers
• Government Performance
and Results Act (2000)
– Congressional mandate for
agencies to create a
performance plan and
goals to achieving such
Bureaucratic Pathologies
•
•
•
•
•
Red Tape
Waste
Conflict Between Agencies
Duplication
Unnecessary Complexity and Growth
(Imperialism)