THE FEDERAL
BUREACRACY
Examining the “Fourth Branch”
bureaucracy
• literally
means “rule
by desks”
• government
by clerks
How Much Is Too Much?
•
•
Polls: People want small government
Polls: People support almost all
government programs.
1. Size
2. Organization
3. Staffing of the federal bureaucracy
bureaucracy
Definition: an administrative
system, especially in a
government, that divides work
into specific categories carried
out by special departments of
nonelected officials
Models of Bureaucracy
1. Weberian Model: Max Weber, Top-Down
leadership, individual advancement based
upon merit rather than political connections.
2. Acquisitive Model: Expansion of
bureaucrats, avoid reductions, maximize the
size of their budgets and staff: Government
contracts: national defense, public housing,
agricultural subsidies,etc.
Models of Bureaucracy
3. Monopolistic Model: Little reason to
adopt cost-saving measures, chronic
inefficiency, no competition
--Solution: Privatize public sector
--Public vs. Private school
--Public Utilities vs. Private owned
--Public bathrooms vs. Private bathrooms
Characteristics of a
Bureaucracy
• administration of
government through
departments
• consists of unelected often
highly trained
professionals
• task specialization
• hierarchical authority
Public Perceptions
of Bureaucracies
• impersonal
• inclined to follow
rigid or complex
procedures
• may stifle
effectiveness and
innovation
• “red tape”
What is the federal bureaucracy?
The Federal Bureaucracy
The Federal Bureaucracy is:
4 million employees; 2.8 million are
civilians or “civil servants”
 President only appoints 3% (patronage or
political appointments)
 15 cabinet level departments
 200+ independent agencies with 2,000+
bureaus, divisions, branches, etc.
 Biggest - Dept. of Defense, U.S. Postal
Service, Veterans Administration

What does the federal bureaucracy do?
The Federal Bureaucracy
Functions of the Federal
Bureaucracy
1.
2.
3.
Implementation - carry out laws of
Congress, executive orders of the President
Administration - routine administrative
work; provide services (ex: SSA sends
social security checks to beneficiaries)
Regulation - issue rules and regulations
that impact the public (ex: EPA sets clean
air standards)
Source:
http://www.pinkmonkey.com/studyguides/subjects/am_gov/chap6/a0606401.asp
Independent Regulatory
Agencies
1.
2.
3.
ICC- Interstate Commerce Commission 1887
(Munn v Illinois) **************
--Gov’t control of Business and trade
between states. New tax source. Rates,
Profits, and Rules. Abolished 1995
FCC-Federal Communication Commission
Nuclear Regulatory Commission
Purpose of Independent
Regulatory Agencies
Independent of: 3 Branches of Gov’t
2.
Their rules have the Force of Law.
3.
They can enforce their own rules.
4.
They decide disputes against themselves.
FTC, IRS, SEC, FCC, NLRB, NRC, FRS
1.
Internal Revenue Service is an Independent
Regulatory Agency***************
Deregulation and Reregulation
****************************



Ronald Reagan: (1981-1989) Less
Government. Less Regulation
George H. Bush: (1988-1992) Reregulation.
Americans with Disabilites Act, Civil Rights Act
of 1991, Cable Reregulation Act
Bill Clinton: Extended EPA regulations,
Deregulated Banking, Telecommunications,
and eliminated the ICC
Bureaucracies Compared
Financial Assistance to States: Dept. of
Education, Dept. of Housing and Urban
Development, Publicly owned telephone
companies, railroads, airlines.
--administrative agencies: EPA, NRC, SEC
which regulate private companies
2. RESULTS: Input Costs for Business (Taxes
and Regulations). EEOC, OSHA, SSA
1.
How is the federal bureaucracy organized?
The Federal Bureaucracy
The Federal Bureaucracy
Consists of
1. Cabinet Departments
2. Independent Executive Agencies
3. Independent Regulatory
Commissions
4. Government Corporations
Government Corporations
•
1.
2.
3.
4.
Read pg. 436. Government Profits
TVA
FDIC
NRPC
U.S. Post Office
Federal Bureaucracy
President
Executive
Office
of the
President
(Ex: OMB, NSC)
Congress
Cabinet
Departments
(Ex: State, Defense)
Independent
Executive
Agencies
(Ex: CIA, NASA)
Government Corporations
(Ex: Amtrack, Postal Service)
Independent
Regulatory
Commissions
(Ex: FCC, SEC)
Organization of the Federal Bureaucracy
Source: www.edmonds.wednet.edu/mths/ClassActivities/ Brzovic/policeymakersChapters12-16/
The Cabinet Departments
• The 15 cabinet departments headed by a
cabinet secretary appointed by the president
and approved by the Senate
• Each department “expert” in specific policy
area
• Each department has its own budget
• Department of Homeland Security, created in
2002, is newest department
Department of Homeland Security
Executive Secretary
Commandant of
Coast Guard (1)
Legislative Affairs
Secretary
Inspector General
---------------------------------Public Affairs
Deputy Secretary
General Counsel
State and Local Coordination
Special Assistant to the Secretary
(private sector)
Citizenship &
Immigration Service
Ombudsman (1)
National Capital Region Coordination
Chief of Staff
Director, Bureau of Citizenship
& Immigration Services (1)
Director of the
Secret Service (1)
Small & Disadvantaged
Business
Privacy Officer
International Affairs
Shared Services
Under Secretary
Management
Civil Rights and
Civil Liberties
Counter Narcotics
Under Secretary
Science and Technology
Note (1): Effective March 1st, 2003
Under Secretary
Information Analysis and
Infrastructure Protection
Under Secretary
Border &
Transportation Security
Under Secretary
Emergency
Preparedness and
Response
Independent Executive Agencies
• Established by Congress with separate
status outside the executive branch
• Given a specific mandate and generally
perform a service function, not a
regulatory one.
• Some examples include: Social Security
Administration, CIA, NASA, EPA.
Independent Regulatory Commissions
• IRCs exist to regulate a specific economic
activity or interest such as the Federal
Communications Commission (public air
waves) or Federal Reserve Board (banking
system, money supply)
• IRCs operate independently from Congress
and the President
• Once appointed and seated, members
cannot be removed without cause
Government Corporations
• Government owned businesses
created by Congress
• May or may not be profitable, but
serve a public need
• Ex: U.S. Postal Service, Amtrak,
Tennessee Valley Authority,
Corporation for Public Broadcasting
Who works for the federal government?
Who are the “Bureaucrats?”
•
•
•
•
97% are career government employees
Only 10% live in the D.C. area
30% work for the D.O.D.
Less than 15% work for social
welfare
agencies
• Most are white collar workers:
secretaries, clerks, lawyers,
inspectors
& engineers
• Civil employees more diverse
demographically than Congress
Staffing the Bureaucracy
Categories of Bureaucrats:
– 1. Appointed: patronage, spoils system, work
experience, intelligence, political affiliations
– Aristocracy of Federal Government:
• Appointed and not Confirmed
• Less than 1/10 of 1% of Federal Employees are
fired for incompetence. Why? “Red Tape” and
Civil Rights
History of Civil Service System
• “To the Victor Belong the Spoils”: Andrew
Jackson 1828: Spoils System
• Civil Service Reform Act 1883: Pendleton
Act created Civil Service Commission
1976 & 1980 Courts strengthen rights of
employees from termination due to politics
• 1978 Civil Service Reform Act: Office of
Personnel Management to hire & Merit
Systems Protection Board to fire.
Bureaucracy and Campaigns
• Why did FDR win 4 elections? Relate New
Deal programs with his campaigns.
• Conservatives pass the Hatch Act?******
• Banned federal employees from
campaigning
• Supreme Court overturns Act 1972
Where do Federal Employees
Work?
Source: www.edmonds.wednet.edu/mths/ClassActivities/ Brzovic/policeymakersChapters12-16/
What Jobs Do Bureaucrats
Do?
Source: www.edmonds.wednet.edu/mths/ClassActivities/
Brzovic/policeymakersChapters12-16/
Who supervises the
federal bureaucracy?
The President Supervises
Bureaucracy
the
The President can:
• appoint & remove
agency heads
• reorganize the
bureaucracy
President Obama
• issue executive orders
• reduce an agency's
budget
Congress Oversees the Bureaucracy
Congress can:
• create or abolish agencies
& departments
• cut or reduce funding
• investigate agency activities
• hold committee hearings
• pass legislation that alters
agency's functions
an
Former FEMA Chief Michael Brown testifies before
House committee investigating Hurricane Katrina
• influence or even fail to confirm
presidential appointments
Reforming Bureaucracy
1. Sunshine Laws before 9/11
--open public meetings in all levels of gov’t
a. Information Disclosure: Consumer
protection of homes, borrowing money
FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT
Post 9/11: Information not so public if
deemed “national security”
Reforming Bureaucracy
2. Sunset Laws: Government programs on a
“decline schedule” such as: Tax cuts
3. Privatization: Vouchers for education,
prisons, water, electricity, paramilitary
organizations (Blackwater USA)
4. Incentives: Performance based bonuses for
federal employees (Sales or Commission)
Reforming Bureaucracy
5. Helping out “Whistleblowers” –Truth-tellers:
Gross Gov’t inefficiency or illegal action.
--1989: Whistleblower protection act.
--Why is there a negative connation attached to
telling the truth?
--Office of Special Counsel (Kenneth Star)
Monica Lewinski, Paula Jones, Jennifer
Flowers, Kathleen Willey, Eileen Wellstone,
Carolyn Moffet, Elizabeth Ward, Paula Corbin,
Sandra James, Christy Zercher
Federal Courts Check the Bureaucracy
Federal courts can:
• through judicial review
rule on whether the
bureaucracy has acted
within the law and the
U.S. Constitution
• provide due process for
individuals affected by
a bureaucratic action
Supreme Court of the United States
The Bureaucracy of Pizza
Thinking Critically
1. Why is the federal bureaucracy often referred to as “the
fourth branch?”
2. Some critics believe that the real power in the federal
government lies with the federal bureaucracy. To what
extent do you believe this is true?
Title: The
Damages of the
Bureaucracy
Artist: unknown, La
Presna, Panama
Date: May, 2006
Source: http://www.politicalcartoons.com
Title: Federal Employees Self Esteem Class
Artist: Chip Bok
Date: unknown
Source: http://www.reason.com/9602/bok.gif
Title: Another Layer of Bureaucracy
Artist: Bob Englehart, The Hartford Courant
Date: February, 2006
Source: : http://www.politicalcartoons.com
Title: FEMA’s Follies
Artist: Mike Keefe, The Denver Post
Date: April, 2006
Source: http://www.cagle.com/news/FEMASFollies/main.asp