Friday March 7, 2014
 OBJ:
SWBAT demonstrate their
understanding of IRA’s by creating their
own Iron Triangle.
 Drill: What are some ways to regulate
(control) the Beauraucracy?
 HW: Vocab due Monday
Review of Independent
Agencies
 Take
notes on what exactly IRA are, there
has been some confusion.
Three Types of Independent
Agencies
 (1)
The independent executive agencies
 (2) The independent regulatory
commissions
 (3) The government corporations
The label “independent agency” is
a catchall

Most of these agencies are independent only in
the sense that they are not located within any of
the 15 cabinet departments.


They are not independent of the President and the
executive branch. Executive agencies like NASA, and
Government Corporations like The Federal Deposit
Insurance Corporation (FDIC)
Independent Regulatory Commissions are largely
beyond the reach of presidential direction and control.
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) is an
example.
 Independent
agencies are located outside
of the executive departments.
 Today there are nearly 150.

Examples:
•
•
•
•
•
CIA
Federal Reserve System
Equal Employment Opportunity Commission
Consumer Product Safety Commission
NASA
Reasons these agencies exist
outside of the cabinet departments
are nearly as numerous as the
agencies themselves.
 Some
have been set up outside the
executive departments because they don’t
fit well with any department.

Office of Personnel Management (hiring
agency for the federal gov’t.)
Reasons Continued
 Congress
has given some of these
agencies independent status to protect
them from the influence of “politics.”



Social Security Administration
Office of Personnel Management
Federal Election Commission
Reasons Continued
 Some
agencies are independent because
of the peculiar and sensitive nature of their
functions.

Especially the independent regulatory
commissions.
• Federal Trade Commission
• Nuclear Regulatory Commission
• Consumer Product Safety Commission
Regulatory Commissions have
certain powers given to them
 Quasi-legislative
powers: quasi-legislative
powers are used in rule making and regulatory
functions and have the force of law.
 Quasi-judicial powers: powers resembling those
of a court of law or judge; able to remedy a
situation or impose legal penalties on a person
or organization. Quasi-judicial powers are
exercised when disputes are decided in those
fields in which Congress has given policing
authority, i.e., EPA is a good example.
Regulatory Commissions
Continued



These regulatory bodies possess all three powers executive, legislative, and judicial - and are
exceptions to the principle of separation of powers.
The power of the regulatory commissions is
controversial and had been decreased under
Presidents Reagan and Bush. [They believed in a
weaker federal government].
Congress has attempted to protect independent
regulatory agencies from political influence by
requiring that each agency be led by a group of
commissioners representing both major political
parties.
Capture
 Over
the last several decades some
observers contend that many independent
regulatory agencies have been captured
by the very industries they are supposed
to regulate.
 The result is less competition, higher
prices and less choice.
Deregulation and Reregulation




Under Carter and then Reagan: deregulation of the airline
industry
Under Bush (41): Regulation of many businesses increased
due to the Americans with Disabilities Act, the Clean Air Act
Amendments, Cable Reregulation Act 1992
Clinton eliminated the Interstate Commerce Commission,
deregulated banking and telecommunications, but increased
environmental regulations
Repeal of Glass-Steagall Act (GSA) 1999. This act
separated investment and commercial banking
activities. At the time, "improper banking activity", or
what was considered overzealous commercial bank
involvement in stock market investment, was deemed
the main culprit of the financial crash of 1929.
Independent
Regulatory
Agencies
Scenarios, get your IRA sheets out, for
each scenario choose which agencies
would deal with it
Janet Jackson
has a “wardrobe
malfunction”
during the Super
Bowl.
Prescription medicine is
being imported from
other Countries
because it is cheaper.
However, testing isn’t
done by U.S.
standards.
Two
children are kidnapped
in Maryland and taken to their
mother’s house in
Pennsylvania. Maryland
police say they don’t have the
power to enter PA to find the
kids.
A leather tanning
facility is poisoning a
local stream with
chemicals. Many
children in the area
get very sick.
Some people feel that
overly violent/sexual
programming should
be removed from paycable television (HBO,
Showtime, etc).
Vioxx, a prescription
medicine, was found
to cause heart failure
and could lead to
death in some
patients.
Commercial vehicles
(business use) cause a
great deal of pollution
from exhaust emissions
and they do not have to
be tested on a regular
basis.
Two
pilots fall asleep
while flying a late-night
flight from California to
New York. Investigators
found that many pilots are
too tired to fly and they are
putting passengers at risk.
Al
Qaeda has several
terrorist cells located
around the DC area. A
person is needed to
infiltrate these cells and
gather information.
Many
fast-food chains
are serving foods that
are very high in fat
content, calories, and
sodium. This is seen as
unhealthy by many
Americans.
th
11 ,
After September
2001, investigators
found that the pilots’
door was too weak
and could easily be
broken.
Aqua
Dots, a popular
children's toy, is found to
contain the date-rape drug
GHB. Five children in
Australia have eaten the dots
and went into comas. These
products are also sold in the
United States.
What does the phrase,
“Old habits die hard”
mean?
Do you believe this to be
true?
Why or why not?
V22-Osprey
Bureaucracy
Favorable Rulings
Information
Support for Budget Requests
Campaign Money and Support
Information
Helpful legislation
Increased budgets
Information
Help with Constituent Issues
Congressional
Subcommittee
Interest
Group
V22-Osprey
Subcontracts
are spread
across 45 states
and 276
congressional
districts which
25 years of
development
and cost 30
lives and $20
billion.
means that
nearly twothirds of all
members of
Congress have
at least some
direct interest
in the Osprey.
Wrap Up
 What
problems do you see with the Iron
Triangle?
 Is there a way for IRA’s to regulate them?
How?