Chapter 15
The Bureaucracy
What is a Bureaucracy?
O Bureaucracy: “rule by desks”
a group of unelected officials organized in a
hierarchal structure functioning under rules
and procedures
Bureaucracy Characteristics
O Hierarchy structure
O Government breakdown of department and
O
O
O
O
agencies
Unelected officials, BUT often highly trained
Task specialization
Impersonal
Follows complex set of rules (red tape)
LIKE OUR PIZZAAAA!!
Federal Bureaucracy
O President
- only appoints 3% (cabinet departments)
O Proxy Government
filtering from federal statelocal local groups
(departmentsagencies/commissions/administrations)
Federal Bureaucracy Structure
O Cabinet Departments/Executive Agencies (15)
- “Secretary” appointed by president, confirmed by Senate
- Department “experts” in certain areas
- Each department has its own budget
O Independent Executive Agencies
-
Established BY CONGRESS
Separate status outside of executive branch
(NASA, SSA-Social Security Admin., CIA)
Given specific mandate/purpose/function… NOT to regulate
-
O Independent Regulatory Agencies/Commissions
-
Exist to REGULATE: econ. activity or interest
(FCC – Federal Communications Comm., Federal Reserve
Board, EPA)
Operate independently from Congress and President
O Government Corporations
-
Government owned business CREATED BY CONGRESS
Serve public need, may not be profitable (USPS, Amtrak)
Federal Bureaucracy
Government by proxy—
the use of third parties rather than government
employees and organizations to deliver publicly funded
services—is on the increase. Volunteers constitute one of
the third parties through which governments fulfill
important service responsibilities.
O Social Security
O Medicare
O Environmental protection
O Income tax collection
O Many military duties
Federal Bureaucracy
O HUGE!
- 4 million employees (2.8 = civil servants)
200+ independent agencies
2,000+ bureaus/branches/divisions
Civil servants
bureaucrats that “serve” the public
O Grown over time
- only mention in Constitution (Article II):
allows president to appoint with the advice and consent of the Senate…
“ambassadors, other public ministers and consuls, judges of the Supreme
Court, and all other officers of the United States whose appointments are
not herein otherwise provided for, and which shall be established by law.”
Federal Bureaucracy
O Causes of Growth
1. War time
- Civil, WWI, WWII, Korean War, Vietnam War
* Congress regulates “commerce”
* Congress funds and regulates armed forces
- (1860 -1900s) Era where “laissez-faire” and limited
government still existed, BUT focused on the SERVICE
role… NOT regulation!
- WWII = use of federal income tax ($5 bill. to $44 bill.) to
fund war effort…..did NOT end with the war
Federal Bureaucracy
2. Economic Reasons
- 1930s Great Depression = changed public’s
attitude on the role of government
3. Society/Social Reasons
- Civil War = brought about new social & economic
needs of citizens
* Veteran interests *Farmers’ needs
- New Deal = public works programs that were run by
various agencies
Federal Bureaucracy
4. Constitutional Interpretation
- S.C. ruling upholding laws that allow agencies to make
decisions that “serve the public interest”
5. Terrorist Attacks* (modern day)
- 9/11  congressional law to CREATE NEW DEPARTMENT
(DHS – Dept. Homeland Security) 2002
* 22 agencies
* 180,000 employees
* 4th largest budget ($40 bill.)
Government Bureaucracy
Federal Bureaucracy
O Roughly same size since 1960
O Estimated 13 million people now work indirectly for
the Federal government as employees of private
firms and state/local agencies largely supported by
federal funds.
*Proxy Government!
Sources: Statistical Abstract of the United States 2009, Table 481. Federal Bureau of Prisons Weekly
Population Report and Quick Facts (available at http://www.bop.gov/locations/weekly_report.jsp;
and http://www.bop.gov/news/quick.jsp#5).
Copyright © 2013 Cengage
Power of the Bureaucracy
O CONGRESS DELEGATED!
- NOT aligned with number of employees
- Discretionary authority:
extent that appointed bureaucrats can
choose the course of action and make policies
that are not spelled out in laws (advance)
- Regulations have risen faster than the rate of employees
* Overall bureaucracy power has grown greatly!
Power of the Bureaucracy
O Congress grants agencies power in 3 ways:
1. Paying subsidies (farmers, schools, veterans)
2. Transfer $ from federal to state & local
3. Enforcing regulations of economy and society
* Declared constitutional by the Supreme Court in
1930s… then became “commonplace”/more
frequent
The Bureaucrats
O Federal Service System: Recruitment & Retention
- Designed to recruit and keep qualified people in positions
based off of job performance, NOT political favoritism
Competitive service:
appointed officials on the basis of merit
administered by Office of Personnel
Management (OPM)
- exams/written tests, training, educational requirements,
prior experience
*On the decline recently because:
each agency now hires its own employees (OPM not
aligned with agency needs) & affirmative action
The Bureaucrats
O Federal Service System: Recruitment & Retention
-
Excepted service:
employees NOT hired by the OPM and
outside of the merit system
Presidential appointments
Schedule “C” appointments (confidentiality positions below cabinet
positions)
Noncareer executive assignments (high ranking competitive/civil
service members VERY involved in policy making)
PATRONAGE! (Obama had 2,000+ positions to fill)
Pendleton Act 1883: mandated that government jobs be
awarded on the basis of merit NOT
patronage
*Grover Cleveland 1885 replaced 40,000 R members with D members
The Bureaucrats
O Federal Service System: Recruitment & Retention
buddy system/name request:
position filled by a person whom an agency
already “knows” about
* Still must register through the OPM, but names the person
they wish to appoint!
Firing bureaucrat = very difficult & elongated process
Senior Executive Service (SES): 8,000 top federal managers
who can be hired, fired, transferred easier than civil servants
Figure 15.2 Characteristics of Federal Civilian
Employees, 1960 and 2005
*Blacks, Native Americans, Hispanics, Asians, and Pacific Islanders
Sources: Statistical Abstract of the United States, 1961, 392–394; Statistical Abstract of the United
States, 2009, Table 482.
Copyright © 2013 Cengage
The Bureaucrats
O 97% career government employees or civil
O
O
O
O
O
servants
Only 10% live in D.C.
30% work for Dept. of Defense
Less than 15% work for social welfare
agencies
Most white collar workers (secretaries,
clerks, lawyers, inspectors & engineers)
Civil service = more diverse than Congress
The Bureaucrats
17% African American
7% Hispanic
5% Asian
2% Native American
The Bureaucrats
O Behavior
- Civil servants tend to be liberal
- Tend to be loyal to political superiors who work
“cooperatively” with them
Whistle Blower Protection Act (1989):
investigated the complaints of bureaucrats
punished by their superiors after reporting to
Congress (abuse, waste, fraud)
Constraints
Freedom of Information Act (1966):
citizens have the right to inspect government
documents (public knowledge) except military,
intelligence and trade secrets
Nat. Environmental Policy Act (1969):
agency must issue environmental impact statement
before taking any action before taking any major
action affecting the environment
Constraints
O Massive amount of constraints!
- can’t hire/fire without going through Congress/law
- can‘t build or sell without going through Congress/law
- must pay its members what is set by Congress/law
O Crossing of Job Assignments
- More than one agency = responsible for
agency issue…
handling an
Dept. of Health and Human Services & Dept. of Agriculture
Effects of Constraints
O Because of so many constraints….
- Takes long time for action VA dispute
- Government acts inconsistently (action to satisfy
one constraint will complicate another)
- Action can become blocked because so many
voices are being heard to overcome constraints
(cancels them out!)
- Lower ranking employees hesitate to make
decisions…. afraid
- RED TAPE complaints!!
Constraints
O Why so many?
THE PEOPLE!!
- Many different people = many different
interests
- Many different agencies = many different goals
Overcoming Constraints
Iron triangle:
close relationship between groups that cooperate
to achieve common action for their interest/goal
(agency, congressional committee, interest groups
Ex. Department of Agriculture (exec. agency) working
with Food and Drug Administration, the EPA, and various
farmer interest groups
• Less common because there are now so many
different agencies and interest groups!
Overcoming Constraints
Defense
D.O.D.
(Executive Branch-Bureaucracy)
Armed Services Comm.
(Congressional Committee)
“military industrial complex”
Boe ing
(Interest Group)
Agriculture
Dept. of Agriculture
(Executive Branch-Bureaucracy)
Agriculture Committee (Congressional Committee)
American
Peanut Council (Interest
Group)
Overcoming Constraints
“Revolving Door”:
The cycle of individuals in and out of government positions in
the bureaucracy (decision making power) and interest groups
(industry expert positions).
Issue Networks:
“network” of people of different ideologies, parties, and
interests who get together to discuss different policies and
ideas
Ex. Universities, think tanks, mass media, congressmen
O
O
-
Oversight of the Federal
Bureaucracy
PRESIDENT
appoints/remove agency heads
reorganize bureaucracy
issue executive orders
reduce agency’s budget
CONGRESS
create/abolish agencies & departments
cut/reduce funding
investigate agency activity
hold committee hearings
pass legislation that alters agency’s function
confirm presidential appointments
O FEDERAL COURTS
- judicial review
- provide due process for individuals affected by bureaucratic action
Oversight of Federal
Bureaucracy
O Congressional Supervision
-Authorization legislation:
“permission” of an agency to exist and SPEND money that
is appropriated to it by Congress
Appropriation:
grant of money (formally set aside) for agencies to spend
* Usually LESS than what is desired/expected
-
-
Trust funds:
money for government programs NOT appropriated by
Congress
*collected outside of taxes
* spent outside the budget
Ex. Social Security
Reforming the Bureaucracy
O VA
Reforming the Bureaucracy
O National Performance Review (NPR)
1993 Clinton-Gore research initiative to:
- make government more efficient
- cut red tape
- reduce waste ($400 hammer)
- better serve the needs of the public
NPR
Report Index
Information reported every 6 months
Suggestions are made to agencies
* “Hammer Award” (the $400 hammer incident)