Chapter 12: The Bureaucracy

The Bureaucracy: The Power of Rule-Making Click the icon to open the movie Copyright © 2009 Cengage Learning

Questions Why does Congress allow for bureaucratic rulemaking? What are the potential conflicts in a system that allows bureaucratic rulemaking? Copyright © 2009 Cengage Learning

Bureaucracies Bureaucracies are often handy political targets to blame for society’s ills. Yet, the same bureaucrats who are blamed for red tape have also accomplished some remarkable tasks: NASA TVA Copyright © 2009 Cengage Learning

Bureaucracies (cont.) Americans tend to be against “Big Government” in the abstract, but they also demand all kinds of government services. Copyright © 2009 Cengage Learning

2002 AP/ Wide World Photos © 2003 AP/Wide World Photos As a new bureaucracy created in 2002, how effective is the Department of Homeland Security ? Copyright © 2009 Cengage Learning

Bureaucracy and the Policy Process Client Groups Congress Triangles and Subgovernments Issue Networks Copyright © 2009 Cengage Learning

The Veterans Affairs “Triangle” Iron Triangles: three-way alliance among legislators, bureaucrats, and interest groups that seeks to make or preserve policies that benefit their respective interests Issue Networks: legislators, interest groups, bureaucrats, scholars and experts, and members of the media who share a position on a given issue may attempt to exert influence on the executive branch, on Congress, on the courts or on the media to see their policy position enacted. Copyright © 2009 Cengage Learning

The Politics of Bureaucracy Bureaucracy and Public Opinion Bureaucracy and the President Bureaucracy and Policymaking Copyright © 2009 Cengage Learning

Models of Bureaucracy Weberian Model Acquisitive Model Hierarchy Specialization Rules and regulations Neutrality Acquisitive Model Monopolistic Model Bureaucracies Compared Copyright © 2009 Cengage Learning

The Size of the Bureaucracy Today there are about 2.7 million civilian employees of the federal government. The two biggest employers are the U.S. Postal Service, with almost 800,000 workers, and the Department of Defense, with more than 650,000 civilian staff. In recent years, the greatest growth in government employment has been at the local level. Federal employment has remained stable. (UPI Photo/Bill Greenblatt/Landov) Copyright © 2009 Cengage Learning

A Profile of Bureaucracy: Government Employment—Federal, State, and Local Copyright © 2009 Cengage Learning

Copyright © 2009 Cengage Learning © Bob Daemmrich /Stock, Boston /PictureQuest Copyright © 2009 Cengage Learning

Federal Agencies and Their Employees Copyright © 2009 Cengage Learning

Government Employment at the Federal, State, and Local Levels Copyright © 2009 Cengage Learning

Copyright © 2009 Cengage Learning

The Organization of the Federal Bureaucracy Cabinet Departments Independent Executive Agencies Independent Regulatory Agencies The Purpose and Nature of Regulatory Agencies Agency Capture Deregulation and Reregulation Government Corporations Copyright © 2009 Cengage Learning

Major Regulatory Agencies The Federal Trade Commission (1914) The Federal Communications Commission (1934) The Securities and Exchange Commission (1934) The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (1978) The Federal Trade Commission (1914): five members, seven-year terms; regulates industry; responsible for preventing unfair competition, price fixing, deceptive advertising, mislabeling of textile and fur products, false packaging, and similar abuses. 2. The Federal Communications Commission (1934): five members, five-year terms; licenses and regulates all television and radio stations in the United States; regulates frequencies used by police, aviation, taxicabs, citizens’ band and “ham” operators, and others; fixes rates for telephone and telegraph companies in interstate commerce. 3. The Securities and Exchange Commission (1934): five members, five-year terms; created to protect the public from investing in securities on the basis of false or misleading claims; requires companies offering securities for sale to file an accurate registration statement and prospectus; registers brokers; regulates stock exchanges. 4. The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (1978): five members, five-year terms; although within the Department of Energy, is an independent regulatory commission; regulates and has jurisdiction over natural gas companies, electric utilities, and interstate oil pipelines. Copyright © 2009 Cengage Learning

Deregulation The government regulation of industry, which increased during the New Deal administration of FDR, had by the 1970s, become a target of criticism. In the 1970s, President Carter called for deregulation of airlines, banking, trucking, railroads, and telecommunications. Copyright © 2009 Cengage Learning

The Growth of Social Regulation Although considerable deregulation of transportation, communications, and financial industries took place, social regulation increased during the 1970s and 1980s. Copyright © 2009 Cengage Learning

Staffing the Bureaucracy Political Appointees The aristocracy of the federal government The difficulty of firing civil servants Copyright © 2009 Cengage Learning

Modern Attempts at Bureaucratic Reform Sunshine Laws The 1966 Freedom of Information Act Changes after 9/11 Sunset Laws require congressional review of existing programs to determine their effectiveness. If Congress does not explicitly reauthorize a program, it expires. Copyright © 2009 Cengage Learning

The Civil Service The Spoils System The Road to Reform 1850s Copyright © 2009 Cengage Learning

The Carter Reforms The Civil Service Reform Act of 1978 Whistle-blowers The Senior Executive Service Copyright © 2009 Cengage Learning

“I’m sorry, dear, but you knew I was a bureaucrat when you married me.” Copyright © 2009 Cengage Learning The New Yorker Collection 1980. Robert Weber from cartoonbank.com. All rights reserved.

Modern Attempts at Bureaucratic Reform (cont.) Privatization Incentives for Efficiency and Productivity The Government Performance and Results Act of 1997 Saving Costs through E-Government Helping Out the Whistle Blowers Copyright © 2009 Cengage Learning

Bureaucrats as Politicians and Policy-Makers The Rulemaking Environment Waiting periods and court challenges Negotiated Rulemaking Copyright © 2009 Cengage Learning

Congressional Control of the Bureaucracy The ultimate control is in the hands of Congress because Congress controls the purse strings. Congressional control of the bureaucracy includes the establishment of agencies and departments, the budget process, and oversight conducted through investigations, hearings, and review. Copyright © 2009 Cengage Learning

Questions for Critical Thinking What could be done to eliminate iron triangles? In modern times, we tend to equate the term “bureaucracy” with “red tape” or inefficiency. How does the goal of neutrality and the need for specialization help reinforce those images? Copyright © 2009 Cengage Learning

Web Links US Office of Personnel Management The Project on Government Oversight USA Jobs http://www.opm.gov Office of Personnel Management The federal government’s human resources agency; contains general information for current and prospective federal employees and statistics about federal government workers. http://www.pogo.org Project on Government Oversight A nonpartisan, nonprofit organization that investigates, exposes, and tries to remedy abuses of power within the government. The site includes POGO Alerts, which are brief reports about the project’s investigations, and legal resources for those who are considering becoming a whistle-blower. http://www.usajobs.opm.gov USAJobs The federal government’s official site for jobs and employment information. Current job openings, online applications for jobs, and information about working for the government are available. Copyright © 2009 Cengage Learning

Web Links (cont.) GAO—U.S. Government Accountability Office FAS—Federation of American Scientists OMB Watch Openthegovernment.org www.gao.gov This is the site of the Government Accountability Office, the congressional office that monitors the performance of executive branch agencies. www.fas.org This is the site of the Federation of American Scientists. www.ombwatch.org This is a site set up by interest groups and private individuals to monitor the performance of executive branch agencies. You can review agency evaluations, changes in FOIA, and other laws and rules governing openness in government. www.openthegovernment.org This website is devoted to tracking government policy on issues of secrecy and public access to government documents. Site managers advocate for greater openness. Copyright © 2009 Cengage Learning