The Federal Bureaucracy

What is a bureaucracy?  Organization by which things get done in government  Bureaucracies: Have a hierarchical authority structure Use task specialization Develop extensive rules Operate on the merit of the people Behave with impersonality

Myths and Realities  Americans hate B. (Myth)  They grow bigger each year (Half ‘n Half)  Most work in D.C. (Myth)  Ineffective, inefficient, and mired in red tape (Half ‘n Half)

Who They Are and How They Got There  Patronage Hiring and promotion based upon knowing the right people  “It’s not what you know, it’s who you know”-Hayman’s mom  Pendleton Civil Service Act Created the federal civil service  System based on merit and desire to create a non-partisan gov’t service

More…  Merit Principal Uses entrance exams and promotional ratings to reward qualified applicants  Hatch Act Prohibits civil service employees from active participation in partisan politics while on duty

OPM  Office of Personnel Management In charge of hiring for most federal agencies  Each civil service job is assigned a GS (General Schedule) rating Very top of the c.s. is the Senior Executive Service

Plum Book  Lists top federal jobs available for direct presidential appointment

Organization of B.  Cabinet Departments (Manage specific policy areas)  Independent Regulatory Commissions (Federal Reserve Board, Federal Communications Commission, Social Security Admin.) Each I.R.C. is responsible for some sector of the economy Interest groups are closely involved with I.R.C.s

More Organization  Government Corporations (Amtrak, Post Office, T.V.A.) Provide a service that could be provided by the private sector Charge for a service

Still More Organization  Independent Executive Agencies (NASA, General Service Admin., National Science Foundation) Make up the rest

B.’s as Implementers  Policy implementation Stage of policymaking between establishment of policy and its consequences

Some policies fail. Why?  Program Design Some tasks are impossible  Lack of Clarity Congress states broad goals while leaving the specifics up to the B.’s  Lack of Resources Lack of body armor in Iraq EPA has low staff and cannot enforce laws

Making it Fair  SOP’s help make b.’s everyday decisions  May become “red tape” and obstacles to action

Privatization  Private contractors used to do the work of the gov’t  Fourth Branch of the Gov’t Leads to less scrutiny

Regulation  Use of gov’t authority to control or change some practice in the private sector FDA, CPSC, OSHA  Gov’t tells businesses how to reach certain goals, checks on progress, and punishes offenders

Trend Towards Deregulation  Regulation: Raises prices Hurts America’s competitive position abroad Doesn’t always work well

Understanding B.’s  Presidents try to control B.’s Appoint heads of agencies Issue executive orders Alter agency’s budget Reorganize the agency

More understanding  Congress tries to control B.’s Influence appointments Alter budgets Hold hearings Rewrite legislation for more detail and clarity

The Iron Triangle Iron Triangles and Issue Networks  Iron Triangles: a mutually dependent relationship between bureaucratic agencies, interest groups, and congressional committees or subcommittees  Exist independently of each other  They are tough, but not impossible, to get rid of  Some argue they are being replaced by wider issue networks that focus on more than one policy.

Figure 15.5 Understanding Bureaucracies

Summary  Bureaucrats shape policy as administrators, implementers, and regulators.  Bureaucracy’s primary responsibility is the implementation of public policy.  Federal bureaucracy has not grown but has in fact shrunk of late.