Unit 2: The Three Branches

 Early Examples – The Bank of the United States and the Post Office  “Necessary and Proper Clause”  Created by Congress as part of the Executive Branch with legal guidelines, roles, powers, and procedures  Environmental Protection Agency – Clean Water Act and Clean Air Act  Many have legislative, executive and judicial powers  SCOTUS has retained right to judicial review of bureaucracy procedures and judgments (Agency Deference Issues)  Congressional Spending Oversight  Explosion of bureaucracy in modern era (Interstate Commerce Clause)

 History  Early History – Spoils system  Assassination of James Garfield (1881)  The Pendleton Act of 1883  Bipartisan Civil Service Commission  Civil Service Exam  The Hatch Act of 1939  Restrictions on campaigning for candidates  Civil Service Reform Act of 1978  Office of Personnel Management - hiring  Merit Systems Protections Board - firing

 Type of Agencies  Cabinet Departments  Government Corporations  Make own funding – independent of Congress  The Federal Reserve, FDIC, TVA, Post Office, Amtrak  Independent Executive Agencies  Single Function (considered cabinet level)  NASA, CIA, EPA, Civil Rights Commission  Independent Regulatory Agencies  Regulate certain aspect of American economy  OSHA, FAA, FDA, FTC, FCC, ICC, etc

 Modern Issues  Grants – The Spending Clause  Block Grants and Congressional Spending Power  The Health Care Cases (2012)  Iron Triangles  Congressional oversight and interest groups  Turf Battles  State Department, Defense Department, Intelligence Community and Homeland Security  Duplication  Customs Service, Coast Guard and DEA seek to prevent drug smuggling into country