1. The Federal Bureaucracy
Chapter 15

2. Introduction Myths Americans dislike bureaucrats
Most federal bureaucrats work in DC
Are always ineffective, inefficient, and mired in red tape

4. The Bureaucrats Who are they?
Most demographically representative part of gov’t
Diversity of jobs mirrors private sector

5. The Bureaucrats: How They Got There
Civil Service –merit based hiring and promotion
Pendleton Civil Service Act (1883)
Merit Principle
Entrance exams and promotions encourage talent and skill
Hatch Act
Prohibits gov’t employees from actively participating in partisan politics

6. The Bureaucrats: How They Got There
Office of Personnel Management
General Schedule (GS) rating
Salary schedule for federal employees ranging from GS 1-18, tied to experience

7. The Bureaucrats: How They Got There
Senior Executive Service
Elite group of ~ 9,000 federal gov’t managers
Established by Civil Service Reform Act (1978)
The Plum Book
Lists top jobs available for Prez appointment
Most important trait is transience - ambassadors

8. How Bureaucracies Are Organized

10. How Bureaucracies Are Organized
Independent Regulatory Agencies
Responsible for some sector of economy making rules and judging disputes to protect public interest
Federal Communications Commission (FCC)
Federal Trade Commission (FTC)
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC)
Gov’t Corporations
Independent Executive Agencies

11. Bureaucracies as Implementers
Translating goals and objectives of policy into operating, ongoing program
Includes:
Creating and assigning agency
Creating rules, regulations, and forms
Coordinating resources

12. Bureaucracies as Implementers
Why Best-Laid Plans Are Not Implemented
Program Design
Lack of Clarity
Laws are ambiguous and imprecise
Lack of Resources
Administrative Routine
Standard Operation Procedures (SOPs) bring uniformity but are difficult to change
Administrator’s Dispositions
Administrative discretion – choosing btw various responses
Street-level bureaucrats have most discretion
Fragmentation
Policies can be spread across multiple agencies = different rules

13. Bureaucracies as Regulators
Economy and Everyday Life
Regulation – use of gov’t authority to control or change practice in private sector
Always contains:
Congressional grant of power, direction
Rules and guidelines set by agency
Means to enforce compliances w/ rules
Command-and-Control Policy
Incentive System

14. Bureaucracies as Regulators
Toward Deregulation
Lifting restrictions on business, industry, and professional activities
Regulatory Problems:
Raises prices
Hurts U.S.’s competitive position abroad
Does not always work well

15. Bureaucracies as Regulators
Iron Triangles and Issue Networks
Some argue Triangles replaced by issue networks that focus on multiple policies
Issue Networks – alliance of interest groups that unite to promote cause or agenda
Both are difficult but not impossible to get rid of

16. Bureaucracy and Democracy
President Control
Appoint right people
Issues executive orders
Alter agency budget
Reorganize an agency
Creation of the Department of Homeland Security
Congressional Control
Influence appointment of agency heads
Alter agency’s budget
Hold oversight hearings
Rewrite legislation or make it more detailed

17. 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