1. The Federal Bureaucracy Chapter 15

2. Introduction Classic conception of bureaucracy (Max Weber) – Hierarchical authority structure – Uses task specialization – Operate on the merit principle – Behave with impersonality – A well-organized machine with lots of working parts.

3. The Bureaucrats Bureaucrat: An employee of the federal government who works to carry out its laws Some Bureaucratic Myths and Realities – Americans dislike bureaucrats. – Bureaucracies are growing bigger each year. – Most federal bureaucrats work in Wash, D.C. – Bureaucracies are ineffective, inefficient and always mired in red tape.

4. The Bureaucrats Growth in Civilian Government Employees (Figure 15.1)

5. The Bureaucrats

6. Figure 15.2 The Bureaucrats Who They Are and How They Got There – Most demographically representative part of government. – Diversity of jobs mirrors the private sector.

7. The Bureaucrats

8. Bureaucrats are hired in one of two ways 1. Through the Civil Service System Take an entrance exam Hiring and promotion based on merit (talent and skill) NOT patronage (job given for political reasons) Office of Personnel Management: The federal office in charge of most of the government’s hiring.

9. The Bureaucrats

10. Also hired through 2. Presidential recruitment – the Plum Book lists the very top jobs available for Presidential appointment. Presidents work to find capable people to fill the positions. Some plum jobs (ambassadorships) are patronage. Many positions require Congressional approval

11. Bureaucracies Department of Defense has the most civil employees US Postal Service is next Overall, the number of bureaucrats has NOT increased in decades Bureaucrats are not easily removed from office

12. How Bureaucracies Are Organized 1. By Cabinet Departments – 15 Cabinet departments headed by a secretary – Department of Justice headed by Attorney General – Each has its own budget, staff and policy areas

13. How Bureaucracies Are Organized 2. By Regulatory Agencies – Oversees a particular aspect of the economy – Creates regulations that protect people – Can enforce regulations by judging disputes – Headed by a commission (confirmed by Congress) rather than a secretary – Closely involved with interest groups that want to influence regulations

14. How Bureaucracies Are Organized 3. By Government Corporations – Business like – provide services like private companies and typically charge for their services. – Postal Service, Amtrak are examples

15. How Bureaucracies Are Organized 4. By Independent Executive Agencies – All other executive agencies – Most were created for a specific purpose – GSA and NASA are examples

16. Bureaucracies as Implementers What Implementation Means – To enact and enforce rules and procedures in order to carry out Congress’ laws – Implementation includes: Creating / assigning an agency the policy Translating policy into rules, regulations and forms. Coordinating resources to achieve the goals. Overseeing day-to-day operation of the federal government

17. Bureaucracies as Implementers Policy Implementation is NOT always successful because: – Program design is flawed – Lack of clarity Congressional laws are ambiguous and imprecise. Sometimes the laws conflict with each other. – Lack of Resources Agencies may be big, but not in the right areas.

18. Bureaucracies as Implementers Policy Implementation is NOT always successful because: – Lack of Resources Many different types of resources are needed: personnel, training, supplies & equipment. May also lack the authority to act. – Administrative Routine SOPs bring uniformity to complex organizations. It is often difficult to change the routines.

19. Bureaucracies as Implementers Policy Implementation is NOT always successful because: – Administrator’s Dispositions Administrative discretion is the ability to select among various responses. Street-level bureaucrats have the most discretion. – Fragmentation Some policies are spread among several agencies. Some agencies have different rules for the same policy.

20. Bureaucracies as Implementers Reorganization of the bureaucracy for the sake of efficiency is unlikely because it would disrupt well-established iron triangles (congressional committees, the agencies they oversee and interest groups)

21. Bureaucracies as Implementers A Case Study: The Voting Rights Act of 1965 – Generally considered a success. – Had a clear, concise goal. – The implementation was clear. – Those carrying out the law had obvious authority and vigor to do so.

22. Bureaucracies as Regulators Bureaucracies oversee policies once they are in place through regulations – Regulation: Use of governmental authority to control or change some practice in the private sector. Federal agencies check, verify and inspect many of the products and services we take for granted.

23. Bureaucracies as Regulators All products and many daily activities are shaped by regulation Examples: Establish guidelines for a program Enforce guidelines (issue permits, inspections) Can change rules of a policy and apprehend violators

24. Bureaucracies as Regulators Toward Deregulation – Deregulation: The lifting of restrictions on business, industry, and professional activities. – Regulatory problems: Raises prices Hurts U.S.’s competitive position abroad Does not always work well – But some argue regulation is needed.

25. Understanding Bureaucracies Bureaucracy and Democracy – Presidents Try to Control the Bureaucracy Appoint the right people. Issue executive orders. Tinker with the agency’s budget. Reorganize an agency.

26. Understanding Bureaucracies Bureaucracy and Democracy – Congress Tries to Control the Bureaucracy Influence presidential appointments. Tinker with the agency’s budget. Hold hearings. Rewrite the legislation or make it more detailed.

27. Understanding Bureaucracies Bureaucracy and Democracy – 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.

28. Figure 15.5 Understanding Bureaucracies

29. Bureaucracy and the Scope of Government – Many state that this is an example of a government out of control. – But, the size of the bureaucracy has shrunk. – Some agencies don’t have enough resources to do what they are expected to do. – Only carry out the policies, Congress and the president decide what needs to be done.