Main Purpose
The federal bureaucracy performs three primary tasks in government: implementation, administration, and regulation. When Congress passes a law, it sets down guidelines to carry out the new policies. Putting these policies into practice is known as implementation. Often, policies are not clearly defined, and bureaucrats must interpret the meaning of the law. The bureaucracy often has some flexibility in actual implementation. The routine of bureaucracy — collecting fees, issuing permits, giving tests, etc — is the administration of its defined purpose. The federal bureaucracy makes regulations through rule making. Regulations can be challenged in court, and they are not put into effect until the legal issues are resolved.
Constitution
The Constitution made little mention of a bureaucracy other than to make the president responsible for appointing public officials, including ambassadors, judges, and "all other officers of the United States whose appointments are not herein otherwise provided for, and which shall be established by law" (Article II, Section 3). No provisions mentioned departments or bureaus, but Congress created the first bureaucracy during George Washington's presidency.
Accountability
1. Presidents can hold the bureaucracy accountable with reorganization, presidential appointees and the executive budget
2. Congress exerts control over the bureaucracy in a general sense through its power to authorize and fund programs
3. The Judiciary promotes bureaucratic accountability primarily by encouraging administrators to act responsibly in their dealings with the public and by protecting individuals and groups from bureaucratic abuses
2. Congress exerts control over the bureaucracy in a general sense through its power to authorize and fund programs
3. The Judiciary promotes bureaucratic accountability primarily by encouraging administrators to act responsibly in their dealings with the public and by protecting individuals and groups from bureaucratic abuses
Organization
Most estimates suggest there are probably more than 2,000 federal government agencies, commissions and departments. They each have an area of specialization — some much broader than others — but their duties often overlap, making administration more difficult. To complicate things even more, many agencies have counterparts at the state and local level. Its size, complexity, and overlapping responsibilities leave the federal bureaucracy open to constant attempts to reorganize. The bureaucracy generally falls into four broad types: Cabinet departments, government corporations, independent agencies, and regulatory commissions.
Agencies
Cabinet Departments
- 15 cabinet departments headed by a secretary
- Tennessee Valley Authority- created during the New Deal
- Resolution Trust Corporation- created to deal with bankruptcies and the many bank failures of the 1980's
- Other corporations are created to take over a failed industry or bail out and essential private industry
- General Services Administration (GSA)- handles government purchasing
- National Science Foundation- supports scientific research and development
- National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA)- coordinates country's efforts in outer space
- Interstate Commerce Commission (ICC)-regulates interstate relations
- Federal Trade Commission (FTC)- regulates fair trade, encourages competition, and is responsible for evaluating unfair or deceptive advertising or products that may be unsafe
- Food and Drug Administration (FDA)- regulates the contents, marketing, and labeling of food and drugs
- Federal Communications Commission (FCC)- regulates the television and radio industry and grants licenses to television and radio stations
- Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC)- regulates the sale of securities and the stock market, preventing insider trading
- Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)- implements laws like the Clean Air Act
- Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA)- sets safety and heath standards for the work place
- Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC)- tests and reports about products that may injure the public and issues warnings for the products deemed unsafe
- Federal Election Commission (FEC)- responsible for monitoring campaign contributions and provides some funding to presidential candidates through matching grants
Quasi-Legislative & Quasi-Judicial
Quasi-legislative: a characteristic of independent regulatory agencies that gives them legislative powers to issue regulations
Quasi-judicial: a characteristic of independent regulatory agencies that gives then judicial powers to interpret regulations that they create
Quasi-judicial: a characteristic of independent regulatory agencies that gives then judicial powers to interpret regulations that they create
Monopolistic and Acquisitive Bureaucracies
Monopolistic bureaucracies: compares bureaucracies to monopolistic business firms. Lack of competition in either circumstance leads to inefficient and costly operations
Acquisitive bureaucracies: bureaucracy that views top level bureaucrats as seeking to expand the size of their budgets and staffs to gain greater power
Acquisitive bureaucracies: bureaucracy that views top level bureaucrats as seeking to expand the size of their budgets and staffs to gain greater power
Iron Triangle
Oversight
Congress:
- Controls how much money goes to various federal agencies and departments
- Has authority to conduct investigations of any bureaucratic misconduct, hold congressional committee hearings to influence public opinion on any federal agency, and pass on certain bureaucratic appointments
- When the federal court system becomes involved in a lawsuit that is filed against an agency
- Can impose constraints on the bureaucracy
- Can also eliminate existing constraints
- President must oversee the executive bureaucracy
Public Opinion
- Some feel that bureaucracies are essential to protect the common man from abuses of various businesses
- Others think that bureaucracies receive to much money and should be reformed