pearson education, inc. © 2005 chapter 13 the federal bureaucracy
TRANSCRIPT
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Chapter 13
THE FEDERAL BUREAUCRACY
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The Return of Big Government After 9/11/01• George W. Bush came into office committed to reducing the
size of the federal government.
• However, the attacks of 9/11 spurred Bush to dramatically expand the federal government
• Domestic policies– Transportation Security Administration– Department of Homeland Security– Department of Justice and USA Patriot Act
• Foreign policies– Increase in Department of Defense budget– War in Afghanistan and Iraq; small military operations against terrorist
organizations around the world
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A Comparative View of the American Bureaucracy• The American bureaucracy is different from
bureaucracies in other democratic nations.– Structural influences such as the American
political culture and the constitutional rules of the game have a great deal to do with these differences.
• Hostile political culture — Americans do not trust government and they do not think it can accomplish most tasks that are assigned to it.
• Civil Servants have little prestige; many of the most talented tend to stay away.
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• Incoherent organization — the American bureaucracy has few clear lines of control, responsibility, and accountability
• Divided control — bureaucratic agencies have two bosses, the President and Congress, who are constantly battling for control
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Transformation of the Bureaucracy• The Structural Context: Executive
departments and officers are referred to only indirectly in the Constitution.
• Over the years, Congress and the President created a large and complex bureaucracy to meet a wide range of needs.
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Transformation of the Bureaucracy• Administrative history: expansion in the
size and responsibilities of the executive branch– Late 19th- and early 20th-century changes– The corporation and the progressives– The Great Depression– World War II and its aftermath– The regulatory state– Devolution and rollback– The war on terrorism
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How the Executive Branch Is Organized• The executive branch is made up of
several different kinds of administrative units.– Departments are headed by cabinet-level secretaries
appointed by the President and approved by the Senate.
– Bureaus and agencies are subdivisions within cabinet departments.
– Independent executive agencies are federal agencies that are not included in any of the departments and are not corporations or regulatory commissions.
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– Government corporations are agencies that operate in a market setting and are organized much like a business enterprise.
– Quasi-governmental organizations are hybrids of public and private organizations.
– Independent regulatory commissions are responsible for regulating aspects of the economy where it is judged that the free market does not work properly to protect the public interest.
– Foundations are units that are separated from the rest of government to protect them from political interference with science and the arts.
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What Do Bureaucrats Do?
• Execute the law• Regulate (rule making)• Adjudicate
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Who Are The Bureaucrats?
• The Merit Services– Career civil service– Agency merit services – Overall, these “bureaucrats” are very
much like other Americans with regard to education, regional origins, average income, age, political beliefs, gender,and ethnicity.
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Who Are The Bureaucrats?
• Political Appointees– approximately 1,200 require Senate confirmation– approximately 2,000 do not– used to build support for the President’s program
and to satisfy party factions and interest groups– also often reserved for people with expertise and
experience who the President trusts – yet do not always do the president’s bidding
• Overall, these “bureaucrats” are not very representative of the American people.
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5Political and Governmental Influences on Bureaucratic Behavior• The Public• Interest groups• The President
– Why Presidents are often stymied by the bureaucracy– Tools of Presidential leadership
• Congress– Legislating agency organization and mission– Confirming Presidential appointments– Controlling the agency budget– Holding oversight hearings– Using inspectors general
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Pear s
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5Reforming the Federal Bureaucracy
• Scaling back the size of the bureaucracy– cutting the “fat”– privatizing
• argument in favor – Private business can almost always do things better
than government.– Competitive pressure from the private sector will
force government agencies to be more efficient.
• criticisms– There is a risk of trusting private business to deal
with matters central to national security.– Private businesses might not be willing to provide
services if they are not profitable.
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Reforming the Federal Bureaucracy
• “Reinventing government”
• Protecting against bureaucratic abuses of power
• Increasing Presidential control