Ch t 9
Chapter
The Executive Branch and
the Federal Bureaucracy
American Government: Continuity and Change
The Executive Branch and the Federal
Bureaucracy
† Bureaucracy
„ A set of complex hierarchical departments,
agencies,
i
commissions,
i i
and
d th
their
i staffs
t ff
that exist to help a chief executive officer
carry out his or her duties
„ Bureaucracies may be private organizations
of government
† Many believe…
„ …it is too big
g & too p
powerful
„ …it is too wasteful
p.316
Origins
g
and Growth of the Federal
Bureaucracy
† There were only three departments in 1789 under the
Articles of Confederation
„
„
Foreign Affairs, War, and Treasury
Washington inherited these
† Head of each called a “Secretary”
† Foreign Affairs renamed Department of State
† 1816 to 1861 size & demands increased
„
„
1829 ~ Pres Andrew Jackson removed the Post office from the
Dept of the Treasury and promoted it to cabinet level status ~
country was growing w/ westward expansion
Post Office quickly became a major source of jobs
† Spoils System ~ An executive’s ability to fire the office
holders of the defeated political party & replace them w/
party loyalists
p.317-318
Origins
g
and Growth of the Federal
Bureaucracy
† There were only three departments in 1789 under the
Articles of Confederation
„
„
Foreign Affairs, War, and Treasury
Washington inherited these
† Head of each called a “Secretary”
† Foreign Affairs renamed Department of State
† 1816 to 1861 size & demands increased
„
„
1829 ~ Pres Andrew Jackson removed the Post Office from
the Dept of the Treasury and promoted it to cabinet level
status ~ country was growing w/ westward expansion
Post Office quickly became a major source of jobs
† Spoils System ~ An executive’s ability to fire the
office holders of the defeated political party &
replace them w/ party loyalists
p.317-318
Civil War and the Growth of
Government
† Civil War spawned need for new govt
agencies & caused an expansion of the
bureaucracy
„ Department of Agriculture (1862)
† Lincoln needed to feed the troops
† Cabinet-level status in 1889
„
Soil conservation, breeding, planting techniques
„ Pension Office (1866)
† 127k war veterans
„ Department of Justice (1870)
† Attorney General
p.318
Civil War and the Growth of
Government
† Civil War spawned need for new govt
agencies & caused an expansion of the
bureaucracy
„ Department of Agriculture (1862)
† Lincoln needed to feed the troops
† Cabinet-level status in 1889
„
Soil conservation, breeding, planting techniques
„ Pension Office (1866)
† 127k war veterans
„ Department of Justice (1870)
† Attorney General
p.318
From the Spoils System to the
Merit System
† James A.
A Garfield
Garfield’s
s Presidency
„
„
„
„
Besieged by office-seekers (patronage)
Believed the system should be reformed
Irony ~ Assassinated by a frustrated job seeker
Reaction to Garfield’s death & increasing criticism of the
spoils system was the Civil Service Reform Act (aka
Pendleton Act) of 1883
† The act classified federal service by grades to which
appointments were made based on the results of a
competitive examination
† It made it illegal for federal political appointees to be
required to contribute to a particular political party
† Civil Service System operated to 1978
† New version is the Merit System ~ Appointments made
based on performance & exam scores
p.318-319
Regulating the Economy
† Big business,
business price fixing,
fixing & other unfair business
practices after the Civil War stimulated Congress
to create the Interstate Commerce Commission
„ First independent regulatory commission
† An agency created by Congress that is generally concerned
w/ a specific aspect of the economy
† Theodore Roosevelt (1901-1909)
(1901 1909)
„ Dept of Commerce & Labor ~ Oversee/regulate
intolerable labor practices
† Employers & employees
† Woodrow Wilson (1913-1921)
„ Divided Commerce & Labor into separate depts
„ Encouraged Congress to create the Federal Trade
Commission ~ Protect small biz from unfair competition
„ 16th Amendment ~ Fed Income Tax (1913)
p.319-321
Regulating the Economy
† Big business,
business price fixing,
fixing & other unfair business
practices after the Civil War stimulated Congress
to create the Interstate Commerce Commission
„ First independent regulatory commission
† An agency created by Congress that is generally concerned
w/ a specific aspect of the economy
† Theodore Roosevelt (1901
(1901--1909)
„ Dept of Commerce & Labor ~ Oversee/regulate
intolerable labor practices
† Employers & employees
† Woodrow Wilson (1913-1921)
„ Divided Commerce & Labor into separate depts
„ Encouraged Congress to create the Federal Trade
Commission ~ Protect small biz from unfair competition
„ 16th Amendment ~ Fed Income Tax (1913)
p.319-321
Growth of Government in the 20th
Century
† Franklin Roosevelt (1933
(1933-1945)
1945)
„ Great Depression ~ FDR created hundreds of
new govt agencies to regulate business
practices & various areas of the natl economy
„ WWII
†
†
†
†
Affected the economy
War related goods
Taxes increased & never fell again
After the war
„ Demands for services/new $ = more govt
† Civil Rights
g
Movement ~ EEOC
† War on Poverty ~ HUD
p.321-322
Federal Employees in the Executive Branch ~ 1789-2005
p.320
Federal Employees in the Executive Branch ~ 1789-2005
Number of fed employees was
largest
g
during
g the New Deal &
WWII
p.320
The Modern Bureaucracy
† Who Are
A e Bureaucrats?
B ea c ats? Govt
Go t Service
Se ice (GS) workers
o ke s in
more than 2k organizations ~ GS 1 Æ 15
„ 2.7 million federal workers ~ 1/3 in Postal Service
„ Tests usually for entry-level
entry level positions
„ Mid-level to upper ranges of federal positions do not
normally require tests
„ 10% of fed workforce not Civil Service
† Appointive, policy-making positions (e.g., Cab Sec)
† Independent Regulatory Commissioners (appointed by
the president, but independent after that)
† Low-level, non-policy patronage positions
„
„
„
„
Secretarial Assistants to policy makers, e.g.
333k located in Wash D.C., others throughout the country
Graying of the federal workforce
Hiring of outside contractors
p.322-326
p.322
Nearly 1/3 of
fed employees
work for the
Post Office
p.322
GS 1/1 = $20k
GS 15/10 = $144k
p.324
• Decentralization helps:
- Accessibility to public (Soc Sec)
- Distribute jobs/incomes
p.325
Formal Organization
~ Four General Types
† Cabinet Departments ~ 15
„ Major administrative units w/ responsibility for a broad
area of govt ops ~ 60% of govt workforce
„ Indicates a permanent natl interest
„ Undersecretaries & Asst Secretaries
† Bureaus, Divisions, Sections
„
„
Dept of Interior Æ BIA
Dept of Home Sec Æ Trans Security Agency
† Government Corporations
„ Businesses established to p
perform functions that could
be provided by private businesses
† Federal Deposit Insurance Corp
„ Charge for their service
† Post Office ~ Competes w/ UPS & FedEx
† Amtrak ~ To keep passenger trains running
p.326-330
Formal Organization
~ Four General Types
† Cabinet Departments ~ 15
„ Major administrative units w/ responsibility for a broad
area of govt ops ~ 60% of govt workforce
„ Indicates a permanent natl interest
„ Undersecretaries & Asst Secretaries
† Bureaus, Divisions, Sections
„
„
Dept of Interior Æ BIA
Dept of Home Sec Æ Trans Security Agency
† Government Corporations
„ Businesses established to p
perform functions that could
be provided by private businesses
† Federal Deposit Insurance Corp
„ Charge for their service
*Know
examples
† Post Office ~ Competes w/ UPS & FedEx
† Amtrak ~ To keep passenger trains running
p.326-330
Formal Organization
~ Four General Types
† Independent Executive Agencies
„ Units that closely resemble a Cabinet dept but have a
narrower area of responsibility
† Central Intelligence Agency
Agency, Natl Aviation & Space
Administration, Natl Science Foundation
† Independent Regulatory Commissions
„ Agencies created by Congress to exist outside the major
depts to regulate a specific economic activity & provide
expertise
† Older Ones: Federal Reserve Board, Federal
Communications Commission,
Commission Securities & Exchange
Commission ~ Oversee a certain industry
† Newer: Occupational Safety & Health Administration
(OSHA) ~ Concerned w/ how the business sector
relates to public health & safety
p.326-330
Fish &
Wildlife
Country
Teams
Soil
Conservation
Svc
p.328
Half--Way Point
Half
Ch t 9
Chapter
The Executive Branch and
the Federal Bureaucracy
American Government: Continuity and Change
Government Workers and Political
Involvement
† Hatch Act
„ Law enacted in 1939 to prohibit civil servants
from taking activist roles in partisan campaigns
„ Could not make political contributions, work for
a political party or campaign for a particular
candidate
† Federal Employees Political Activities Act
„ 1993 liberalization of the Hatch Act
„ Allowed federal employees to run for office in
nonpartisan elections and to contribute money
to campaigns in partisan elections
p.330-331
p.331
*
Can vote
*
p.331
How the Bureaucracy Works
(1864-1920)
† Max Weber
b ~ German Sociologist
l
~ Model
d l
bureaucracies are characterized by certain
factors
„
„
„
„
„
„
Chain of command ~ Auth top to bottom
Division of labor/specialization ~ Productivity
Clear lines of authority ~ Who’s the boss
Goal orientation ~ Achieve the mission
Impersonality ~ Fair treatment
Productivity ~ Evaluated according to
established
bli h d rules
l
p.332-333
How the Bureaucracy Works
(1864-1920)
† Max Weber
b
~ German Sociologist
i l i ~
Model bureaucracies are characterized
by certain factors
„
„
„
„
„
„
Chain of command ~ Auth top to bottom
Division of labor/specialization ~ Productivity
Clear lines of authority ~ Who’s the boss
Goal orientation ~ Achieve the mission
Impersonality ~ Fair treatment
Productivity ~ Evaluated according to
established
bli h d rules
l
p.332-333
How the Bureaucracy Works
† Implementation
„ The process by which a law or policy is put into operation
by the bureaucracy
„ Iron
I
Triangles
T i
l ~N
Nextt Slide
Slid
† Relatively stable relationships and patterns of interaction that
occur among an agency, interest groups, and congressional
committees or subcommittees
„ Issue Networks
† Like iron triangles but w/ lawyers, consultants, academics, &
public relations specialists added
„ Interagency Councils ~ Groups that bring together reps
from several depts & agencies to facilitate the
coordination of policy making & implementation
† Due to increasing complexity of policy domains
† Later Slide
p.332-333
A relatively stable relationship &
pattern of interaction that
p
occurs between agencies,
interest groups, & congressional
committees/subcommittees
p.332
A relatively stable relationship &
pattern of interaction that
p
occurs between agencies,
interest groups, & congressional
committees/subcommittees
Dept
p of Vet Affairs
House Comm on Vet Affairs
Veterans of Foreign Wars
& American Legion
p.332
A relatively stable relationship &
pattern of interaction that
p
occurs between agencies,
interest groups, & congressional
committees/subcommittees
Dept
p of Vet Affairs
House Comm on Vet Affairs
Veterans of Foreign Wars
& American Legion
p.332
Interagency
Council on the
Homeless
created to
coord the work
of 50 govt
agencies
p.333
Making Policy
† Administrative Discretion
„
„
The ability of bureaucrats to make choices concerning the
best way to implement congressional intentions
Exercised thru two administrative procedures
† 1. Rule Making ~ Quasi-legislative administrative process
that has the characteristics of a legislative act
„
Regulations ~ Rules that govern the operation of a particular
govt p
g
program
g
that have the force of law
† 2. Administrative Adjudication ~ Quasi-judicial process in
which a bureaucratic agency settles disputes between two
parties in a manner similar to the way courts resolve
disputes
„
„
Called quasi-judicial, because adjudication by any body other
than the judiciary would be a violation of the Constitutional
principle of separation of powers
Several agencies employ administrative judges to conduct
hearings
p.334-335
Making Policy
† Administrative Discretion
„
„
The ability of bureaucrats to make choices concerning the
best way to implement congressional intentions
Exercised thru two administrative procedures
† 1. Rule Making ~ Quasi-legislative administrative process
that has the characteristics of a legislative act
„
Regulations ~ Rules that govern the operation of a particular
govt p
g
program
g
that have the force of law
† 2. Administrative Adjudication ~ Quasi
Quasi--judicial
process in which a bureaucratic agency settles
disputes between two parties in a manner similar to
the way courts resolve disputes
„
„
Called quasi-judicial, because adjudication by any body other
than the judiciary would be a violation of the Constitutional
principle of separation of powers
Several agencies employ administrative judges to conduct
hearings
p.334-335
p.335
Making Agencies Accountable
† Executive Control
„ As size & scope of American govt has grown, presidents
have had to delegate more & more power to bureaucrats
y g to maintain “some” control
while trying
„ Recognizing the potential problems, presidents try to
appoint the best possible persons to carry out their
policy preferences
„ Jefferson one of the first to address the issue of
accountability ~ “wise & frugal govt”
„ Executive Orders (From Chap 8)
† Rules or regulations
g
issued by
y the president
p
that have
the effect of law
† Can shape policy & provide direction
„ A president can direct an agency to act, but it may take
some time for the order to be carried out
p.338
Making Agencies Accountable
† Congressional Control
„ Congress, too, has a role in checking the
power of the bureaucracy
„ In addition to the “power of the purse,”
Cong has auth to create/abolish depts & agencies
„ Congressional
C
i
lh
hearings
i
~ e.g., Katrina
K i
“mess
“
ups””
† Dept of Homeland Def ~ Michael Chertoff
† FEMA ~ Michael Brown
„ ’97-’98
97- 98 ~ Conducted extensive reviews of IRS abuses
† IRS ordered to change the way it deals w/ the public
† ’03 ~ 52% reported confidence in IRS
p.340-342
Making Agencies Accountable
† Congressional Control
„ Congress, too, has a role in checking the
power of the bureaucracy
„ In addition to the “power of the purse,”
Cong has auth to create/abolish depts & agencies
„ Congressional
C
i
lh
hearings
i
~ e.g., Katrina
K i
“mess
“
ups””
† Dept of Homeland Def ~ Michael Chertoff
† FEMA ~ Michael Brown
„ ’97
’9797--’98
97
98 ~ Conducted extensive reviews of IRS abuses
† IRS ordered to change the way it deals w/ the public
† ’03 ~ 52% reported confidence in IRS
p.337
p.340-342
Making Agencies Accountable
† Judicial Control
„ The judiciary can issue injunctions to
prevent agency rules from going into
effect
„ Courts can direct agencies to provide individuals w/
their due process rights
† Can’t stop a Soc Security check wo/ a hearing
„ Injured parties can bring suit against agencies for
their failure to enforce a law and can challenge
agency interpretations of any law
p.342-343
Making Agencies Accountable
† Judicial Control
„ The judiciary can issue injunctions to
prevent agency rules from going into
effect
„ Courts can direct agencies to provide individuals w/
their due process rights
† Can’t stop a Soc Security check wo/ a hearing
„ Injured parties can bring suit against agencies for
their failure to enforce a law and can challenge
agency interpretations of any law
p.342-343
p.337
Ch t 9
Chapter
The Executive Branch and
the Federal Bureaucracy
American Government: Continuity and Change