The Bureaucracy AP United States Government Spring, 2016
What Exactly is the Bureaucracy? Part of the executive branch, made up of civil servants Civil servant: government employee in a permanent position; employee of a bureaucratic position Political appointee: someone appointed by the president to hold a government position President is nominally in charge, but shares power with Congress Job of the bureaucracy is to enforce, administer, implement policies established by president and Congress Often, legislation only sets general guidelines
The Different Types of Federal Organisations Departments: largest organisation, highest rank (like Department of State) Departments of State, Treasury, Defense and Justice are the most important four; HHS is largest by budget Independent Regulatory Commissions are more independent from the president and Congress Commissioners are appointed by president and confirmed by Congress, though Examples: Securities and Exchange Commission, Federal Reserve Board, Nuclear Regulatory Commission Independent Agencies report to the president Some are stand-alone agencies, some are part of departments Examples: CIA, NASA, EPA Government corporations are like businesses, and have somewhat more freedom from rules Example: Amtrak, USPS
The Civil Service: Hiring and Regulation Congress passed the Pendleton Civil Service Act in 1883, which largely replaced the spoils system Most hiring now is done under Office of Personnel Management Hatch Act (1939) ensures that the civil service does not have too much political influence Civil service employees may not be dismissed for political reasons Overhauled by Clinton Federal officials may not run in elections but may hold party positions May not raise campaign funds in their agencies
Job of the Bureaucracy Regulation: a rule that allows government control over individuals, corporations, often restricting behaviours Example: Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (Department of the Interior) has regulations about offshore drilling Procurement: government purchases of things Can be very political; like FEMA (DHS) buying cruise ships to house people
Job of Bureaucracy, Continued Providing Services: services that help ordinary Americans Research and development: research like National Institutes of Health, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration Also support research at universities Managing, directing actions done privately for the government, like government contractors
So What s The Problem Here? Generally, bureaucrats are experts, but bureaucracy is a pejorative term Red tape: unnecessarily complex procedures Why are bureaucracies so dysfunctional? It s hard to accurately evaluate what bureaucrats are doing Problem of control: where elected officials want to leave decisions up to the expert of bureaucrats, yet still ensure they follow the officials intentions
Bureaucratic Consequences Principal-agent game: problem where someone needs something done and someone else is responsible for carrying out the orders Here: elected officials can a) leave bureaucrats alone, OR b) force them to do what they (elected officials) think is best Regulatory capture: bureaucrats cater to a small group of individuals or corporations regardless of the impact on public welfare...like allowing as much drilling as possible without an eye to safety...like revolving doors At the root of the problem: tradeoff of expertise vs control
Bureaucratic Consequences, Part II Administrative discretion is granted to federal agencies It is often up to the agencies to implement laws in the most effective manner Agencies write rules that convert laws into action Although the agencies write the rules themselves, they are subject to judicial review A problem: they also enforce these rules...
Bureaucratic Consequences, Part III: Spending The bureaucracy also handles a lot of the federal spending Most government spending is uncontrollable or mandatory Required by laws Example: entitlement programs, such as Social Security, emergency disaster relief, poverty assistance Mandatory spending accounts for most of the government s spending Often rises automatically
How To Control The Bureaucracy
How Is The Bureaucracy Controlled? By the President? The bureaucracy has to (on paper) carry out the president s policies The president has powers of appointment, reorganisation and budgeting Ultimately, the bureaucracy has to execute the president s policy wishes How is this a limit to presidential power? By Congress? Congress has the power to establish agencies, formulate budgets, appropriate funds, confirm personnel, conduct investigations, etc How does Congress limit itself from doing all of this?
How Is The Bureaucracy Controlled? Part II Shared oversight? Congress and the president monitor the bureaucracy through oversight Oversight means ongoing review, like keeping a watchful eye Can appoint certain employees to leadership positions, call cabinet meetings and investigations Presidents use OMB for regular oversight Congress uses GAO or CBO; often rely on these for information used in committee, subcommittee hearings Sometimes it s whistle-blowers who conduct the oversight Self-regulation? Do employees care about expansion of their program or better serving the public?