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The Bureaucracy

The Bureaucracy. The Invisible Government. A large organization structured hierarchically to carry out specific functions to make it more efficient. Bureaucracy. The five characteristics of bureaucracy. Hierarchy-pyramid Formal rules (SOP) Division of Labor Maintenance of files

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The Bureaucracy

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  1. The Bureaucracy The Invisible Government

  2. A large organization structured hierarchically to carry out specific functions to make it more efficient Bureaucracy

  3. The five characteristics of bureaucracy. • Hierarchy-pyramid • Formal rules (SOP) • Division of Labor • Maintenance of files • Professionalization • Maintenance of files and records Freedom of Information Act (1974) • Goals-promote the “public good”, but how is that measured? This causes many people to believe the bureaucracy is wasteful. • Monopolistic Model—businesses with little to no competition and can therefore operate unchecked will little to no incentive to operate cost-effectively The Weberian Model of Bureaucracy

  4. Standardization: • Ensures the retiree in Idaho is getting the same benefits as the retiree in New York • Expertise and competence: • Allows people to work for a period of time and become experts in that field allowing them to carry out laws and policies more effectively Weberian model of bureaucracy

  5. Accountability • Allows Congress to follow up on money being earmarked for certain purposes, such as air pollution, and make sure was being spent effectively • Coordination • Allows agencies with cross purposes to work together on policy or goal, instead of working independently of each other Weberian model continued

  6. People have a very negative image of government bureaucracy—Why? • Faceless • Nameless • “red tape” • (Compare the agent at the DMV to a cell phone customer service rep) • (What do we think of when we think of a fireman) • “…we expect bureaucracies not merely to expend maximum effort in solving societal problems but to dispose of them entirely, whether solvable or not.” Charles Goodsell Image of Bureaucracy

  7. The Executive Office of the President—includes NSC, OMB, CEA • Cabinet Departments-15 departments directly responsible to President, but also responsible to their department • Workers below the secretaries are employees, and therefore permanent • Departments are collection of agencies • Independent Agencies-not part of Cabinet, report to President perform specialized functions • Independent Executive Agencies: perform specialized functions such as NASA, CIA, EPA • Independent Regulatory Agencies: make and implement rules and regulations to protect the public (appointed by President, but cannot be fired by him FED, SEC, FCC • Government Corporations-work off its profits, not funded by Congress (Post Office, TVA, FDIC, AMTRAK) • Other Bureaus • (When an agency is raised, it is symbolically important to show the governments commitment such as the Veterans’ administration) The Structure of American Bureaucracies

  8. No government ever voluntarily reduces itself in size. Government programs, once launched, never disappear. Actually, a government bureau is the nearest thing to eternal life we’ll ever see on this earth! Ronald Reagan, 1964 Organization of the U.S. Government

  9. Bureaucrats at Work

  10. Department of Interior

  11. National Intelligence bureaucracypost 9/11

  12. Organization of Homeland Security Agencies after 9/11

  13. The spoils system • The Pendleton Act • Passed after Garfield assassination • Merit system and the civil service Hatch Act • Heads of departments are primarily appointed, and therefore temporary The Merit System

  14. The idea of neutral competence • Despite stereotypes, most government employees work efficiently and inexpensively. • Roughly 2.9 million people work for the government bureaucracy-2nd to Wal-Mart • The bureaucracy is largely staffed by people hired for their skills, not their political leanings. Neutral Competence

  15. Rulemaking • The process of deciding what exactly the laws passed by Congress mean. • Adjudication • A process designed to establish whether a rule has been violated. • Bureaucratic Lobbying • bureaucrats identify the problems and limitations of existing laws and programs and recommend changes to the president and congressional committees. Roles of the Bureaucracy

  16. Policy Implementation • Making Policy-delegated legislative authority because what Congress passes is to vague to be effective • Regulation-establish standards and impose restrictions on violations of those standards • They must publish their rule-making procedures, hold open hearings on proposed rules and hear public input • Collecting Data and Doing Research • Provide Continuity-elected officials come and go, bureaucrats never leave which provides for continuity and professionalization and consistency; but also means change is slow and expensive Functions of Bureaucracy

  17. Original Cabinet: State, Treasury, War, Attorney General • Post-Civil War: Industrialization created new demands on government needing new organizations • Labor, Agriculture, Interior, Justice and regulatory agencies • The Great Depression: new agencies to handle New Deal • 1960s and 1970s: agencies needed to protect Environment, fight poverty, promote civil rights, worker safety • HUD, Transportation, Energy, Education Departments, along with EPA, OSHA, EEOC • Despite its tremendous growth, many believe the bureaucracy is woefully undermanned in relation to the population and the demands placed on it Growth of Bureaucracy

  18. Interest Groups and Individuals-interest groups want bureaucracies to adopt rules and enforcement practices they favor • Iron Triangle- influence committees • Pressure agency directly • Indirect influence-some commissioners come to their regulatory agencies from the industries they regulate • Individual citizens- “whistleblowers” can open their agencies to the public’s view (Civil Service Reform Act 1978) Controlling the Bureaucracy

  19. Congress and the Bureaucracies • Oversight-often counteracted by iron triangles • Appropriations, creating or reorganizing • Legislative vetoes • The President and the Bureaucracies • Appointment and dismissal-many employees protected from president by seniority and merit • Budget process • Lobbying and mobilizing public opinion • The Judiciary and the Bureaucracies • Judicial review Controlling the Bureaucracy, cont.

  20. Advantages Less red tape and bureaucracy More competition Can obtain special skills Improve service quality Ideology-less government is better More choices for people (school vouchers) Better at saving money, innovating, communicating Disadvantages Higher potential for corruption Incentives to reduce quality Reduced access to service for the disadvantaged Resulting cost savings directed away from taxpayer Decreases citizen participation Accountability is difficult Privatization-Advantages and Disadvantages

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