Bureaucracy

Bureaucracy

complex structure of offices, tasks, rules, and principles of organization that is employed by all large-scale institutions to coordinate the work of personnel (creates efficiency)

Bureaucrats

execute/implement, enforce, and innovate laws

(policy-making responsibility)

principal-agent problem

conflict in priorities between an actor (congress) and the representation authorize to act on the actor’s behalf (bureaucracy)

How many executive departments are there?

15

Independent Agencies

executive branch; authorities to implement policy/design regulations

Independent Regulatory commissions

executive branch; rule-makers outside of the executive department

government corporation

executive branch; performs market-oriented public service and raises revenues to fund its activities

state department

the mission is diplomacy, staffs US embassies

Department of Defense

provides military forces (deter war/protect the nation)

• joint chiefs of staff

• Army, Navy, Air Force

• 6 unified combat commands

Department of Homeland Security

maintain domestic security

• border control, emergency preparation, science-related concerns

Treasury Department

collect taxes, manages national debt, print currency, perform economic policy analysis

Federal Reserve System

majority monetary agency

• interest rates, leading activities, adjust supply of money/credit

Public Welfare

promote citizen well-being + help low-income and elderly

(HHS,FDA,CDC)

merit system

bureaucracy; requires appointees to positions in public bureaucracies be objectively qualified

political appointees

bureaucracy; presidentially appointed layer of bureaucracy on top of civil service

Senior Executive Services (SES)

bureaucracy; top rank for career civil servants, president-appointed

Privitization

process by which formerly public service becomes service provided by a private company, paid for by the government

(declines size of bureaucracy)

President

appointment powers, office controls federal budget and regulations (EOP)

Congress

can control the bureaucracy

oversight

to exercise control over the activities of executive agencies through hearings, investigations, and other techniques

(Congress)

Inspector Generals (IGS)

independent organizations located in most federal agencies

(uncover waste, fraud or misconduct)

Judicial oversight

courts have authority to: judge constitutionally of bureaucratic actions, settle disputes between Congress and executive agencies, monitor the implementation of the laws

Internal oversight

whistleblowers report wrongdoing within federal agencies

Citizen Oversight

citizens and journalists can file freedom of information act requests

Regulatory capture

form of gov failure; agency becomes more concerned with serving interest groups and businesses than with regulating them