Key Terms in Federal Bureaucracy

Federal bureaucracy

Federal bureaucracy

The departments and agencies within the executive branch that carry out the laws of the nation

Bureaucrat

An official employed within a government bureaucracy

Political patronage

Filling of administrative positions as a reward for support, rather than solely on merit

Pendelton Act

An act of Congress that created the first United States Civil Service Commission to draw up and enforce rules on hiring, promotion, and tenure of office within the civil service (also known as Civil Service Reform Act of 1883)

Federal civil service

The merit-based bureaucracy, excluding the armed forces and political appointments

Merit system

A system of hiring and promotion based on competitive testing results, education, and other qualifications rather than politics and personal connections

Iron triangle

Coordinated and mutually beneficial activities of the bureaucracy, Congress, and interest groups to achieve shared policy goals

Issue network

Webs of influence between interest groups, policymakers, and policy advocates

Implementation

The bureaucracy's role in putting into action the laws that Congress has passed

Bureaucratic discretion

The power to decide how a law is implemented and, what Congress meant when it passed the law

Regulation

The process through which the federal bureaucracy makes rules that have the force of law, to carry out the laws passed by Congress

Bureaucratic adjudication

When the federal bureaucracy settles disputes between parties that arise over the implementation of federal laws or determines which individuals or groups are covered under a regulation or program