Chapter 15 The Bureaucracy

Learning Objectives 1.What is “bureaucracy” and in what ways is the American bureaucracy distinctive? 2.What is “discretionary authority” and why do some bureaucrats have lots of it? 3.How does Congress exert control over the bureaucracy? 4.What happened to make the bureaucracy a “fourth branch” of American national government? 5.What are the actual size and scope of the federal bureaucracy? 6.What should be done to improve bureaucratic performance? 7.Is “red tape” all bad? Copyright © 2015 Cengage Learning. All rights reserved. 2

Introduction WHO GOVERNS? 1.What happened to make the bureaucracy a “fourth branch” of American national government? 2.What are the actual size and scope of the federal bureaucracy? TO WHAT ENDS? 1.What should be done to improve bureaucratic performance? 2.Is “red tape” all bad? Copyright © 2015 Cengage Learning. All rights reserved. 3

Distinctiveness of the American Bureaucracy  Political authority shared among several institutions  Federal government agencies share functions with state/local governments  Adversary culture → close scrutiny Copyright © 2015 Cengage Learning. All rights reserved. 4

Proxy Government  Social Security  Medicare  Environmental protection  Income tax collection  Many military duties Copyright © 2015 Cengage Learning. All rights reserved. 5 People taken by boat away from their New Orleans homes that were struck by Hurricane Katrina in 2008.

The Growth of the Bureaucracy  The Beginning  The Appointment of Officials  A Service Role ( )  Laissez-faire government Copyright © 2015 Cengage Learning. All rights reserved. 6

The Growth of the Bureaucracy  A Change in Role  Great Depression and the New Deal  World War II  Effects of 9/11 Copyright © 2015 Cengage Learning. All rights reserved. 7

The Federal Bureaucracy Today  Has the size of the federal bureaucracy increased since 1960?  Number of federal employees stable  But an estimated 13 million people now work indirectly for federal government  Discretionary authority Copyright © 2015 Cengage Learning. All rights reserved. 8

Federal Civilian Employment, 1990–2012 Copyright © 2015 Cengage Learning. All rights reserved. 9

The Federal Bureaucracy Today  Recruitment and Retention  Office of Personnel Management  The competitive service  The excepted service  Not hired by the OPM  Some are nonpartisan in nature  Some are appointed (3%) Copyright © 2015 Cengage Learning. All rights reserved. 10

The Federal Bureaucracy Today  Recruitment and Retention  The Buddy System  Firing a Bureaucrat  The Agency’s Point of View Copyright © 2015 Cengage Learning. All rights reserved. 11

The Federal Bureaucracy Today  Personal Attributes  Social class  Education  Personal political beliefs Copyright © 2015 Cengage Learning. All rights reserved. 12

Characteristics of Federal Civilian Employees, 1960 and 2012 Copyright © 2015 Cengage Learning. All rights reserved. 13

The Federal Bureaucracy Today  Do Bureaucrats Sabotage Their Political Bosses?  To block or to carry out?  Whistle Blower Protection Act (1989)  Culture and Careers Copyright © 2015 Cengage Learning. All rights reserved. 14

The Federal Bureaucracy Today Constraints  Administrative Procedure Act  The Growth of the Bureaucracy  Freedom of Information Act  National Environmental Policy Act  Privacy Act  Open Meeting Law Effects of Constraints Government acts slowly Government can act inconsistently Easier to block action (than to take action) Lower-ranking employees reluctant to make decisions Red tape Copyright © 2015 Cengage Learning. All rights reserved. 15

Why So Many Constraints?  The People (and enacted by Congress, Courts, White House, Interest Groups)  Agency Allies  Iron triangle (client politics)  Issue networks Copyright © 2015 Cengage Learning. All rights reserved. 16

Congressional Oversight  The Appropriations Committee and Legislative Committees  The Legislative Veto  Congressional Investigations Copyright © 2015 Cengage Learning. All rights reserved. 17

Bureaucratic “Pathologies”  Red Tape  Conflict  Duplication  Imperialism  Waste Copyright © 2015 Cengage Learning. All rights reserved. 18 At the world’s busiest border crossing, cars line up to enter the United States in Tijuana, Mexico.

How the Public Views Particular Federal Agencies Percent reporting a “favorable or unfavorable impression”* *Other response categories were “never heard of” and “can’t rate,” and only the newest agency, the Transportation Safety Administration, drew significant numbers in each category ( 9 percent for each). Copyright © 2015 Cengage Learning. All rights reserved. 19

Reforming the Bureaucracy  The Brownlow Commission  The First Hoover Commission  The Ash Council  National Performance Review  Government Performance and Results Act  Performance Assessment Rating Tool Copyright © 2015 Cengage Learning. All rights reserved. 20

Reforming the Bureaucracy  Do we really want to change who controls the bureaucracy?  May make bureaucracy too powerful  Weak /divided bureaucracy may help protect liberties Copyright © 2015 Cengage Learning. All rights reserved. 21

President Obama Implements Government Reforms Copyright © 2015 Cengage Learning. All rights reserved. 22 Click picture to play video

President Obama Implements Government Reforms Taking a closer look: 1.Does President Obama need congressional approval to institute bureaucratic reforms? Why? 2.What interest groups likely protested these proposals? 3.Why is bureaucratic reduction more politically popular than increasing oversight? Copyright © 2015 Cengage Learning. All rights reserved. 23