It’s… ALIVE!!! There is a bureaucracy everywhere… government, of course schools churches your work place your family even among your friends because we need lots of help and guidance to get jobs done…

They must… 1.Answer to competing sources of political authority 2.Function in a constitutional system that fragments power (decentralization) 3.Achieve vague and often competing goals (save the environment - produce fuel??) 4.Deal with few incentives that value efficiency

The Bureaucracy continued… The power of a bureaucracy must be measured by its authority, not by the number of employees or size of its budget War and depression have been the main sources of bureaucratic growth over time How bureaucrats use their authority can be explained by their recruitment and job security, their political views and by the nature of the tasks their agencies perform…

More… When we think of bureaucracy we think of problems… 1.Red tape - complex and conflicting rules 2.Conflict - agencies work against each other 3.Duplication - agencies do the same thing 4.Imperialism - agencies grow regardless of budget, benefits or costs 5.Waste - a famous by-product of bureaucracy

Civil service… now anyway Jobs in government used to be a reward for helping out a winning candidate - called patronage !!!!! Now jobs are merit based - through the civil service system This is due, in part, to the 1883 Pendleton Civil Service Act which established a civil service board and testing procedure for advancement (remember political machines and giving jobs to favored assistants at the government’s expense??? No, rats…)

Does it work?? Look at the cartoon on page it shows that there is an entire language of the bureaucrat One of the “rules” - never use ordinary words where unusual ones can be found! On page 426 are the “laws” of bureaucrat procedure such as “there is never time to do it right the first time, but always time to do it over” People make fun of the bureaucracy but should they??

Does it work? Yes, actually, surprisingly well Look at the mail service or the fact that we made it to the moon - But it could be better and more efficient perhaps

Reforms Lots of attempts - 11 just in the 1990s Most revolve around centralizing authority 1.Employee initiatives 2.Fewer detailed rules and more customer satisfaction But difficult to accomplish Most rules and red tape are struggles between the president and Congress or are a by-product of divided government and micromanagement

A final note You must read this chapter - there is information on recruitment, growth, the changing role, the buddy system, the Iron Triangle, firing a bureaucrat, constraints on the job, a career in government, the benefits and drawbacks, and vocab…