The Executive Branch # 5 The Bureaucracy

Review Time! 1.An agreement between the US and another country that does not go through the Senate is known as a.Treaty b.Executive Order c.Executive Agreement 2.The most influential person in the President’s staff is generally a.The Vice President b.Secretary of State c.Chief of Staff

1.All of the following are informal powers of the president EXCEPT a.Executive Order b.Commander in Chief c.Access to the media 2.When the president negotiates an agreement between nations, he is acting as a.Commander in Chief b.Chief Diplomat c.Chief Legislator

The Bureaucracy : is everywhere! The FDA inspects our food It implements (executes) all the laws How should it do that? – Should the bureaucracy operate under fairness or responsiveness? TSA: should they let a person on a plane w/liquid?

Should the bureaucracy be efficient or effective? – EPA: Should they check every factory for pollution? OR make every factory file reports & decide from there?

Structure for any bureaucracy 1.Hierarchical – pyramidal w/ a clear chain of command 2.Job specialization – the bureaucrats become experts in their area 3.Formalized rules – should be standard for everyone Rules & regulations can lead to red tape & inefficiencies

The Bureaucracy Congress writes relatively vague laws The buroc decides how to implement them – how do the laws really work while still following legislative intent – *this is a lot of power!

Why does the buroc have this power? Has time since it a huge number of people Experts in the area Day to day experience in the field

How can it be kept accountable? – Congressional Oversight – Funding / Sunset laws – Investigations – Not confirming secretary positions – President can issue executive orders

The Executive Branch Department of Homeland Security TSA Coast Guard Department of Justice FBIATF

Regulatory Agencies Affiliated with a Cabinet Department – FDA – IRS**Pages ** NO S Confirmation for these positions Accountability: Congressional Budget & Oversight

Independent Executive Agencies Executive level agencies without Cabinet level affiliation – NASA – CIA Accountability: – Congressional Budget & Oversight

REGULATORY Independent REGULATORY Agencies Most independent of the President & Congress They regulate a specific industry: – FCC – SEC – Federal Reserve Board (The Fed)

Board of Directors: members are confirmed by Senate, serve for a specific number of years Quasi- legislative power Quasi-judicial power

Government Corporations Government run businesses: – Post Office – Amtrak Board of Directors – serve terms Approved by S Budget approved by Congress