AP Government – Chapter 13 The Bureaucracy – Flashcards
Unlock all answers in this set
Unlock answersquestion
bureaucracy
answer
system of civil servants and political appointees who implement congressional or presidential decisions
question
another name for the bureaucracy
answer
administrative state
question
civil servants
answer
employees of bureaucratic agencies within the government; hold permanent positions
question
political appointees
answer
hold short-term, usually senior positions, appointed by an elected leader like the president, hold government positions
question
administrative state
answer
refers to the role bureaucrats play in administering government policies
question
who is normally in charge of the bureaucracy?
answer
the president but he shares this power with members of Congress
question
what is the task of the bureaucracy?
answer
to implement policies established by congressional acts or presidential decisions
question
what do bureaucrats develop?
answer
specific policies and programs; their actions determine the "who gets what, when, and how"
question
what range of jobs do bureaucrats complete?
answer
regulating the behavior of individuals and corporations to buying everything from pencils to jet fighters
question
what is the fundamental job of the bureaucracy?
answer
to implement executive orders and congressional legislation
question
regulation
answer
a rule that allows the government to exercise control over individuals and corporations by restricting their behaviors
question
how does the government restrict regulations?
answer
allowing or prohibiting behavior, setting out the conditions based on behavior, or assessing costs or granting benefits based on behavior
question
how do bureaucrats gain the authority to write regulations?
answer
by the statute that sets up their agency or by a subsequent act of Congress
question
how are regulations developed?
answer
according to the notice-and-comment procedure
question
notice-and-comment procedure
answer
a step in the rule-making process in which proposed rules are published in the Federal Register and made available for debate by the general public
question
why do bureaucrats take account of pressures from elected officials?
answer
1. the bureaucrats' policy-making power may derive from a statue that members of Congress could overturn if they disapprove of bureaucrats' actions 2. bureaucrats need congressional support to get larger budgets, obtain more important task for their agency, and prevent budget cuts (power of the purse)
question
what do federal regulations affect?
answer
most aspects of everyday life
question
why are regulations often controversial?
answer
because they include trade-offs
question
what do bureaucrats also handle?
answer
government purchases
question
what is procurement?
answer
agencies determine what the government needs, find out who can supply it, and choose the lowest-cost supplier
question
what are procurement decisions shaped by besides price?
answer
congressional and executive mandates
question
street-level bureaucrats
answer
provide services to help ordinary Americans
question
what do street-level bureaucrats services include?
answer
certain job-training programs, disaster assistance, many national tourist attractions, passenger baggage at airports, monitor aircraft maintenance, direct aircraft in flight, and investigate accidents
question
what is the average bureaucrat?
answer
an expert or specialist in a certain policy area
question
what is a bureaucracy of experts an important part of?
answer
state capacity
question
state capacity
answer
the knowledge, personnel, and institutions needed to effectively implement policies
question
what do many critics of length of time to implement policies and decision making cite it as?
answer
red tape
question
red tape
answer
excessive or unnecessarily complex regulations imposed by the bureaucracy
question
what is another cite of abundance used by critics besides red tape?
answer
standard operating procedures
question
standard operating procedures
answer
the rules that lower-level bureaucrats must follow when implementing policies regardless of whether they are applicable
question
how are they trying to make the bureaucracy operate more effectively?
answer
by mandating that bureaucrats make decisions using specific procedures or criteria
question
problem of control
answer
a difficulty faced by elected officials in ensuring that when bureaucrats implement policies, they follow these officials' intentions but still have enough discretion to use their expertise
question
what is a classic example of problem of control?
answer
principal-agent game
question
principal-agent game
answer
the interaction between a principal (such as the president or Congress) who needs something done, and an agent (such as a bureaucrat), who is responsible for carrying out the principal's orders
question
how do they prevent the agent from acting based on expertise?
answer
by giving the agent very specific orders
question
what does giving the agent the freedom to make decisions based on expertise do?
answer
the principal has less control over the agent's actions
question
sometimes bureaucratic actions are the result of what?
answer
regulatory capture
question
regulatory capture
answer
a situation in which bureaucrats favor the interests of the groups or corporations they are supposed to regulate at the expense of the general public
question
federal civil service
answer
a system created by the 1883 Pendleton Civil Service Act in which bureaucrats are hired on the basis of merit rather than political connections
question
spoils system
answer
people who worked in a president's campaign were rewarded with jobs in the federal government; problem was if these people could actually carry out their jobs
question
what was the federal government's role back in the day?
answer
limited to mail delivery, collecting import and export taxes
question
what did the reforms that were created after the Civil War help with?
answer
people were hired for their expertise and allowed to build a career in government without having to fear being fired when a new president or Congress took office
question
what does the New Deal refer to?
answer
government programs implemented during Franklin Roosevelt's first term as president in 1930
question
Social Security Act
answer
first federally funded pension program for all Americans
question
things done during the New Deal
answer
federal government took on the role of directly delivering to individuals a wide range of benefits and services - jobs to electricity
question
The Great Society
answer
further expansion in the size, capacity, and activities of the bureaucracy that occurred during Lyndon Johnson's presidency
question
things done during the Great Society
answer
funded bilingual education, loans and grants for college students, special education, preschools, health care, job training, enhanced voting/civil rights for minorities, environmental protection, etc
question
what did the election of Ronald Reagan create?
answer
an opportunity for conservatives to roll back the size and scope of the federal government
question
what was the actual results of the great society?
answer
few programs were eliminated and the federal budget steadily increased
question
what does the Executive Office of the President (EOP) contain?
answer
organizations that support the president and implement presidential policy initiatives
question
who are the individuals that work in the EOP?
answer
they are part of the administrative presidency that works to ensure that bureaucrats implement the president's policy priorities, bringing the actions of bureaucrats (agents) in line with the president's (principal's) preferences
question
what does the EOP contain?
answer
office of management and budget
question
Office of Management and Budget
answer
prepares the president's annual budget proposal to Congress and monitors government spending and the development of new regulations
question
what is below the EOP?
answer
15 executive departments
question
the heads of the 15 executive departments make up what?
answer
the president's Cabinet
question
what is below the executive departments?
answer
a set of agencies, commissions, and government corporations called independent agencies (independent establishments)
question
independent agencies
answer
government offices or organizations that provide government services and are not part of an executive department
question
organizations that fall within an executive department are controlled by who?
answer
the president (to some extent) through his appointees
question
what do independent agencies have?
answer
more freedom from oversight and control by the president and Congress
question
what does the bureaucracy rise out of and reflect?
answer
bureaucracy rises out of politics, and its design reflects the interests, strategies, and compromises of those who exercise political power
question
what is the largest cabinet department?
answer
Department of Defense
question
smallest cabinet department?
answer
Department of Education
question
why is the government so large?
answer
size of America itself and budget maximizers
question
budget maximizers
answer
bureaucrats who seek to increase funding for their agency whether or not that additional spending is worthwhile
question
what has been one of the principal missions of presidential appointees?
answer
to scrutinize budget requests with an eye to cutting spending as much as possible
question
what is the explanation for overall growth in government?
answer
American public's demand for services
question
"bureaucrat"
answer
applies to a wide range of people with different qualifications and job descriptions
question
what does the current civil service system set out?
answer
a job description and pay ranges for all federal jobs
question
in civil service how can people be fired?
answer
"for cause" only, meaning that the firing agency must cite a reason
question
The Hatch Act
answer
prohibited federal employees from engaging in organized political activities
question
1993 Federal Employees Political Activities Act
answer
allowed federal employees to undertake a wider range of political activities, including fund-raising and serving as an officer of a political party
question
what do some government agencies have the reputation of being?
answer
turkey farms
question
turkey farms
answer
agencies to which campaign workers and donors can be appointed in reward for their service because it is unlikely that their lack of qualifications will lead to bad policy
question
what are people in the SES exempt from?
answer
civil service restrictions
question
how do bureaucrats hold significant power?
answer
to influence government policy, and elected officials have to figure out how to reap the benefits or bureaucratic expertise without giving bureaucrats free rein to do whatever they want
question
what is one solution to take away discretion to bureaucrats?
answer
give simple, direct oders
question
bureaucratic drift
answer
bureaucrats' tendency to implement policies in a way that favors their own political objectives rather than following the original intentions of the legislation
question
oversight
answer
congressional efforts to make sure that laws are implemented correctly by the bureaucracy after they have been passed
question
police patrol oversight
answer
a method of oversight in which members of congress constantly monitor the bureaucracy to make sure that laws are implemented correctly
question
fire alarm oversight
answer
a method of oversight in which members of congress respond to complaints about the bureaucracy or problems of implementation only as they arise rather than exercising constant vigilance
