Bureaucracy Chapter

What is bureaucracy?

Large organization that is structured hierarchically to carry out specific functions

Public and Private Bureaucracies

- they exist outside of government as well

- for instance – McGill is FAMOUS for its red tape

book maintains that handling complex problems requires a division of labor – in order to get all parts of the job done, it must be completed by a variety of departments

Differences between public/private: Private has a SINGLE leadership bloc

Public B.: answers to a variety of leaders – President, agency head, Congress. Being pulled in all directions.

Other difference: Private is for profit, government is for services.

Three Models of Bureaucracy:

Weberian Model: Max Weber, argues that the growing complexity of modern life made bureaucracy necessary.

Organized hierarchically, governed by formal procedures

Top-down power structure

Decisions – shaped by detailed technical rules

Bureaucrats – SPECIALISTS – can only function in one area of a topic

Advancement – based on merit, not on connections

Bureaucracy – should not be political

Acquisitive Model – model of b. that views top-level bureaucrats as seeking to expand the size of their budgets and staffs to gain greater power

Is not apolitical

Bureaucrats want to increase their power – so increase budgets and staffs

Top level bureaucrats are always trying to “sell” their agencies to the public/Congress, to convince them to give them more funding

Monopolistic Model

Compares bureaucracies to business monopolies. Lack of competition leads to inefficient/costly operations

Not penalized for inefficiency

So, do not create/implement cost-saving measures

Bureaucracies Compared

In US – fairly autonomous and independent

Lines of authority – not always clearly defined, gives agencies a lot of leeway

Federalism – national agencies must provide funds to their state and local offices

In Europe, many bureaucracies are national and top down – no need to devolve power or have other offices

Important Agencies – Administrative Agencies – created and authorized by legislative bodies to administer and enforce specific laws

Size of Bureaucracy

1789 – 3 depts (State, War, and Treasury

Now – 2.7 million government employees

However – does not include the # of subcontractors or consultants

All govt employees (local, state, national) – account for 15% of the workforce

Organization of Federal Bureaucracy

Executive Branch

Four structures: Cabinet depts., independent executive agencies, independent regulatory agencies, and government corporations

Cabinet Departments

15 in total
Also referred to as LINE ORGANIZATIONS – means it is directly accountable to the president

Perform government functions

A president can ask to create a new one (as Homeland Security was created in 2003), but must do so with Congressional approval

SECRETARIES lead each dept. Lots of undersecretaries and assistant secretaries

The top officials in each dept are directly chosen by the Pres – but beyond that, it is staffed by permanent employees, who may have their own way of doing things. So, while the Pres has power over it, Cabinet depts. Do not always follow Pres’ orders

Independent Executive Agencies

Federal agency that is not part of a cabinet dept but reports directly to the president

Ex: Environmental Protection Agency, CIA, NASA

Congress determines what powers it will have, who it will be accountable to

Independent Regulatory Agencies

Agency outside the major executive depts. Charged with making and implementing rules/regulations

First one – Interstate Commerce Commission (ICC) – made decisions about rates, profits and rules that would facilitate interstate trade

Other examples – FCC, Nuclear Regulatory Commission

Purpose of Reg. Cmtes – Originally created to serve as experts on a specific policy area, so that Congress wouldn’t have to legislate on areas it didn’t have familiarity with

Combine all 3 branches of govt
Legislative – create rules/regulations
Executive – enforce rules
Judicial – decide disputes arising over laws

Members are appointed by President with consent of Senate, but do not report to Pres

Legally, must be from different political parties

If vacancies occur – President appoints members from own party
Agency Capture – supposed to be independent – but sometimes they’re not

An industry that is regulated by govt agency can gain direct/indirect control over an agency

Deregulation/Regulation – Reagan’s mantra was “smaller government,” and had many industries DEREGULATED (remove regulatory oversight) – although Carter began the process

Under Bush I, the public wanted more industries to be regulated – Clean Air Act of 1991 and Disabilities Act of 1990 increased regulation

Clinton – ICC eliminated, banking and telecoms deregulated

Government Corporations

Agency of govt that administers a quasi-business enterprise. Only used when services are commercial

Has a board of directors/managers – but no stockholders

If it makes a profit, doesn’t have to distribute it or pay taxes

Ex: FDIC, USPS

Staffing the Bureaucracy

Political Appointees

Serve a variety of functions: Pres can pay off political debts (favors he promised to get elected)

But can also draft the services of highly talented people

Aristocracy of Fed Govt – are the top dogs, nobility

But aren’t as powerful as they may appear

Only has position for a brief time (compared to permanent staff)

Avg length of term – 2 years

Usually have little background in the policy area, and are heavily reliant on civil servants for information

Problems Firing Civil Servants – fewer than 0.1 been fired for incompetence. Firing can result in years of hearings and appeals – so no one really wants to go down that road

History of the Federal Civil Service

For a long time, used Spoils system – whoever won, got to usher in all those who voted for him/supported his campaign

Gradually – began to see the appeal of the merit system – selection and promotion of govt employees based on exams – originated in Germany

Civil Service Reform Act of 1883/Pendleton Act
Created the Civil Service Commission – manage employees/examinations

Now covers over 90% of federal employees

Upheld twice by the SC – first by Elrod v. Burns (76) and Branti v. Finkel (’80) – both dealt with civil service employees who did not support political party in power – could not be discharged for that

Rutan v. Repub Party of Illinois (90) – can’t hire someone because they share partisan loyalties

Civil Service Reform Act of 1978 – abolished Civil Service Commission

Added Office of Personnel Management (OPM) – recruits, interviews, tests job applicants

Merit Systems Protection Board (MPSB) – evaluates charges, hears appeals, and orders corrective actions

Federal Employees/Political Campaigns – 1933, many staffers at the newly created New Deal agencies actively campaigned for the Dem party

Harch Act of 1939 – banned employees from actively participating in campaigns

Some claim federal bureaucrats are robbed of their First Amendment rights. Do you agree?

Modern Reform

Government in the Sunshine Act (1976)

Requires all committee-directed fed agencies to conduct business in public session

Information Disclosure – general trend in policies that originated in 60s. Open disclosure on housing market, Freedom of Information Act

Curbs on Info Disclosure – Changing since 9/11

Restriction on information – closing down websites, and recalling documents

Military restricted information on activities, FBI also

State and local governments have followed feds’ lead

Sunset Laws – require that programs be reviewed regularly for effectiveness and be terminated unless specifically extended as a result of reviews

First suggested by FDR – understood that the New Deal agencies he created should not be allowed to continue indefinitely

But it was never implemented

Sunset legislation first adopted by CO in 1976

Privatization

Replacement of government services with services provided by private (for profit) firms

Ex: government may allow private firms to administer/maintain prisons

Also – providing “vouchers” for services – NYC Education uproar, “vouchers” for private schools

Vouchers work best on local level –

Public-private partnership (PPP) is a system in which a government service or private business venture is funded and operated through a partnership of government and one or more private sector companies. These schemes are sometimes referred to as PPP or P3.

First begun in UK – maintenance of London Underground.

Now in US: Maintenance of Central Park

Incentives for Efficiency/Productivity

Federal Incentives – Government Performance and Results Act 1997 – tried to improve efficiency

All agencies describe goals and create benchmarks to measure progress
Goals may be BROAD – and apply to general agency procedures – or NARROW – very specific functions

Bush II – “Performance based budgeting” – links agency funding to agency performance. Rewards efficient agencies, punishes ineffective ones

Has Bureaucracy Changed? Some say govt must be more responsible and flexible to adequately respond to demands of modern economy

Others maintain the fault lies with those who run the agencies – they must be specifically trained for their tasks, not just political appointees cashing in on a favor

E-Government: A Good Idea? Can communicate with bureaucrats via email

Federal agencies now have websites where people can access information from home/computers

Helping Whistleblowers –

Someone who brings gross inefficiency or an illegal action to public’s attention

1978 CSA – prohibits punitive action from being taken against whistleblowers – but it still happens

Now – some federal agencies have free hot lines to report inappropriate behavior – 35% of calls result in follow-up

Whistle-Blower Protection Act 1989 – established Office of Special Counsel – OSC – an independent body to investigate complaints by employees who have been punished or fired for reporting fraud

But – whistleblowers are still not adequately protected

Ex: Colleen Rowley