Federal Bureaucracy Quiz

The federal bureaucracy is an essential component of the American government. Government bureaucrats are the men and women behind the scenes that carry out the essential tasks and directives that ensure the country can run. While they are often demeaned for strictly adhering to formal procedures rather than exercising political will, these government workers are essential to carrying out the laws and policies of the nation and its Constitution.

Bureaucrats, themselves, do not have any constitutionally granted powers. However, their roles behind the scenes often serve to influence those who do. Advisors, cabinet members, clerical staff, and researchers are some of the bureaucratic positions that exist to help ensure government decision-makers have both the information and support necessary to do their jobs.

For much of America’s early history, patronage determined the bulk of the federal government’s bureaucratic hires. As such, the majority of the government employees in early administrations were aligned ideologically with the president and his agenda. This also meant a severe lack of opposing viewpoints, leaving many Americans of the minority parties feeling underrepresented by their government.

President Jackson was a firm believer in patronage when it came to staffing the federal government. His position was that regularly re-staffing the federal bureaucracy with each new administration helped weed out corruption and ensure that elected officials, including the president, would be surrounded by professionals that would be supportive of furthering the administration’s agenda.

The Pendleton Act came on the heels of the assassination of President James Garfield by a disgruntled man who was passed over for a diplomatic post in the administration (despite having offered what he felt was crucial campaign support to President Garfield’s election efforts). Two years later, Congress passed the Pendleton Act in order to reform the hiring process for federal civil service employees so that merit, not patronage, would dictate who would be employed.

The business of carrying out the logistics of federal law is complex and multifaceted. There is no feasible way for Congress and the elected officials in the executive branch to do so without a lot of help. Administrative agencies are the bodies that do the work so that federal laws and policies are actually carried out.

Independent regulatory commissions are crucial parts of the federal bureaucracy designed to help protect people and organizations from abuse. Non-partisan agencies like the Consumer Product Safety Commission, the Federal Election Commission, and the National Transportation Safety Board are all examples of independent regulatory commissions that exist to help ensure the safety and fair treatment of American citizens.

Revenue agencies like the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) have the authority to collect fees and taxes on behalf of the United States government. These funds are essential for paying for things like government services and the salaries of government workers. While the IRS is the best known revenue agency, many other agencies have the ability to collect money on behalf of the government as well.

The institution was created by a line-item in an unrelated piece of congressional legislation.

The federal bureaucracy is undoubtedly necessary to keep the government running, but this means a large number of unelected professionals wind up playing major roles in how that happens. Since it is unrealistic to assume every government official can be directly elected, Americans must rely on the oversight of elected officials to keep bureaucrats accountable and in check.

Government corporations, like the United States Postal Service and Federal Prison Industries, are government-owned corporations that, while created by a law, exist independently from any government department. These government corporations can charge patrons for their goods and services and often find themselves in competition with private corporations offering similar products or services.

Congress must pass an enabling act to create a new administrative agency. Part of this process includes establishing the purpose, powers, and (in some cases) duration of the agency.

There are a number of different ways bureaucrats and their respective agencies are held accountable. Sunshine laws ensure that agencies hold regular, open meetings to share their efforts with the public. Whistleblower protections make it possible for people to “blow the whistle” on issues of corruption, deception, or inefficiency without fear of reprisal (although these protections do not always go far enough). Sunset provisions are put in place so that bureaucratic agencies do not exist in perpetuity. After a set period of time, the agency expires and is disbanded unless it can make a successful case for its renewal.

An issue network is a coalition of both people and interest groups dedicated to forwarding a particular agenda or policy. These networks can vary greatly in size, scope, and tactics depending upon their stated issues and aims.

Iron triangles are a specific type of issue network where a three-way relationship between congressional committees, special interest groups, and bureaucratic agencies is created to forward or protect a particular political agenda. These alliances can become so powerful that it becomes extremely difficult for outside political forces to interfere or block their efforts. Because of this, iron triangles are often regarded as an undemocratic corruption of the bureaucratic system.

Inefficiency is a chief complaint when it comes to the federal bureaucracy. Thanks in large part to the civil service rules that replaced the patronage system, it is very difficult to remove federal employees from their posts once they are in them. As a result, there can be a lack of accountability which results in slow, ineffectual bureaucratic processes.

Any time reform requires the mutual approval of multiple branches of government, the likelihood that it will happen decreases drastically. In the case of the federal bureaucracy, the executive branch controls much of it, but Congress has control over a significant portion as well. Traditionally, this has meant that bureaucratic change moves at a pace even slower than the bureaucracy itself thanks to political gridlock.

The term "red tape" has come to symbolize the headaches that come with trying to navigate overly complicated bureaucratic processes.

Many times when a new president takes office, the bureaucracy undergoes a pruning process known as deregulation; rules and policies deemed too restrictive or unpopular are removed, effectively shrinking the bureaucracy.

The Office of Personnel Management (OPM) operates as an independent agency and is responsible for the civil service components of the federal government. Among the responsibilities of the OPM are issuing security clearances, facilitating issues involving administrative law, and enforcing the merit system for bureaucratic employment practices.