Chapter 9: the Executive Branch and the Federal Bureaucracy
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21 terms
Terms | Definitions |
|---|---|
 bureaucracy | a set of complex hierarchical dpts., agencies, commissions, and their staffs that exist to help a chief executive officer carry out his/her duties. Bureaucracies may be private organizations or governmental units |
| spoils system | the firing of public- office holders of a defeated political party in order to replace them w/ loyalists of the newly elected party |
| patronage | jobs, grants, or other special favors given as rewards to friends & political allies for their support |
| Pendleton Act | reform measure that created the Civil Svc. Commission to administer a partial merit sys. The act classified federal svc. by grades, to which appts. were made based on the results of a competitive examination. It made it illegal for federal appointees to be required to contribute to a partiular political party. |
| Civil Svc. Sys. | The legal sys. by which many federal bureaucrats are selected |
| Merit Sys. | The sys. by which federal civil svc. jobs are classified innto grades or levels, and appts. are made on the basis of performance on competitive examinations |
| Independent regulatory commission | an agency created by Congress that is generall concerned w/ a specific aspect of the economy |
| Departments | major administrative unit w/ responsibility for a broad area of gov't operations. Departmental status usually indicates a national interest in a particular governmental function, such as defense, commerce, or agriculture |
| Gov't Corporations | businesses established by Congress to perform functions that can be provided by private business |
| Independent executive agencies | governmental units that closely resemble a Cabinet dpt. But have narrower areas of responsibility (such as CIA) and aren't part of any cabinet dpt. |
| Hatch Act | the 1939 act to prohibit civil servants from taking activist roles in partisan campaigns. This act prohibited federal employees from making political contributions, working for a particular party, or campaigning for a particular candidate |
| Federal Employees Political Activities Act | the 1993 liberalization of the Hatch Act. Federal Employees are now allowed to run for office in nonpartisan elections and to contribute $ in partisan election |
| Implementation | the process by which a law/policy is put into operation by the bureaucracy |
| Iron Triangles | the relatively stable relationships and patterns of interaction that occur among agencies, interest groups, and congressional committees/subcommittees |
| issue networks | the loose and informal relationships that exist among a lg. # of actors who work in broad policy areas |
| Interagency Councils | working groups created to facilitate coordination of policy making and implementation across a host of gov't agencies |
| Administrative Discretion | the ability of bureaucrats to make choices concerning the best way to implement congressional intentions |
| Rule Making | a quasi-legislative (almost but not quite) administrative process that has the characteristics of a legislative act |
| Regulation | rules that govern the operation of a particular government program that have the force of law |
| Administrative Adjudication | a quasi-judicial process in which a bureaucratic agency settles disputes btwn. 2 parties in a manner similar to the way courts resolve disputes |
| Executive Orders | rules/regulations issued by P that have effect of law. Must be published in federal register |
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