By Loren Miller “The only thing that saves us from the bureaucracy is its inefficiency.” Eugene...
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Transcript of By Loren Miller “The only thing that saves us from the bureaucracy is its inefficiency.” Eugene...
“The only thing that saves us from the bureaucracy is its inefficiency.”
Eugene McCarthy
U.S. Senator, 1959-1971
BUREAUCRACY& BUREAUCRATS
A political science professor was once asked: “How many bureaucrats does it take to screw in a light bulb? She replied, “Seventeen: 3 to authorize purchase of the light bulb (at twice the price), 5 to inspect the light bulb, and 8 to turn the chair while I hold the bulb in place.”
BUREAUCRACY& BUREAUCRATS
What is a bureaucracy?
-- a form of organization
What is a bureaucrat?
-- an employee of an organization
WHAT DO BUREAUCRATS DO?
• they communicate with each other
• they keep copies of all those communications to maintain a paper trail
WHAT DOBUREAUCRATS DO?
• Implementation– implement the objectives of the
organization as laid down by its board of directors (if a private company) or by law (if a public agency)
WHAT DOBUREAUCRATS DO?
• Interpretation• when Congress is clear in their
instructions to bureaucrats, implementation is a fairly straight-forward process
• when there is disagreement as to what the instructions ought to be, then bureaucrats perform another job, interpretation
WHAT DOBUREAUCRATS DO?
• Lawmaking• when bureaucrats have to interpret a law
before implementing it, they are, in effect, engaged in lawmaking
• Congress often deliberately delegates to an administrative agency the responsibility of lawmaking
The Federal Bureaucracy
“LAWS” OF BUREAUCRATIC BEHAVIOR
Acheson’s Rule: A memorandum is written not to inform the reader but to protect the writer
Boren’s Laws: When in doubt, mumble. When in trouble, delegate. When in charge, ponder
Meskimen’s Law: There’s never time to do it right, but always time to do it over
Murphy’s Law: If anything can go wrong, it will O’Toole’s Corollary to Murphy’s Law: Murphy was an
optimist Peter Principle: In every hierarchy, each employee
tends to rise to his level of incompetence; thus, every post tends to be filled by an incompetent employee
HOW TO BECOMEA BUREAUCRAT
• Pre 1883
• to the victor go the spoils (partisan)
• people who supported the winning party obtained government jobs
• Post 1883 The Pendleton Act
• a system of competitive exams would be used as the basis for employment
• the merit system or civil service system
HOW TO FIRE A BUREAUCRAT
30 days written notice that must contain a statement of reasons—including specific examples—of unacceptable performance
Employee has the right to an attorney and to reply to the charges
Employee has the right to appeal any adverse action to the Merit System Protection Board (MSPB)
The MSPB must grant the employee a hearing, at which the employee has the right to have an attorney present
The employee has the right to appeal the MSPB decision to a U.S. court of appeals, which can hold new hearings
Civilian Employment
• Total Number of Employees:• 2,800,000• 124,000 in Texas (only California has
more)
• Total Number of Merit System Employees:• 2,797,000
2011
CAN THE BUREAUCRACY BE REDUCED?
Termination– The only certain way to reduce the size of the bureaucracy is
to eliminate programs.
Devolution– Downsize the size of the bureaucracy by delegating the
implementation of programs to state and local governments.
Privatization– A formerly public activity is picked up under contract by a
private company or companies. They are still government programs as they are paid for by government and supervised by government.
Privatization
# of Contracts for Providing Services
Spending on Federal Contracts(Billions of Dollars)
Contracts Subject to Full and Open Competition
(%)
OVERTAXED??
2010
State Taxation
1. TX 3.51 11.NV 4.88 21. IN 5.66 31.CT 6.05 41. ID 6.79
2. SD 3.57 12.VA 4.94 22.WA 5.70 32.WI 6.20 42.NM 6.92
3. NH 3.76 13.OR 4.89 23.MD 5.71 33.ND 6.25 43.MN 7.04
4. CO 3.90 14. IA 4.98 24.NY 5.72 34.MI 6.28 44.MS 7.30
5. TN 4.63 15.AZ 5.04 25. SC 5.73 35.NJ 6.31 45.ME 7.46
6. MO 4.67 16.NE 5.07 26.PA 5.78 36.CA 6.37 46.AK 7.67
7. DE 4.72 17.LA 5.24 27.NC 5.79 37.WY 6.42 47.AR 7.77
8. GA 4.76 18.OH 5.36 28.MA 5.87 38.KY 6.51 48.WV 8.04
9. IL 4.78 19.AL 5.39 29.KS 5.89 39.OK 6.53 49.HI 8.21
10.FL 4.82 20.UT 5.58 30.RI 5.92 40. MT 6.77 50. VT 10.39
INCOME INEQUALITYShare of National Income Received by Each Fifth of
Families (%)
2010
Year Poorest 5th Second 5th Third 5th Fourth 5th Wealthiest 5th
1980 5.3 11.6 17.6 24.4 41.4
1985 4.8 11.0 16.9 24.3 43.1
1990 4.6 10.8 16.6 23.8 44.3
1995 4.4 10.1 15.6 23.2 46.5
2000 4.3 9.8 15.5 22.8 47.4
2009 3.4 8.6 14.6 23.2 50.3
NUMBER OF GOVERNMENTS
2012
Federal Government 1
State Governments 50
Local Governments
Counties 3,033
Municipalities & Townships 36,011 Special Districts 37,381
School Districts 13,051
TOTAL 89,527
EMPLOYMENT
Number in Millions2012Employment in Texas
Who Employs the Public Servants?
0 20 40 60 80 100 120
National Defense
Postal Service
Elementary/Secondary Ed
Hospitals
Higher Ed
Police
Fire
Streets/Highways
NationalStateLocal
2006
% WOMEN & MINORITIES APPOINTED BY PRESIDENT TO EXECUTIVE BRANCH
4
4
6
17
12
20
45
36
0 10 20 30 40 50
Johnson
Nixon
Ford
Carter
Reagan
Bush
Clinton
Bush
THE WHITE HOUSE STAFF
Chief of Staff – supervises other staff members and organizing much of what the president does (the president’s gatekeeper)
National Security Advisor – head of the National Security Council; meets with the president every day to brief him on events that might affect national security
The exact shape of the White House Staff changes greatly from president to president
THE WHITE HOUSE STAFF
Domestic Policy Council
National Economic Council
Office of Cabinet Affairs
Office of Communications
Office of Digital Strategy
Office of the First Lady
Office of Legislative Affairs
Office of Management and Administration
Office of Presidential Personnel
Office of Scheduling and Advance
Office of the Staff Secretary
Office of the White House Council
Oval Office Administration
Office of Public Engagement and Intergovernmental Affairs
2013
THE EOP
President Franklin D. Roosevelt appointed a committee on administrative management which then recommended a major reorganization of the executive branch.
-- Congress created the Executive Office of the President to provide staff assistance
The EOP
The President
Council ofEconomic Advisors
Council onEnvironmental
Quality
Office ofAdministration
Office of Management And Budget
White HouseOffice
Office of ScienceAnd
Technology Policy
Office of theVice President
Office of NationalDrug Control Policy
2013
Established in 1939
National SecurityStaff
THE EOP
Office of Management and Budget (OMB) – advises the president on how much the administration should propose to spend for each government program and where the money will come from
Council of Economic Advisors (CEA) – advises the president on economic policy
National Security Staff – a body of leading officials from the Departments of State and Defense, the Central Intelligence Agency, and the military who advise the president on foreign affairs
THE CABINET
Because neither the Constitution nor law requires the president to consult with the cabinet, its use is purely discretionary.
-- Eisenhower used the team approach solving problems from his experience in World War II, so he frequently turned to his cabinet for advice
-- Lincoln, after a cabinet meeting in which a vote was seven nays (all members of his cabinet) and one aye (Lincoln), he supposedly said “seven nays, and one aye, the ayes have it”.
THE CABINET
The Original Departments (1789) Defense Treasury Justice State
Nineteenth Century Additions Interior (1849) Agriculture (1889)
Progressive Era Additions Commerce (1903) Labor (1913)
THE CABINET
Eisenhower Era Addition
Health and Human Services (1953)
Great Society Additions Housing & Urban Development (1965)
Transportation (1966)
Carter and Bush Era Additions Energy (1977) Education (1979)
Veterans Affairs (1989)
INDEPENDENT REGULATORY AGENCIES
• Created by Congress and given broad authority to regulate a particular area of the nation’s economy
• commissioners are nominated by the president with advice and consent of the Senate
• perform legislative, executive and judicial functions
INDEPENDENT REGULATORY AGENCIES
• Federal Reserve System – determine policy on interest rates, credit availability, and the money supply
• Security and Exchange Commission – regulates the nation’s stock exchanges
• Federal Communications Commission – regulates communication by radio, television, wire, satellite, and cable
• Equal Employment Opportunity Commission – works to eliminate discrimination and examines claims of discrimination
• Nuclear Regulatory Commission – regularly inspects nuclear reactors for safety
CLIENTELE AGENCIES
• They are directed by law to foster and promote the interests of a particular group or segment of American society• Veterans Administration
• The “Iron Triangle” recognizes the role of the bureaucracy in shaping legislation.
THE IRON TRIANGLE
Bureaucracy
Department of Veterans Affairs
Congressional Committees
House Committee on Veterans Affairs
Interest Groups
American Legion, Veterans of Foreign War
Info about veteran’s needs
Legislation affecting veteran’s benefits
Approve higher budget
requests
Informatio
n
Help with
consti
tuent
complaints
Rulings on veteran’s issues
Information about
veterans
Support for agencies
budget request
Campaign Contributions
ISSUE NETWORKS
• With the increase in the number of interest groups, and the decline in the power of individual members of Congress, the “iron triangle” may be outdated.
• The use of the internet and advertising campaigns have brought out into the open what once was decided behind closed doors.
GOVERNMENT CORPORATIONS
• Useful when the government is providing a service that can best be run by a corporation that is free from excessive interference by the President and Congress but still subject to general policies established by Congress
• usually formed because corporations cannot make a profit