Chapter 1 Defining Bureaucracy Bureaucracy is officially responsible to the president under his constitutional charge to take care that the laws of the nation are faithfully executed Bureaucracy almost makes ups a fourth branch due to autonomy and resources Both president and congress partly due to growth in bureaucratic growth in power have developed bureaucratic organizations of their own Positive government has added functions to the nation state totally foreign to the 19th and early 20th century governments Each new government function has spawned a corresponding bureau The bureau grows because the public demands it The bureau is a policy making branch Only under President Clinton did the size of government decline Bureaucracy affects every aspect of our lives Claiming that government bureaucracy is inefficient is untestable because due to the definition of efficiency we can only compare efficiency between bureaus that produce the same product This doesn t happen in gov bureaus In some cases small portions of a bureaus activities can be measured for efficiency Administrative power is the ability of a bureau to allocate scarce societal resources political power exercised by a gov bureau when it determines who gets what where and how Administrative power requires resources and autonomy These requisites determine how powerful a bureau is Autonomy the discretion to make decisions concerning agency activities Laurence Jacobs paper the bureaucracy technically under president is limited Chapter 2 first level of organization below prez is the 15 executive departments each headed by a cabinet secretary secretary headed prez picked individual departments were established by congress over 200 yr period the us gov is an organic body grows and shrinks departments reflect that because created at different time reflects understanding at time of their creation Departments Departments performing essential government functions Departments of war treasury and state created in 1798 three essential functions of govt War and state tied to presidential power diplomacy and national defense president is designated as chief diplomat and commander in chief of armed force reorganization 1947 the Dept of defense Dept of War Dept of navy Treasury congressional power related it to congress power to tax treasury dept through its bureaus collects the nations taxs print money finance national debt gives grant money to other nations State department today conducts the nations diplomacy and coordinates a variety of US programs that affect other nations Departments reflecting needs of growing nation Created 2 departments Department of Interior 1849 Department of justice 1870 Department of justice composed of several legal units that represent the US in court on legal matters concerning antitrust criminal law civil law civil right tax law and law and land and natural resources law Also contains federal law enforcement FBI immigration service and the federal prisons Department of Interior Hesitated because of states rights British Home Department but needed oversight in the new lands being won department was established strong ties to groups interested in public lands recreation and reclamation was able to set a precedent by making string ties with clientele groups ppl interested in public lands Indian affairs wildlife jurisdiction over parks recreation and some natural resources programs to cater the clientele group clientele departments are the departments of agricultural commence and labor created to satisfy the demand of interests group rather than govern them but the ppl involved lobbied heavy until passed US Department of Agriculture USDA 1862 developing and improving farming change happened in 1930 great depression department was transformed into a subsidies and regulation department designed to limit farm production and raise farm income paying ppl not to grow stuff moved from research body to responsible of farmer subsides and now marketing and food distribution food stamps lunch schools Commerce department 1903 business was behind setting it up 20 s major force in setting up domestic policies in economic growth not so much today lost power because department of labor today programs including business promotion the Census Bureau the Patent office and the national Oceanic and Atmosphere Administration Department of Labor 1913 Originally part of department of Commerce monitors worker health and safety unemployment standards and compensation and create jobs several decades no new departments created Departments reflecting national priorities response to governmental needs and problems Department of health and human services created out of Federal Security Administration to give health priority today programs distribute funds for health research health care Medicaid Medicare welfare and social security 1965 department of housing and urban development in response to war on poverty Linden Johnson mortgage guarantee programs public housing programs and programs addressing urban problems best known for corruption scandal involving favoritism 1967 Department of transportation dealing with railroads airlines and highways established for needed comprehensive approaches to transportation problems 1977 Department of Energy response to concern of nations energy shortage research and development and regulatory most funds go to nuclear energy department of homeland security 2002 from 9 11 originally office of home land disaster prevention and management emergency preparedness border security and immigration and transportation related security anything that could effect national security transfer of federal agencies INS FEMA Coast Guard and Secret Service policy functions of other agencies moved agricultural inspection and several nuclear material related programs New Cliental departments being an executive department rather than agency confers prestige on the organization and its cliental Department of education edu was formally under department of health 1979 jimmy carter made promise to national education program Department of veteran affairs VA 1989 to please various veterans groups VA before was poorly run was politically popular move for both pez and congress Department of bureaus and agencies the fifteen executive departments of the federal governmental are not monolithic units each department is composed of several smaller bureaus and agencies that administer the departments programs Other federal dept are not