Bureaucracy

Federal Bureaucracy

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Multiple Choice

One advantage of bureaucracies is a certain amount of ___________ in the built-up expertise that comes with it.

• stability

• legislative power

• economic knowledge

Multiple Choice

In addition to being useful and filling roles that the ______________ might not fill, one of the reasons we have so many bureaucracies is because Congress keeps making them and delegating power to them.

• private sector

• executive branch

• public education

Multiple Choice

Technically the federal bureaucracy is part of the ________________, but it's so big that it dwarfs the other two branches and can easily overpower them.

• executive branch

• judicial branch

• legislative branch

Multiple Choice

A ____________ is a complex structure of offices, tasks, rules, and principles of organization that are employed by all large scale institutions to coordinate the work of their personnel.

• bureaucracy

• corporation

• monopoly

Multiple Choice

The main function of the bureaucracy is:

• communicate with foreign nations

• prosecute citizens of our nation

• make the president happy

• perform the day to day business of the federal government

Multiple Choice

Though not a real branch, What does the fourth branch of government refer to?

• The press

• The federal bureaucracy

• The electoral college

• The executive branch

Multiple Choice

How many Departments are in the federal government?

• 10

• 15

• 19

• 50

Multiple Choice

In our federal government who does the following things:

Evaluate programs

Regulate businesses

Develop government policies

• Federal Bureaucracy

• Congress

• The Supreme Court

• Interest Groups

Open Ended

What was the Spoils system?

Multiple Choice

What civil service reform legislation led to less corruption in the government because it established a merit-based system for government jobs?

• Interstate Commerce Act

• Pendleton Act

• Teapot Dome Scandel

• Pure Food & Drug Act

Multiple Choice

What act depoliticized the civil service by prohibiting department heads from compelling their workers to campaign for their reelection?

• The Civil Service Reform Act 1883

• Pendleton Act 1883

• Hatch Act 1939

• None of the above

Multiple Choice

Which of the following was passed to keep political views from impacting the performance of the federal bureaucracy?

• The Hatch Act
• The Budget and Impoundment Act
• The War Powers Act 
• The Judiciary Act

Multiple Choice

The spoils system of awarding civil service jobs was replaced by the merit system as a result of the...

• Pendleton Act of 1883
• National Industrial Recovery Act 
• Fair Labor Standards Act of 1961 
• Truman Doctrine

Multiple Choice

Patronage is a hiring and promotion system based on…

• knowing the right people
• civil service exams
• talent and skill
• the Pendleton Act 

Multiple Choice

Whose primary responsibility is to create rules and regulations?

• Legislative branch

• Judges

• Bureaucracy

• Voters

Multiple Choice

In our federal government who does the following things:

Evaluate programs

Regulate businesses

Develop government policies

• Federal Bureaucracy

• Congress

• The Supreme Court

• Interest Groups

Multiple Choice

What political term describes trading loyalty for jobs and contracts?

• Spoils System

• Patronage

• Malfeasance

• Graft

Multiple Choice

What did the 1978 Civil Service Reform Act do?

• Abolished the “civil service”

• Establish the Office of Personnel Management

• Establish the Merit System Protection Board

• All the above

Multiple Choice

In 1963, Congress passed the Clean Air Act to control air pollution on a national level. In response, the Environmental Protection Agency set standards to limit carbon dioxide emissions from new power plants in the United States.

The action taken by the Environmental Protection Agency is an example of which of the following?

• A guideline issued by the federal bureaucracy, which provide specific details about how a policy will be implemented

• A permanent change to the Constitution of the United States

• A law created by the president and implemented by a bureaucratic agency without congressional approval

• A written pronouncement issued by the president after signing a bill

Multiple Choice

Congress passed the Clean Air Act, which gave the federal government the power to monitor and limit emissions of harmful chemicals into the atmosphere. In 2003, however, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced that the Clean Air Act does not give it the authority to regulate carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases.

The EPA’s decision to regulate some emissions but not others is an example of which of the following?

• The discretionary authority that individual bureaucrats and agencies have to make choices about how to implement existing laws

• An iron triangle relationship between bureaucratic agencies, interest groups, and congressional subcommittees to promote a common cause

• Bureaucratic rulemaking authority to write specific regulations in order to enforce laws

• The collaboration between an issue network of experts and stakeholders to create specific policy

Multiple Choice

Which of the following statements explains how Congress can use its power of the purse to restrict presidential power?

• Congress allocates funds for presidential campaigns and can restrict funds to the president’s party

• Congress determines the president’s salary and can cut it based on performance

• Congress drafts and passes a federal budget, which does not require presidential approval

• Congress can deny requests for funds to executive agencies during the budget process

Multiple Choice

Which of the following is a consequence of the merit system in the bureaucracy?

• Greater fragmentation in the bureaucracy

• Greater inefficiency in the bureaucracy

• Greater loyalty to the president’s party in the bureaucracy

• Greater professionalism in the bureaucracy

Open Ended

How should Congress respond to the Hurricane Relief fraud situation?

Open Ended

Based on what we know about bureaucracy, What is the meaning of the political cartoon? Think about what you see and read.

Multiple Choice

Who funds agencies?

• Congress
• Courts
• Executive

Multiple Choice

What is Judicial Review?

• The courts can review laws and declare them unconstitutional

• Judges have a review system for some court cases

• The courts have the ability to reverse a decision

Open Ended

summarize the FDA vs Brown and Williamson Case. What was the courts ruling?

Multiple Choice

 Considered as a single group, the Small Business Administration, the Small Business committees in the House and Senate, and small business advocacy groups are an example of...

• an iron triangle
• a conference committee 
• a regulatory agency
• dual federalism

Multiple Choice

Issue networks are…

• An informal and relatively open network of public officials, think tanks, political pundits and lobbyists who have a common interest in a given area and who are brought together by a proposed policy in that area
• the relatively new television stations that specialize in political coverage
• two or more agencies that share regulatory power when a policy or regulation affects more than one regulatory body
• the same as ʺiron trianglesʺ 

Multiple Choice

Providing direct aid to the poor is a function of the bureaucracies.

• True
• False

Multiple Choice

Who funds agencies?

• Congress
• Courts
• Executive

Multiple Choice

What function do agencies like OSHA serve?

• redistributing economic resources
• maintain the union
• serve clients
•  regulate economic activity
  

Multiple Choice

What would be the role of the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is illustrated in this cartoon?

• Ensuring that companies follow pollution control laws

• Setting prices for the sale of electricity across the United States.

• Preventing companies from developing their own policies.

• Deciding how much energy the United States should produce.

Multiple Choice

What main function do agencies like the FDA, CDC, NIH, and SNAP serve?

• regulate economic activity
• redistributing economic resources
• service clients
• maintain the union

Multiple Choice

What makes rules and regulations to affect and protect public interest?

• government corporations

• the Cabinet

• independent regulatory agencies

• departments

Multiple Choice

Congress tries to control the bureaucracy through…

• rewriting laws, controlling budgets and holding hearings 
• the use of executive orders and appointments
• the creation of iron triangles
• dismissing members of the President’s cabinet 

Multiple Choice

What is the primary responsibility of regulatory agencies such as the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA)?

• maintain citizen health and safety

• create new jobs

• control the supply of money

• set prices for goods and services

Multiple Choice

The MOST substantial control that Congress exerts on the bureaucracy is through its power to

• pass laws.
• decide how much money will be appropriated for agency programs.
• approve an agency's appointees.
• order audits of agency activities.

Multiple Choice

The main job of federal bureaucrats is to...

• implement and regulate government policies
• compete with the private sector for monopoly power
• protect the interests of their constituencies
• advise the president and Cabinet on internal affairs.

Multiple Choice

An independent regulatory agency is usually governed by

• a single executive appointed by the Senate committee responsible for the agencyʹs oversight.
• members of the Senior Executive Service of the federal civil service
• a small commission, usually with five to ten members, appointed by the president for fixed terms
• a small commission, usually with five to ten members, appointed by the president and subject to presidential firing.

Multiple Choice

The fact that executive orders have been used at an increasing rate indicates which of the following?

• Executive orders speed up the process by which Congress passes legislation
• The power of the president is growing
• The president is using the power of persuasion to maintain party discipline
• Executive orders are a tactic used by the executive branch to challenge legislation the president opposes.

Multiple Choice

Who do the independent executive agencies report to?

• Congress

• President

• Supreme Court

• the Cabinet