government chapter 15 questions

Which of the following is NOT an area in which an ʺiron triangleʺ has controlled federal policy over the past several decades? A) nuclear power policy B) environmental policy C) pesticide policy D) smoking & tobacco policy

environmental policy

Once hired into the federal bureaucracy, a person is assigned a ________ rating, which determines oneʹs salary range.

General Schedule

Federal employees are prohibited from active participation in partisan politics through the

Hatch Act.

The Cabinet department that has the largest budget is the Department of

Health and Human Services

Which Cabinet department is charged with overseeing the nationʹs national resources?

Interior

The classic conception of a bureaucracy was advanced by ________, who argued that the bureaucracy was a ʺrationalʺ way for a modern society to conduct its business.

Max Weber

The ________ Act was passed partly as a memorial to the memory of President James Garfield, who was assassinated in 1881.

Pendleton Civil Service

Which of these is the newest government agency? Drug Enforcement Agency, Social Security Administration, Department of Health and Human Services, Drug Interdiction Agency, Cyberspace Commission

Social Security Administration

The largest federal agency based on dollars spent is the

Social Security Administration.

________ save time and bring uniformity to complex organizations

Standard operating procedures

________ is a hiring and promotion system based on knowing the right people, working in an election campaign, making large political donations, and/or having the right connections to win jobs with the government.

The patronage system

In addition to a hierarchical authority structure, Max Weber argued that a bureaucracy involves

extensive rules, task specialization, the merit principle, hierarchical authority structure

true or false: As a percentage of Americaʹs total work force, federal government employment has been growing.

false

true or false: Bureaucrats are often fired for using too much administrative discretion.

false

true or false: Congress has found it easy to control the bureaucracy

false

true or false: Due to the merit system, it is easy to fire incompetent civil servants.

false

true or false: Government bureaucracies have been shown to be less efficient and effective than private bureaucracies.

false

true or false: Plum book appointees are often instrumental in changing and reforming their agencies

false

true or false: Regulatory commission members may not be drawn from the ranks of present or former employees of the regulated industry.

false

true or false: presidential appointees to bureaucracies must be recommended by the Office of Personnel Managementʹs ʺrule of three.ʺ

false

The Pendleton Act established the

federal civil service

Amtrak and the United States Postal Service are examples of

government corporations.

When Congress passes regulatory legislation for which it has established goals, it then

grants power to regulatory agencies to develop guidelines and enforce compliance

An ʺiron triangleʺ consists of

a bureaucratic agency, an interest group, and a congressional committee or subcommittee.

Bureaus in the federal bureaucracy are also known as all of the following EXCEPT an administration, an office, a department, a service.

a department.

Issue networks are

a growing participatory force in bureaucratic decision making whose membersʹ interest in issues is intellectual or emotional rather than material.

An independent regulatory agency is governed by

a small commission, usually with five to ten members, appointed by the president for fixed terms.

An ʺiron triangleʺ is also referred to as

a subgovernment.

The Weberian model depicts a bureaucracy as

a well-organized machine with plenty of working but hierarchical parts

The Hatch Act, passed in 1940, prohibits s federal civil service employees from

active participation in partisan politics.

The authority of administrative actors to select among various responses to a given problem is called

administrative discretion

According to Hugh Heclo, the plum book system of recruiting federal employees tends to result in the appointment of

administrators who do not stay long enough in their appointed position to be effective

Most regulatory agencies adopt specific ________ to carry out a policy, based on what they believe was the intended purpose of the specific policy at hand.

guidelines

Until 1887, the federal government made ________ regulatory policies and had no regulatory agencies.

almost no

Whatever strategy Congress permits a regulatory agency to use, all regulation contains the following elements EXCEPT A) some means of enforcing compliance. B) a grant of power and set of directions from Congress. C) a set of rules and guidelines by the regulatory agency itself. D) an incentive system to maximize performance by those regulated.

an incentive system to maximize performance by those regulated

A group of participants in bureaucratic policymaking with technical policy expertise and intellectual and emotional commitment to the issue is called

an issue network.

Proposals to reorganize the government in order to solve the problem of bureaucratic fragmentation

are often opposed by agencies not wanting to be submerged within a broader bureaucratic unit.

The diffusion of responsibility within the bureaucracy makes the coordination of policies

both time-consuming and difficult.

Most of the government is composed of

bureaucrats

The real work of a Cabinet department is done in the

bureaus

The Voting Rights Act of 1965 was successfully implemented thanks to its

clear goal, its clear methods to achieve the goal, and its lack of bureaucratic fragmentation.

Subgovernments promote

decentralized and fragmented policymaking

As a percentage of the total work force, federal government employment is

declining.

One proposed solution to the ʺproblemʺ of the proliferation of regulatory agencies and policies has been

deregulation

Standard operating procedures become frustrating to citizens and obstacles to action when they

do not directly apply to a particular situation

The Weberian theory of bureaucracies views them in the most positive light as

hierarchical

The main job of federal bureaucrats is to

implement and regulate government policies.

Creating new agencies, developing guidelines, and coordinating resources to achieve a policy goal is called

implementation.

The General Services Administration and the National Aeronautical and Space Administration are examples of

independent executive agencies.

The Weberian model views bureaucracies as

efficient and necessary

The Interstate Commerce Commission and the Federal Reserve Board are examples of

independent regulatory agencies.

The parts of the federal bureaucracy with responsibility for different sectors of the economy, and making and enforcing rules designed to protect the public interest, are the

independent regulatory agencies.

ʺIron trianglesʺ face challenges from a growing number of

issue networks

The Voting Rights Act of 1965 was successful for all of the following reasons EXCEPT its goal was clear; its implementation was straightforward; the authority of the implementors was plain; it was universally supported.

it was universally supported

Once a policy decision has been made, such as by passing a legislative act or issuing an executive order, the bureaucracy is responsible for

its implementation.

Patronage is a hiring and promotion system based on

knowing the right people

Vigorous disputes over the implementation of Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972 in regard to funding for womenʹs athletic programs arose primarily due to

lack of clarity in the original policy decision.

Each of the following is a criticism of regulation EXCEPT that it A) lowers prices. B) does not work. C) distorts market forces. D) is too complex. E) gives bureaucrats too much power.

lowers prices

Can the President rewrite statutes to make instructions clearer as to how policies are intended

no

Do Standard operating procedures reduce red tape

no

The rationale for the civil service rests on the desire to create a

nonpartisan government service and promotion on the basis of merit

Independent regulatory agencies have

powerful rule-making, dispute-settling, and enforcement authority.

The use of governmental authority to control or change some practice in the private sector is called

regulation

The use of government authority to control or change some practice in the private sector is known as

regulation.

Congress tries to control the bureaucracy through

rewriting legislation, influencing the appointment of agency heads, holding hearings.

Administrative discretion is greatest when

rules do not fit a case

Government corporations provide

services and charge for them.

When bureaucrats are asked to execute orders with which they do not agree,

slippage is likely to occur between policy decisions and performance.

Administrative personnel who exercise discretion, pay attention to routine, and deal directly with clients, are called

street-level bureaucrats

Those civil service employees who are in constant contact with the public (often a hostile one) and have considerable discretion are known as

street-level bureaucrats.

The federal civil service was created by

the Pendleton Act

The rationale for all civil service systems is based on

the merit principle

Until the late-nineteenth century, most government employees got their jobs through

the patronage system.

Executive orders are issued by

the president

A major problem for presidents and Congress in controlling bureaucracies is the existence of

ʺiron triangles.ʺ

As the oversight powers of Congress in regard to the bureaucracy have become more vigorous,

ʺiron trianglesʺ have weakened considerably.

A(n) ________ consists of an administrative agency, an interest group, and a congressional committee or subcommittee.

ʺiron triangleʺ

a legitimate criticism of the federal civil service is that

Firing incompetents is extremely difficult

There are roughly ________ civilian and military federal government employees

4,000,000

The Federal Aviation Administrationʹs protocol for for hijackings assumed that

A) the pilot would be able to radio air traffic controllers and alert them to the problem. B) the FAA would be able to pinpoint the aircraft involved. C) there would be enough time for the government to formulate a response. D) the hijackers would be motivated in part by a desire to stay alive.

________ is the authority of administrative actors to select among various responses to a given problem.

Administrative discretion

Each bureaucratic agency is created initially by

Congress.

The ________ employs about one-fourth of all federal civilian workers, more than any other department or agency.

Department of Defense

Deregulation has resulted, at least in part, in each of the following EXCEPT A) environmental damage. B) the proliferation of government agencies. C) competitive airline fares. D) an expensive bailout of the savings and loan industry. E) less government oversight in some key areas.

the proliferation of government agencies.

A major complaint of the Food and Drug Administration is

the shortage of personnel.

The plum book lists

top federal jobs available by Presidential appointment.

true or false: Ambassadorship appointments often go to large campaign contributors

true

true or false: Most presidents seek appointees with sympathy for similar policy positions

true

true or false: Once hired, civil servants are assigned a General Schedule ranging from GS-1 to GS-18.

true

true or false: Presidents often consider sex, region, and race in making plum book appointments.

true

true or false: Regulatory commission members are appointed by the president and confirmed by the Senate.

true

true or false: Regulatory commission members cannot be fired by the president.

true

true or false: Regulatory commissions consist of five to ten members.

true

true or false: The Office of Personnel Management has elaborate rules about hiring, promotion, and firing of civil servants.

true

true or false: The state and local governments have far more employees than the federal bureaucracy.

true

true or false: The top of the civil service is composed of about 9,000 members of the Senior Executive Service.

true

An obstacle to the successful implementation of public policy is

unclear policy goals and poorly designed policies.

In the case of Munn v. Illinois, decided in 1877, the United States Supreme Court

upheld the right of government to regulate the business operations of a firm

Section 844 of Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972

was vaguely written, eventually resulting in scores of court cases.

To limit bureaucratic discretion and make its instructions clearer, Congress can

write new and more detailed legislation