Federal Bureaucracy

Monetary Policy

Non-political, handling inflation, unemployment, interest rates, cashflow

Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation

Overview: The Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) is an independent agency of the federal government responsible for insuring deposits made by individuals and companies in banks and other thrift institutions. The FDIC insures deposits up to $250,000.

administrative discretion

flexible exercising of judgment and decision making allowed to public administrators. Regulatory agencies have the power to exercise this type of discretion in their day-to-day activities, and there have been cases where regulatory agencies have abused this power.

federal register

official journal of the federal government of the United States that contains government agency rules, proposed rules, and public notices.

independent agencies

outside of the cabinet departments, most of these agencies are free from presidential control and serve a regulatory purpose or compete with private corporations (The Fed, EPA, Consumer Product Safety Commission, NASA)

The Federal Reserve

Goals: maximizing employment, stabilizing prices, and moderating long-term interest rates. The first two objectives are sometimes referred to as the Federal Reserve's dual mandate. Its duties have expanded over the years, and as of 2009 also include supervising and regulating banks, maintaining the stability of the financial system and providing financial services to depository institutions, the U.S. government, and foreign official institutions.

Security Exchange Commission

It holds primary responsibility for enforcing the federal securities laws, proposing securities rules, and regulating the securities industry, the nation's stock and options exchanges, and other activities and organizations, including the electronic securities markets in the United States.

15 Cabinet Departments

Secretary of State Department Secretary of Treasury Department Secretary of Defense Department Attorney General of Justice Department Secretary of Interior Department Secretary of Agriculture Department Secretary of Commerce Department Secretary of Labor Department Secretary of Health and Human Services Department Secretary of Housing and Urban Development Department Secretary of Transportation Department Secretary of Energy Department Secretary of Education Department Secretary of Veterans Affairs Department Secretary of Homeland Security Department

The hatch act

The 1939 Act forbade the intimidation or bribery of voters and restricts political campaign activities by federal employees. It prohibits using any public funds designated for relief or public works for electoral purposes. It forbade officials paid with federal funds from using promises of jobs, promotion, financial assistance, contracts, or any other benefit to coerce campaign contributions or political support.

Office of Personnel management

The OPM is partially responsible for maintaining the appearance of independence and neutrality in the Administrative Law System.

rule adjudication

bureaucratic agencies try those in violation of their rules