Deck 13: The Bureaucracy

Question 1

Despite the Great Society programs directed at ending poverty, many antipoverty policies failed due to a lack of expertise on the complexities of how best to deal with the problem.

Answer 1

True

Question 2

When it comes to expertise in a policy area, most bureaucrats have less knowledge than the average member of Congress or political appointee.

Answer 2

False

Question 3

One of the reasons regulations are controversial is because they require the bureaucracy to choose between policy goals that are often incompatible.

Answer 3

True

Question 4

NASA launching the successful Mars Rover is an example of the principal-agent game.

Question 5

Civil service regulations are the rules that govern the hiring and firing of federal employees.

Question 6

Americans support smaller government in the abstract but do not support cuts to the large programs that would be necessary to shrink the federal budget and bureaucracy.

Question 7

The desire to have a better paying job outside of government can sometimes alter the decision-making process for bureaucrats who seek to earn the favor of interest groups or corporations.

Question 8

Americans are more likely to complain about specific parts of the bureaucracy than about government in general.

Question 9

The federal bureaucracy employs millions of people.

Question 10

Most Republicans opposed the New Deal because they thought that government intervention threatened the system of racial segregation in place in the South.

Question 11

The problem of control is not difficult to fix as long as the bureaucracy is well stocked with policy experts instead of politicians and political appointees.

Question 12

Political parties liked the spoils system because it gave people a strong reason to work on their behalf to gain power.

Question 13

Because of budget maximizers, most government agencies have seen consistent growth in their budgets.

Question 14

Under the Hatch Act, federal employees cannot engage in organized political activities, which include voting and contributing money to candidates.

Question 15

In most cases, bureaucrats have discretion in how they implement policies due to the lack of specific guidelines from Congress.

Question 16

In recent years, Republicans have managed to reduce the size of the federal government through reductions in the federal budget and the elimination of numerous federal programs.

Question 17

The term "budget maximizing" refers to bureaucrats who seek additional funding by spending more than they are originally given to demonstrate the need for more money.

Question 18

Early Americans were suspicious of the federal bureaucracy, in part because of their experience with England before the Revolutionary War.

Question 19

The Department of Homeland Security is an example of a "turkey farm" because it is an agency with strong executive oversight.

Question 20

The main difference between fire alarm oversight and police patrol oversight is whether a legislator actively monitors a bureaucracy or simply responds to problems.

Question 21

Civil servants are employees of the federal government who:

A) are appointed to their positions by their member of Congress.
B) serve at the pleasure of the president.
C) are hired on the basis of their qualifications.
D) cannot be fired except in circumstances of criminal activity.
E) are selected by state legislatures.

Question 22

During the rule-making process, bureaucrats often consider the views of legislators for all of the following reasons EXCEPT:

A) Congress can remove their policy-making power by changing the underlying law.
B) Congress can change the budget of an agency if it so chooses.
C) Congress can step in and change things during the notice and comment procedure.
D) Congress controls the power to appoint bureaucratic leaders and dictate overall missions for agencies.
E) bureaucrats need congressional support to get larger budgets and accomplish more important tasks.

Question 23

Which of the following is the most accurate statement regarding the bureaucracy?

A) Americans rarely deal with the bureaucracy.
B) The bureaucracy handles programs such as Social Security but has no say over things like food safety.
C) Regulation of cell phones is outside of the reach of the bureaucracy.
D) Americans regularly encounter the work of the bureaucracy as part of their
Everyday lives.
E) The bureaucracy rarely does anything efficiently.

Question 24

Why is the bureaucracy also known as the "administrative state"?

A) It is the part of government that most Americans know something about.
B) It is primarily staffed by permanent employees known as civil servants.
C) The president is the chief administrator over the bureaucracy.
D) Its primary responsibility is putting government policies into practice on a daily basis.
E) Its primary responsibility is creating government policies.

Question 25

Any situation in which one person delegates responsibility to another is an example of:

A) red tape.
B) rule making.
C) policy implementation.
D) a principal-agent game.
E) a standard operating procedure.

Question 26

Before any new regulation can take effect, it must first:

A) be reviewed by someone in the Executive Office of the President.
B) be approved by Congress.
C) be published in the Federal Register to notify the public.
D) be approved by the president.
E) be published on federal government Web pages.

Question 27

One of the most successful parts of the American bureaucracy, responsible for the launch of the Mars Rover, is:

A) the Department of State.
B) NASA.
C) Office of Personnel Management.
D) the Department of Homeland Security.
E) Office of Management and Budget.

Question 28

Any unnecessarily complex set of procedures in the bureaucracy is called:

A) a regulation.
B) rule making.
C) a policy position.
D) red tape.
E) an unavoidable problem.

Question 29

Which of the following is NOT part of the public process for citizens to respond to proposed regulations?

A) reading the proposed regulation in the Federal Register
B) the notice and comment procedure
C) lobbying members of Congress to get the regulation revised
D) asking a federal judge to stop the proposed regulation before it goes into effect
E) offering a different version of the rule for consideration by the agency

Question 30

About how many federal regulations are issued each year?

A) 10
B) 500
C) 4,000
D) 35,000
E) more than a million

Question 31

Elected officials are challenged in maintaining control over the bureaucracy due to:

A) the officials' lack of expertise relative to the bureaucrats.
B) the conflict that arises between the president and Congress in trying to control the bureaucracy.
C) the emphasis on neutral competence among civil servants.
D) the weak tools for controlling the bureaucracy that are available to Congress and the president.
E) the media's systematic bias in favor of bureaucrats.

Question 32

Your manager at work delegates a task to you but in doing so she runs the risk that you may do what you want rather than what she wants. This is an example of what concept?

A) red tape
B) rule making
C) policy implementation
D) a principal-agent game
E) a standard operating procedure

Question 33

Which of the following is NOT a task of federal bureaucrats?

A) rule making
B) procurement
C) lawmaking
D) service provision
E) research and development

Question 34

Government rules that influence the behavior of individuals and groups are known as:

A) platforms.
B) procurements.
C) policy positions.
D) regulations.
E) incentives.

Question 35

The person who is nominally in charge of the bureaucracy is:

A) the chief justice of the Supreme Court.
B) the president.
C) the Speaker of the House.
D) the administrator-general.
E) the head of the chiefs of staff.

Question 36

Which of the following is the best definition of the bureaucracy?

A) the group of employees who are responsible for implementing government policy
B) the part of the federal government responsible for making government policy
C) the group of civil servants who are permanent government employees
D) the political appointees who help the president administer the day-to-day operation of government
E) the part of the federal government responsible for interpreting government policy

Question 37

A street-level bureaucrat is someone who:

A) is employed on the basis of expertise.
B) is in charge of supervising actions taken by people outside of government.
C) directly provides services to Americans.
D) is the president's eyes and ears in the bureaucracy.
E) works solely on transportation issues.

Question 38

The use of standard operating procedures in bureaucracies comes from:

A) the complexity of many tasks and the desire by elected officials to limit
Bureaucrat discretion.
B) the desire by elected officials to give bureaucrats more power over the way laws
Are implemented.
C) a lack of expertise in the bureaucracy.
D) disagreements between Congress and the president that leave bureaucrats uncertain.
E) the input of state officials on public policies.

Question 39

Any government employee who is selected by an elected official is known as:

A) a political appointee.
B) a civil servant.
C) a bureaucrat.
D) a politician.
E) a manager.

Question 40

The store of knowledge, personnel, and institutions for implementing policy is called:

A) the bureaucracy.
B) state capacity.
C) a principal-agent game.
D) regulatory competence.
E) rule making.

Question 41

The federal civil service was created by:

A) the Reagan Revolution.
B) Andrew Jackson's reforms.
C) the Great Society.
D) the New Deal.
E) the Pendleton Act.

Question 42

What change characterized the Reagan Revolution's impact on the bureaucracy?

A) an increase in social programs and a decrease in military spending
B) the elimination of many government programs
C) the relative absence of programs and regulations that impacted society
D) the elimination of few programs and a federal budget that steadily increased
E) significant reductions in the federal budget

Question 43

Why was the federal government small in early American history?

A) It was a function of the ineptitude of the government under the Articles of Confederation.
B) Americans disliked having government officials who were not elected.
C) No one wanted to live in Washington, D.C.
D) The Constitution explicitly limited powers of the federal bureaucracy.
E) Most Americans did not want to work for the federal government.

Question 44

Which of the following was a significant expansion of government action into a new policy area during the Great Society?

A) the first attempts at regulating food and drugs
B) the establishment of Social Security
C) government involvement in guaranteeing civil rights
D) expanded regulation of financial reporting requirements for corporations
E) the creation of the civil service system

Question 45

From the early 1800s until the Civil War, ________ in the size of government occurred largely because of ________.

A) growth; fundamental changes in what government did
B) growth; the increased size of the United States
C) stability; fundamental changes in what government did
D) stability; the increased size of the United States
E) stability; stability in the population of the United States

Question 46

When was the spoils system first used on a large scale to reward campaign supporters?

A) during the New Deal
B) after the Reagan Revolution
C) during the Progressive movement
D) after the election of Andrew Jackson
E) during the Great Society

Question 47

The New Deal reforms included a large transfer of power to ________ and ________.

A) Congress; the president
B) bureaucrats; the president
C) the president; state governors
D) bureaucrats; state governors
E) Congress; state governors

Question 48

Which of the following was NOT a period in which the federal bureaucracy underwent substantial growth?

A) 1840s
B) late 1890s
C) early 1900s
D) 1930s
E) 1960s

Question 49

What was the principal bureaucratic change that occurred during the New Deal?

A) The range of policy areas in which the government intervened expanded.
B) An independent bureaucracy was created.
C) The number and size of government agencies decreased.
D) Limits on the growth of government were established.
E) States became more powerful in developing social policy.

Question 50

Which of the following policies was included in Lyndon Johnson's Great Society?

A) term limits on members of Congress
B) the creation of Social Security
C) the Pendleton Act
D) the creation of the civil service
E) health care for seniors

Question 51

Regulatory capture involves situations in which:

A) legislators take away bureaucratic discretion through more specific laws.
B) bureaucrats make decisions without reference to interest groups, elected officials, or even their own policy views.
C) a bureaucracy is responsive to the interests of the group or corporation that it is supposed to regulate.
D) bureaucrats act independently of the influence of either legislators or the president.
E) a political party staffs a bureaucracy entirely with its supporters.

Question 52

Which of the following was a significant change experienced by the bureaucracy during the Progressive Era?

A) increased government intervention in social policy, especially in areas
Related to education
B) increased reliance on the spoils system for federal and state jobs
C) a move away from using political criteria for choosing most federal employees
D) decreased government intervention in the economy
E) decreased availability of federal government jobs

Question 53

Which of the following departments was NOT part of the bureaucracy in early American history?

A) Department of the Treasury
B) Department of War
C) Department of Education
D) postmaster general
E) Department of State

Question 54

The group of government programs put in place by Franklin Roosevelt in response to the Great Depression was known as the:

A) Great Society.
B) New Deal.
C) Fair Deal.
D) Progressive movement.
E) Pendleton Act.

Question 55

Which of the following was NOT a way that the federal bureaucracy expanded its power and reach during the Progressive Era?

A) the creation of Social Security
B) the Sherman Antitrust Act
C) the Pure Food and Drug Act
D) the creation of several environmental conservation efforts
E) the expansion of the Interstate Commerce Commission

Question 56

While the spoils system ________, its principal drawback was that ________.

A) strengthened political parties; it made government responsible to the mass public
B) strengthened political parties; appointees often lacked experience
C) helped make government responsible to the mass public; appointees often
Lacked experience
D) helped make government responsible to the mass public; it strengthened political parties
E) strengthened political parties; states had too much control over the federal government

Question 57

Which of the following statements best describes the outcome of regulatory capture?

A) Congress maintains more control over the implementation of policies.
B) The president maintains more control over the implementation of policies.
C) Lobbyists and interest groups are blocked from having any control over the implementation of policies.
D) A small group of individuals or corporations can have tremendous influence over the implementation of policies.
E) Implementing policies becomes a more open process for the public.

Question 58

How did the New Deal change the role of the federal government in the lives of individuals?

A) It created a legal system that allowed for citizens to appeal decisions government made in their lives.
B) It moved from broad-based regulations to delivering a wide range of benefits
Directly to individuals.
C) It gave more control of policies to individual members of Congress.
D) It gave more power to state and local officials.
E) It allowed citizens to opt out of new federal programs.

Question 59

If a group opposes a regulation proposed by a bureaucratic agency, which of the following is NOT an option available to that group?

A) The group can offer a different procedure during the notice and comment period.
B) The group can seek to replace the civil servants in charge of developing the regulations.
C) The group can appeal to Congress to intervene on their behalf.
D) The group can send their objections to the agency during the notice and comment period.
E) The group can appeal to the president to intervene on their behalf.

Question 60

Which of the following was NOT a task performed by the bureaucracy in early American history?

A) delivery of mail
B) regulation of food and water
C) taxes on imports
D) providing for national defense
E) taxes on exports

Question 61

The Federal Reserve is an example of a(n):

A) cabinet department.
B) independent agency.
C) private company.
D) interest group.
E) street-level bureau.

Question 62

Which of the following is NOT a characteristic of an independent agency?

A) It is not subordinate to one of the executive departments.
B) It is below the executive departments in the federal hierarchy.
C) It has a clear, specialized function.
D) It is not part of an executive department.
E) It is not officially a part of the federal government.

Question 63

Which of the following is NOT one of the criteria used to select civil service employees?

A) specific educational requirements
B) experience of candidates for higher-level jobs
C) seniority
D) membership in the civil employees union
E) performance on a set of civil services tests

Question 64

Which is NOT a tactic available to an agency that wants to avoid political control?

A) It can exploit disagreements between the president and Congress over what the agency should do.
B) It can use its reputation for expertise to fend off attempts at political control.
C) It can appeal to groups in society who benefit from the agency for political support.
D) It can try to reorganize as an independent agency.
E) It can maintain support from at least one branch of government.

Question 65

Which of the following during the Obama administration led to a sizable increase in federal regulation?

A) the Pure Food and Drink Act
B) Obamacare health reforms
C) No Child Left Behind
D) the New Deal
E) the Great Society

Question 66

Since 1968, the size of the federal budget has ________; as a percentage of gross domestic product over that time, government spending has ________.

A) increased; stayed about the same
B) increased; increased
C) stayed about the same; stayed about the same
D) stayed about the same; increased
E) increased; decreased

Question 67

The largest cabinet departments are typically involved in matters related to which policy area?

A) security and defense
B) education and welfare
C) economics and the budget
D) labor and commerce
E) diplomacy

Question 68

A budget maximizer is a:

A) bureaucrat who spends as much of the budget as possible each year.
B) politician who wants to grow the size of the federal budget.
C) legislator who seeks to divert extra funds to bureaucratic organizations the
Legislator likes.
D) bureaucrat who seeks additional funding for an agency whether or not it needs it.
E) politician who seeks as much pork-barrel legislation as possible.

Question 69

A reduction in force (RIF) decreases the size of the federal workforce by:

A) allowing individuals to be removed from their jobs for reasons other than cause.
B) eliminating entire departments and agencies.
C) prohibiting the replacement of employees who leave or retire voluntarily.
D) creating an early retirement program for older individuals who will not be replaced.
E) eliminating half of a particular agency's workforce.

Question 70

Why is it that some tasks are handled by independent agencies even when they might conceivably fall under the scope of an executive department?

A) Congress may create an independent agency because presidents have less control over them than executive agencies.
B) Congress prefers independent agencies to executive departments because they have more control over the people who run them.
C) Independent agencies usually have more policy experts than executive departments.
D) Congress does not recognize the potential policy overlap between the independent agency and the executive department until after they have established it.
E) Independent agencies receive more federal funds to carry out their programs.

Question 71

Which of the following programs is the public LEAST in favor of cutting?

A) space program
B) welfare
C) defense
D) Social Security
E) transportation

Question 72

Which of the following policies were NOT enacted during the George W. Bush presidency?

A) No Child Left Behind education reforms
B) the Sarbanes-Oxley Act
C) the Affordable Care Act
D) Social Security reform
E) the Medicare prescription drug benefit

Question 73

What is the Office of Management and Budget primarily responsible for?

A) overseeing procurement of services for the federal government
B) monitoring the flow of money throughout the economy
C) helping the president monitor federal budget expenditures and proposals
D) investigating the bureaucracy on behalf of Congress
E) coordinating procurement of services for both the federal and state governments

Question 74

Which of the following groups of employees is the largest part of the federal workforce?

A) farming, fishing, and forestry
B) transportation
C) management, business, and financial
D) maintenance
E) service

Question 75

What is the largest government agency?

A) Department of Defense
B) Department of Education
C) General Services Administration
D) Executive Office of the President
E) Department of Homeland Security

Question 76

How has the federal budget changed since the 1970s?

A) It has decreased.
B) It has increased through the 1980s and decreased since.
C) It has stayed generally the same.
D) It has increased.
E) We do not have any data on the federal budget before 1992.

Question 77

Why does the president have limited control over the Federal Reserve compared to executive departments like the Department of Treasury?

A) Appointees serve for fourteen years-longer than the president serves.
B) It is a body that is controlled exclusively by Congress.
C) There is no process for removing appointees to that body.
D) Appointees serve lifetime terms.
E) The president must consult with the Supreme Court before making appointments.

Question 78

People in favor of budget maximizers within the federal bureaucracy argue that they:

A) should be placed in independent agencies so they are not under political control.
B) lead to more red tape and standard operating procedures.
C) cause the federal budget to naturally grow over time.
D) only work for the federal government because of the civil service protections.
E) came about during the Progressive Era.

Question 79

John works for the Department of Defense. John pushes for an increase in the funds available to his area even though they do not really need it in the upcoming year. John is an example of a(n):

A) street-level bureaucrat.
B) independent agent.
C) budget maximizer.
D) political appointee.
E) independent agent

Question 80

A main consequence of civil service regulations is:

A) a decrease in the importance of expertise in selecting employees.
B) the creation of clear and easy rules for dismissing employees.
C) significant job security for civil servants.
D) that the political affiliations of appointees are highlighted more so than in the past.
E) that college degrees are required of all applicants.