27 Sep The Federal Bureaucracy

The Federal Bureaucracy

Administering the Government

Bureaucratic Accountability

Bureaucratic Accountability Defined

The degree to which bureaucrats are held accountable for the power they exercise-Patterson, 2008.

Accountability through the Presidency, Congress, & the Courts

Below you will be able to explore accountability measures of bureaucracy. Click on the accordion to expand each topic.

Presidency 

The bureaucracy can be broadly influenced by the president. No president can unilaterally eliminate an agency, its funding, and programs (Patterson, 2008). Additionally, indifferent opinions of the president toward career civil servants risk losing their support and expertise in the development and implementation of presidential policy objectives. The president can: apply management tools developed out of executive leadership concepts: These tools include: reorganization, presidential appointments, and the executive budget. Examples: Reorganization; Former President, George W. Bush suggested reorganization following the terrorist attacks on the World Trade Center and the Pentagon. Breakdowns were revealed in the FBI and CIA. Congress agreed to the reorganization and the creation of the Department of Homeland Security. Presidential Appointments; The president relies on presidential appointees to follow through on directives. Presidential appointee power is greater in agencies where wide latitude exists in decision-making (Patterson, 2008). For example: James Miller III, President Reagan’s appointee to chair of the Federal Trade Commission and a strong-willed economist dropped one-fourth of its pending cases against business firms during the time of high concern for consumer protection policy. The Executive Budget; Presidents rely heavily on the Executive Office of the President, (EOP) when faced with difficulty controlling the bureaucracy. Within the EOP is the Office of Management and Budget, (OMB). The OMB has substantial influence on areas of funding, programs, and regulations in agencies. No major regulation or legislation proposal to Congress can occur without OMB verification.

Congress 

Congress has the most powerful means of influencing bureaucracy; funding. Congress has the power to authorize and fund programs. All agencies depend on congress for their existence, authority, programs, and funding. 

Courts 

Judiciary influence on agencies is not as direct as elected branches. However, courts do ensure bureaucracy compliance with directives that come from Congress. Judges can order agencies to change its application of the law if improperly carried out. “The judiciary promotes bureaucratic accountability primarily by encouraging administrators to act responsibly in their dealings with the public and by protecting individuals from the bureaucracy’s worst abuses (Patterson, 2008). For example: In 1999, African American farmers demonstrated that the Department of Agriculture had systemically favored white farmers in granting federal loans. As a result, the federal courts approved a settlement in favor of African Americans.