Deck 14: The Bureaucracy

Question 1

Senior executive service (SES) positions are

A) political appointments.
B) civil service positions.
C) congressionally appointed.
D) hybrids of political appointments and civil service positions.
E) congressionally appointed civil service positions.

Answer 1

D

Question 2

Which of the following statements about career civil servants in senior executive service positions is NOT true?

A) They can be moved from job to job.
B) They give up job security for higher pay.
C) They hold most of the top policy-related patronage positions.
D) They can be moved between agencies.
E) They are immune from firing except for misfeasance, nonfeasance, and malfeasance.

Answer 2

C

Question 3

Those workers who do the work of government but don't get a government paycheck are known as ________ bureaucrats.

A) silent
B) covert
C) stealth
D) shadow
E) All these answers are correct.

Answer 3

D

Question 4

Based on studies cited by public administration scholar Charles Goodsell, which of the following statements is correct?

A) Most government employees are very motivated and hard workers.
B) Most government employees are very unmotivated, lazy workers.
C) Most government employees are motivated by higher salaries.
D) Most government employees are motivated by shorter work hours.
E) Most government employees have lower levels of formal education than employees in the private sector.

Question 5

Before the establishment of the civil service system in 1883, what system of hiring was used to staff the federal bureaucracy?

A) Bureaucrats were hired permanently and remained in office until they died.
B) Congressional representatives rewarded their supporters with appointments.
C) The Supreme Court oversaw the staffing of the federal bureaucracy.
D) The president hired bureaucrats through the patronage system.
E) After election victory, political parties rewarded their supporters with federal bureaucratic posts.

Question 6

The civil service system created by the Pendleton Civil Service Act is guided by which hiring principle(s)?

A) open competition
B) political experience
C) competence
D) bureaucratic experience and political partisanship
E) open competition, competence, and political neutrality

Question 7

The salary range for white-collar federal civil service employees ranges from about

A) $10,500-$98,500.
B) $17,800-$129,500.
C) $22,300-$94,700.
D) $25,300-$187,600.
E) $27,100-$241,900.

Question 8

Which title of the 1964 Civil Rights Act prohibits federally-funded institutions from discriminating in educational opportunities on the basis of race, color, ethnicity, age, and disabilities that can be reasonably accommodated?

A) Title I
B) Title III
C) Title V
D) Title VI
E) Title VII

Question 9

All of the following are associated with the process in which the government contracts private business or organizations to provide public services EXCEPT

A) shadow bureaucrats.
B) contracting-out.
C) outsourcing.
D) the plum book.
E) privatizing.

Question 10

What factor or factors do political scientists use to distinguish among national bureaucrats?

A) how much they earn
B) how they are hired only
C) how they can be fired only
D) how long their term is
E) how they are hired, and how they can be fired

Question 11

What criterion determines a federal job's salary?

A) status
B) rank
C) title
D) location
E) area of responsibility

Question 12

The Pendleton Civil Service Act introduced a civil service system for the national government based on

A) cause.
B) merit.
C) need.
D) patronage.
E) clout.

Question 13

What is the biggest downside to holding a patronage position in the federal bureaucracy?

A) no access to the president
B) no real benefits
C) no chance of promotion
D) no job security
E) no opportunity to shape policy

Question 14

As compared to private-sector employees, all of the following statements about public servants are accurate EXCEPT that public servants

A) have higher levels of formal education.
B) must comply with more stringent codes of behavior.
C) are far less satisfied in their positions.
D) express a greater concern for public service.
E) tend to hold more professional jobs than all industries as a whole.

Question 15

According to Max Weber, bureaucracies possess which of the following features?

A) division of labor and specialization of job tasks
B) hiring systems based on worker competency
C) hierarchy with a vertical chain of command
D) standard operating procedures
E) All these answers are correct.

Question 16

A bureaucracy that follows Weber's ideal bureaucratic structure has all of the following characteristics, EXCEPT

A) division of labor.
B) hiring systems based on worker competency.
C) hierarchy with a vertical chain of command.
D) standard operating procedures.
E) all workers rotate through all tasks.

Question 17

What is the name given to the book, published every four years, that lists the federal positions available through presidential patronage?

A) the book of civil service
B) the plum book
C) the peach book
D) the jobs book
E) the patronage book

Question 18

Which title of the 1964 Civil Rights Act prohibits discrimination in personnel practices based on race, color, ethnicity, age, and disabilities that can be reasonably accommodated?

A) Title I
B) Title III
C) Title V
D) Title VI
E) Title VII

Question 19

The assassination of which president by an unsuccessful seeker of a patronage position spurred passage of the Pendleton Civil Service Act in 1883?

A) President Ulysses S. Grant
B) President Andrew Johnson
C) President RutherfordB. Hayes
D) President James Garfield
E) President Chester Arthur

Question 20

On the whole, the interaction between Titles VI, VII, and IX has changed the demographics of the bureaucracy, fostering a movement toward

A) merit-based civil service.
B) shadow bureaucracy.
C) representative bureaucracy.
D) independent administrative agencies.
E) sunshine laws.

Question 21

The size of the federal bureaucracy began to shrink around

A) 1940.
B) 1955.
C) 1960.
D) 1965.
E) 1995.

Question 22

Which of the following BEST describes the business of an independent regulatory commission?

A) the selling of services in order to make a profit
B) development of standards for specific industries and businesses
C) responsibility for broadly defined policy areas
D) accountability for a narrowly defined function
E) researching policy areas, and reporting to the relevant cabinet agency

Question 23

The Civil Service Reform Act of 1978 created or supported the creation of all these agencies EXCEPT

A) the Civil Service Commission (CSC).
B) the Office of Personnel Management (OPM).
C) the Federal Labor Relations Authority (FLRA).
D) the Merit System Protection Board (MSPB).
E) the Senior Executive Service (AFGE).

Question 24

Which of the following federal agencies has the highest percentage of union members?

A) State Department
B) Department of the Treasury
C) U.S. Postal Service
D) National Park Service
E) Department of Defense

Question 25

Which of the following was the first independent regulatory commission established by the federal government?

A) Interstate Commerce Commission
B) Food and Drug Administration
C) Consumer Product Safety Commission
D) General Services Administration
E) Office of Personnel Management

Question 26

Federal employees can be fired for poor work quality, or

A) belligerence.
B) recalcitrance.
C) misfeasance.
D) malfeasance.
E) nonfeasance.

Question 27

According to political scientists and the textbook, how many different categories of executive branch organizations are there?

A) three
B) four
C) five
D) six
E) seven

Question 28

The process by which the federal government shifts greater responsibility to state and local governments, thereby putting the implementation of national policy in the hands of state and local bureaucrats, is known as

A) outsourcing.
B) government contracting.
C) preemption.
D) devolution.
E) the shadow bureaucracy.

Question 29

The first two cabinet departments were

A) Interior and Defense.
B) Interior and Treasury.
C) Defense and State.
D) State and Treasury.
E) Treasury and Defense.

Question 30

In which of the following five-year periods did the size of the federal bureaucracy grow the MOST?

A) 1940-1945
B) 1945-1950
C) 1955-1960
D) 1980-1985
E) 2000-2005

Question 31

Which president proposed the civil service reforms that led to passage of the Civil Service Reform Act of 1978?

A) Lyndon Johnson
B) Richard Nixon
C) Gerald Ford
D) Jimmy Carter
E) Ronald Reagan

Question 32

Which department currently has the second-largest budget?

A) Defense
B) Interior
C) Health and Human Services
D) Treasury
E) Labor

Question 33

All of the following are considered independent administrative agencies EXCEPT

A) the Smithsonian Institution.
B) the National Science Foundation.
C) the Product Safety Commission.
D) the General Services Administration.
E) the Office of Personnel Management.

Question 34

Which of the following is the newest of the national government's 15 federal departments?

A) Department of Energy
B) Department of Education
C) Department of Housing and Urban Development
D) Department of Homeland Security
E) Department of Veterans Affairs

Question 35

Which department currently has the largest budget?

A) Defense
B) Interior
C) Health and Human Services
D) Treasury
E) Labor

Question 36

What title is given to the top political appointee who heads each of the national government's 15 departments?

A) director
B) secretary
C) director-general
D) general secretary
E) deputy secretary

Question 37

Which of the following statements about the boards of independent regulatory commissions is true?

A) The boards of independent regulatory agencies are loyal to presidential preferences.
B) Independent regulatory agencies are under the direction of bipartisan boards.
C) To reduce undue influence, board members of independent regulatory agencies are appointed to life terms.
D) Board members are usually nominated from the career bureaucrats within the agency and approved by the president.
E) Because of their independence, the boards of independent regulatory commissions do not need congressional support for survival.

Question 38

Which of the following rights is denied to national civil servant unions?

A) the right to bargain for improved training opportunities
B) the right to strike
C) the right to bargain for enhanced due process protections in disciplinary matters
D) the right to negotiate certain aspects of work conditions
E) the right to strike and to negotiate salaries and work hours

Question 39

Federal employees can be fired for not doing their work, or

A) incompetence.
B) recalcitrance.
C) misfeasance.
D) malfeasance.
E) nonfeasance.

Question 40

Federal employees can be fired for violating rules or regulations that guide their work, or

A) incompetence.
B) recalcitrance.
C) misfeasance.
D) malfeasance.
E) nonfeasance.

Question 41

Which of the following open up government functions and documents to the public, ensuring transparency and public access to decision making?

A) authorization laws
B) executive orders
C) appropriations laws
D) sunshine laws
E) sunset clauses

Question 42

Under what authority do bureaucrats have the power to use their expertise and judgment to implement public policy?

A) appropriations laws
B) authorization laws
C) administrative discretion
D) administrative rule making
E) administrative adjudication

Question 43

Which act of Congress, passed in 1976, requires most multi-headed national agencies to conduct open, public meetings?

A) Administrative Procedure Act
B) Freedom of Information Act
C) Government in the Sunshine Act
D) Hatch Act
E) E-Government Act

Question 44

Which of the following is expected to make enough money to cover its own costs?

A) independent regulatory commission
B) cabinet department
C) independent administrative agency
D) Executive Office of the President
E) government corporation

Question 45

Which of the following is a part of the federal bureaucracy that primarily serves the legislative branch?

A) General Accountability Office
B) Office of Management and Budget
C) Council of Economic Advisors
D) Office of Government Ethics
E) General Services Administration

Question 46

Which piece of legislation established the Office of Government Ethics (OGE), which is charged with preventing bureaucratic conflicts of interest?

A) Ethics in Government Act
B) Administrative Procedure Act
C) Freedom of Information Act
D) Sunshine Act
E) E-Government Act

Question 47

According to the politics-administration dichotomy, who implements public policy?

A) politically neutral bureaucrats
B) congressionally nominated bureaucrats
C) presidentially nominated bureaucrats
D) partisan bureaucrats
E) elected politicians

Question 48

Which of the following is the second stage in the public policy cycle?

A) agenda setting
B) resource allocation
C) policy formulation
D) policy approval
E) policy implementation

Question 49

What type of clause forces the expiration of a program or policy after a specified number of years without congressional reauthorization?

A) sunshine clause
B) exit clause
C) sunset clause
D) finite clause
E) temporary clause

Question 50

Which of the following is NOT a way in which Congress encourages bureaucratic accountability?

A) by making rulings as to whether agency policies comply with the Fifth and Fourteenth Amendments
B) by approving the legislation that creates, regulates, and funds bureaucracies
C) through Senate confirmation of top bureaucrats
D) thorough legislative oversight of agency policies
E) by investigating the concerns of citizens, media, or interest groups regarding agency policy implementation

Question 51

The legal means to monitor bureaucrats' work and hold them accountable is possessed by

A) the media and private citizens.
B) special-interest groups.
C) Congress.
D) the president.
E) Congress, the president, and the federal judiciary.

Question 52

Which of the following mechanisms is used by bureaucrats to determine if their rules have been broken and to impose penalties on violators?

A) appropriations laws
B) authorization laws
C) administrative discretion
D) administrative rule making
E) administrative adjudication

Question 53

According to research, all of the following are important characteristics of the best-performing bureaucracies, EXCEPT

A) low levels of administrative discretion.
B) clear language in the authorizing legislation.
C) easily measured goals.
D) high levels of support from Congress.
E) high levels of support from the public.

Question 54

Which of the following is the fifth stage in the public policy cycle?

A) agenda setting
B) resource allocation
C) policy formulation
D) policy approval
E) policy implementation

Question 55

Which piece of legislation provided protection to whistle-blowers, employees who disclose government misconduct, waste, or abuses of authority?

A) Ethics in Government Act
B) Inspector General Act
C) Freedom of Information Act
D) Sunshine Act
E) Civil Service Reform Act

Question 56

Which of the following was one of the first laws designed to enhance federal bureaucratic accountability to the people?

A) Federal Register
B) Administrative Procedure Act
C) Consumer Product Safety Act
D) Sunshine Act
E) American Recovery and Reinvestment Act

Question 57

Which of the following refers to laws that provide plans of action to address societal concerns and identify the executive units that will put them into effect?

A) appropriation laws
B) dispensation bills
C) authorization laws
D) administrative discretions
E) administrative adjudications

Question 58

Which of the following is the fourth stage in the public policy cycle?
A. agenda setting
B. policy approval
C. policy formulation
D. resource allocation
E. policy implementation

Question 59

Which of the following is NOT a part of the agenda-setting stage of the public policy cycle?

A) Elected officials place issues on their agendas.
B) Bureaucrats may work to create issue networks.
C) Elected officials formulate a policy.
D) Elected officials establish a plan.
E) All of these are part of the agenda-setting stage.

Question 60

According to political scientists, how many stages are there in the public policy cycle?

A) three
B) four
C) five
D) six
E) seven

Question 61

Explain the role of shadow bureaucrats in the exercise of modern government.

Question 62

Describe the purpose and features of the E-Government Act of 2002.

Question 63

Discuss the purpose and structure of government corporations.

Question 64

According to research by political scientist Charles Goodsell, "the federal government achieves ___________ degree of satisfaction for its services as corporate America does for its products."

A) a far lower
B) a slight lower
C) essentially the same
D) a slightly higher
E) a much higher

Question 65

Who are inspectors general, and what is their function?

Question 66

Who are SES bureaucrats, and how are they appointed to office?

Question 67

Outline the process of administrative rule-making, and provide an example of its use.

Question 68

Identify the five categories of executive branch organizations used by political scientists.

Question 69

Define bureaucrats and identify their key functions and roles.

Question 70

Outline the development of the merit-based civil service system.

Question 71

Explain the rationale behind the government's contracting-out process.