Deck 14: Bureaucracy in a Democracy

Question 1

ARPANET was a(n)

A)Cold War-era network for sharing national security information between the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA), Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), and National Security Agency (NSA).
B)independent agency of the federal government during the 1990s that regulated and taxed internet service providers (ISPs).
C)program managed by the U.S.Naval Research Laboratory (NRL) in the 1950s, which intended to launch the first artificial satellite into Earth's orbit.
D)decentralized, highly redundant communications network created by the federal government in the 1950s and 1960s.

Answer 1

D

Question 2

Proposed rules to implement a law are

A)open to comment by anyone who wishes to weigh in.
B)open to comment only by members of Congress.
C)open to comment only by other members of the federal bureaucracy.
D)not open to comment by anyone.

Answer 2

A

Question 3

What is a government corporation?

A)Each department in the executive branch is legally registered as a corporation.
B)It is an agency that performs and charges for services usually provided by the private sector.
C)It is a private company, publicly traded, whose sole investor is the federal government.
D)It is a government agency that is charged by Congress to make a profit.

Answer 3

B

Question 4

Approximately ________ percent of the nation's employed workforce is an employee of a state or local government.

A)1
B)4
C)14
D)34

Question 5

The ultimate repeal of the Obama administration's Clean Power Plan demonstrates the fragility of government by

A)congressional legislation, compared to government by judicial decisions.
B)judicial decisions, compared to government by congressional legislation.
C)bureaucratic rule making, compared to government by congressional legislation.
D)congressional legislation, compared to government by bureaucratic rule making.

Question 6

The internet was created by

A)Apple.
B)International Business Machines (IBM).
C)the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA).
D)the U.S.Department of Defense.

Question 7

Public bureaucracies are powerful because

A)they are not subject to control by the president or Congress.
B)their actions cannot be overturned or challenged by courts.
C)they have the power of both "the purse" and "the sword."
D)legislatures, chief executives, and the people delegate vast power to them to make sure a particular job is done.

Question 8

The Civil Service Act of 1883 attempted to pattern government hiring after practices found in

A)business.
B)the Catholic church.
C)Congress.
D)local government.

Question 9

Why did the length of time required to develop an administrative rule grow from an average of 15 months to an average of more than 35 months over the last four decades?

A)The federal government is now required to allow the public to vote on all new rules during either a midterm congressional or presidential election.
B)The federal government must now consult all 50 state governments before a rule can be implemented.
C)The number of employees working in the federal government has grown dramatically, thereby increasing the number of people who must provide feedback on all new rules.
D)There are now new procedures requiring more public notice, more public hearings, more cost-benefit analysis, and stronger legal obligations to prepare "environmental impact statements."

Question 10

________ is when bureaucrats attempt to translate laws into specific rules and actions.

A)Adjudication
B)Regulation
C)Deregulation
D)Implementation

Question 11

Which of the following is an independent agency?

A)U.S.Postal Service
B)Department of Agriculture
C)Environmental Protection Agency
D)Forest Service

Question 12

Which of the following executive agencies was created by Congress in the aftermath of the financial crisis that began in 2008?

A)Federal Reserve Board
B)Department of Housing and Urban Development
C)Council of Economic Advisers
D)Consumer Financial Protection Bureau

Question 13

Since 1950, compared with the entire workforce, the number of federal employees has

A)increased sharply.
B)increased slightly.
C)gradually declined.
D)decreased sharply.

Question 14

Before the Civil Service Act of 1883, government appointments were made

A)on the basis of merit.
B)on the basis of seniority.
C)to political supporters as part of a spoils system.
D)by leaders of Congress.

Question 15

There are approximately ________ military personnel currently in the United States.

A)100,000
B)600,000
C)900,000
D)1.5 million

Question 16

An independent agency is an executive branch organization that

A)is part of a cabinet-level department.
B)charges fees to consumers but carries out governmental responsibilities.
C)is not part of a cabinet-level department.
D)is established by the federal judiciary without congressional approval.

Question 17

Congress authorized the establishment of the Advanced Research Projects Agency (ARPA) in response to the

A)September 11, 2001, terrorist attacks.
B)profound American embarrassment over the Soviet Union's launch of the first satellite to orbit Earth.
C)Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor.
D)Vietnam War.

Question 18

The increasing levels of spending by the federal government in recent years are due primarily to the growing

A)size of the federal bureaucracy.
B)number of federal contractors.
C)number of payments to individuals for social programs such as Social Security and Medicare.
D)amount of money sent to other countries for foreign aid.

Question 19

Compared to private-sector workers, members of the full-time civilian federal workforce are ________ educated and ________ racially and ethnically diverse.

A)less; more
B)less; less
C)more; more
D)more; less

Question 20

Which of the following would be an example of how federal bureaucrats make rules while engaging in implementation?

A)the Supreme Court ruling that the Environmental Protection Agency has no authority to regulate auto emissions under the Clean Air Act
B)the Environmental Protection Agency requiring that, under the Clean Air Act, the average fuel economy for new vehicles must be at least 35.5 miles per gallon
C)the Chamber of Commerce filing a lawsuit claiming that Congress has no authority to pass the Clean Air Act
D)the Senate Committee on Environment and Public Works filing a report on the efficacy of the Clean Air Act

Question 21

Though the responsibility for making fiscal policy lies with ________, the administration of fiscal policy occurs primarily in the ________.

A)the president; Federal Reserve Board
B)the president; Treasury Department
C)Congress; Treasury Department
D)Congress; Department of Commerce

Question 22

Environmental impact statements are

A)amendments made to bills being debated in the House and Senate Environmental Protection committees.
B)decrees issued by the president about climate change.
C)policies written and implemented by the Environmental Protection Agency.
D)reports demonstrating that a proposed rule or agency action will not have an unacceptably large negative impact on the human or physical environment.

Question 23

The ________ oversees the Coast Guard, the U.S.Immigration and Customs Enforcement, the U.S.Secret Service, and the Federal Emergency Management Agency.

A)U.S.Marine Corps
B)secretary of defense
C)U.S.Army
D)Department of Homeland Security

Question 24

The Department of Health and Human Services

A)administers the Temporary Assistance for Needy Families Program.
B)has no influence over Medicare or Medicaid.
C)is under the direct administrative control of the National Institutes of Health.
D)administers Social Security.

Question 25

An iron triangle is the

A)stable relationship between a bureaucratic agency, a clientele group, and a legislative committee.
B)inability to reform federal rules without help from the House of Representatives, the Senate, and the president.
C)domination of a few large companies in the regulation of iron mining and smelting.
D)breakdown in the separation of powers between Congress, the federal judiciary, and the president.

Question 26

The greatest number of federal government professionals working abroad is under the authority of the

A)State Department.
B)Department of Defense.
C)Department of Commerce.
D)Department of Homeland Security.

Question 27

The Civil Division of the Justice Department

A)represents the U.S.government when it is the plaintiff enforcing federal criminal laws.
B)deals with litigation in which the United States is the defendant being sued for injury and damages allegedly inflicted by a government official or agency.
C)regulates licensing and addresses complaints about incivility and obscenity in broadcast media.
D)litigates violations of the Fourteenth Amendment's "equal protection clause" and the 1964 Civil Rights Act.

Question 28

U.S.attorneys are

A)selected at random from a pool of qualified federal prosecutors.
B)assigned on a case-by-case basis by the Supreme Court.
C)hired by the Department of Justice after a series of civil service examinations.
D)appointed by the president.

Question 29

The use of taxing and spending powers to shape the economy is part of ________ policy.

A)fiscal
B)monetary
C)distributive
D)redistributive

Question 30

Which of the following best describes the number of U.S.attorneys?

A)There are two U.S.attorneys in each of the 94 judicial districts.
B)There are two U.S.attorneys in each of the 50 judicial districts.
C)There is one U.S.attorney in each of the 94 federal judicial districts.
D)There is one U.S.attorney in each of the 50 federal judicial districts.

Question 31

________ is the primary mission of the State Department.

A)Military protection
B)Diplomacy
C)International aid
D)National security

Question 32

At its peak in ________, the federal bureaucracy had ________ million employees, not including military personnel.

A)1936; 6
B)1968; 3
C)1996; 8
D)2005; 10

Question 33

The number of state and local government employees has

A)remained relatively unchanged since 1950.
B)declined since 1950.
C)increased since 1950.
D)always been less than the number of federal government employees.

Question 34

Which of the following is a government corporation?

A)National Park Service
B)Amtrak
C)Federal Bureau of Investigation
D)Department of Agriculture

Question 35

By the 1980s, the average length of time it took to develop and implement an administrative rule was approximately

A)two weeks.
B)six months.
C)35 months.
D)six years.

Question 36

Civil servants were given legal protection against being fired without a show of cause in order to

A)conform to the Supreme Court's decision in Immigration and Naturalization Service v.Chadha.
B)force the bureaucracy to respond more to political pressures from parties, interest groups, and elected officials.
C)safeguard the bureaucracy from political interference while upgrading performance.
D)enhance the public's trust in bureaucracy.

Question 37

The Freedom of Information Act is designed to

A)lead to quicker filing of habeas corpus petitions.
B)make more national security documents available to the public.
C)prevent inefficiency and waste in government management.
D)expand the freedom of speech granted to government employees.

Question 38

What is the origin of most federal bureaus?

A)Congress passes laws creating and funding most federal bureaus.
B)The cabinet secretaries create most federal bureaus out of administrative necessity and convenience.
C)Most federal bureaus were explicitly described in Article II of the Constitution.
D)Most federal bureaus are created by executive order of the president.

Question 39

Line agencies are

A)departments, bureaus, or independent agencies whose primary mission is to regulate economic activity.
B)government agencies that perform a market-oriented public service and raise revenues to fund their activities.
C)agencies that are not part of any cabinet department and not subject to congressional oversight.
D)bureau-level agencies that deal directly with the public.

Question 40

The Forest Service is an example of a(n) ________, while NASA is an example of a(n) ________.

A)bureau-level agency; independent agency
B)independent agency; bureau-level agency
C)cabinet-level department; bureau-level agency
D)bureau-level agency; cabinet-level department

Question 41

The National Security Archive is a

A)private organization that makes extensive use of Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) requests to obtain information about the activities of national security agencies.
B)bureau-level agency in the Department of Homeland Security that classifies the security clearance requirements of all government documents.
C)part of the National Security Agency that classifies the security clearance requirements of all government documents.
D)private organization that the federal government contracts to provide backup copies for all national security documents.

Question 42

________ occurs when the federal government passes authority to administer a program to state or local governments.

A)Deregulation
B)Devolution
C)Privatization
D)Implementation

Question 43

President Ronald Reagan's inability to dismantle the Department of Education reflects the power of

A)the merit system.
B)iron triangles.
C)devolution.
D)the mass media.

Question 44

Which of the following is an example of a revenue agency?

A)Federal Reserve System
B)Agricultural Extension Service
C)U.S.Customs Service
D)Securities and Exchange Commission

Question 45

The Joint Chiefs of Staff is composed of

A)the five military service chiefs (Army, Navy, Air Force, Marine Corps, and National Guard) and the Chairman.
B)the secretaries of each cabinet-level department.
C)the Speaker of the House, the chief justice of the Supreme Court, and the vice president.
D)the state governors who belong to the president's party.

Question 46

Virtually all military hardware is produced

A)by the Department of Defense.
B)on a privatized basis by private contractors.
C)by state and local governments.
D)by the State Department.

Question 47

The national security documents leaked by Edward Snowden in 2013 revealed that the

A)NSA was collecting private data such as phone calls, email messages, and web browser history on millions of Americans and foreign nationals.
B)Bush administration misrepresented intelligence information about nuclear weapons in order to justify the 2003 Iraq War.
C)September 11, 2001, attacks could have been prevented with better information sharing between the FBI, the CIA, and the National Security Council (NSC).
D)CIA was violating international law by using "enhanced interrogation techniques" against suspected terrorists.

Question 48

One of the primary purposes of the Federal Reserve System (the Fed) is to guard against

A)national gasoline shortages by maintaining large stores of oil at the country's military bases.
B)state governments defaulting on their debt obligations by limiting budget expenditures.
C)the federal government defaulting on its debt obligations by limiting budget expenditures.
D)bank failures during a sudden economic scare by making sure that banks do not overextend themselves.

Question 49

If the federal government decided to hire Google to provide email services to all of its employees rather than maintaining its own, in-house email services, this would be an example of

A)Google-ization.
B)corporatization.
C)privatization.
D)bureaucratization.

Question 50

Who has the authority to set interest rates and lending activities for the nation's most important banks?

A)Federal Reserve System
B)secretary of the Treasury
C)Internal Revenue Service
D)Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation

Question 51

The National Park Service is

A)part of the Department of the Interior.
B)part of the Department of Agriculture.
C)an independent agency.
D)a government corporation.

Question 52

By 2000, the National Performance Review had succeeded in ________ the federal workforce by approximately ________ jobs.

A)cutting; 270,000
B)cutting; 425,000
C)increasing; 270,000
D)increasing; 425,000

Question 53

The "virtual fourth branch of government" refers to

A)political parties.
B)state governments.
C)interest groups.
D)government contracting.

Question 54

The national debt is approximately

A)$200 million.
B)$20 billion.
C)$200 billion
D)$20 trillion.

Question 55

Why did it prove difficult for Congress to close American military bases at the end of the Cold War with the former Soviet Union?

A)Many members of Congress believed that the Cold War might begin again and that the military bases would be needed despite the pause in tensions with the former Soviet Union.
B)Since every military base was in some congressional member's district, it proved impossible for Congress to decide to close any of them.
C)Every time Congress chose a base to close, a lawsuit would be filed and the federal judiciary would prevent the closure from moving forward.
D)There were a number of riots on military bases slated for closure, and Congress did not want to provoke further agitation from the armed forces.

Question 56

The result of the National Performance Review was that the size of the federal workforce

A)was reduced by about 60 percent.
B)was reduced by about 35 percent.
C)was reduced by about 10 percent.
D)did not really change at all.

Question 57

Which government agencies designed a $700-billion bailout package and convinced Congress that a rapid response was needed to avert a worldwide depression in 2008?

A)the Treasury Department and the Federal Reserve System
B)the Department of Commerce and the Office of Management and Budget
C)the Office of Management and Budget and the Council of Economic Advisers
D)the Department of Commerce and the Council of Economic Advisers

Question 58

Privatization is a way to

A)shrink the federal budget by selling government services or property in the private sector.
B)reduce government costs by relocating government programs to private groups or corporations.
C)reduce big government by doing without some of the programs it once provided.
D)increase the government's role by purchasing private companies.

Question 59

The Department of Defense was

A)established in Article I of the Constitution.
B)created in 1947 after concerns arose during World War II that the Departments of War and Navy were insufficiently integrated to fight effectively.
C)created in 1865 after the Civil War ended and Union and Confederate soldiers needed to be integrated into a single armed forces.
D)created in 1814 after British forces burned the capital in Washington.

Question 60

The Financial Stability Oversight Council was created by

A)President Roosevelt in 1939 to reduce unemployment and increase public-sector job opportunities.
B)President Obama and Congress in 2010 to identify systemwide risks to the financial sector.
C)Congress in 1965 to counter the growing influence of the Office of Management and Budget.
D)President Reagan in 1980 to study the causes of inflation and make policy recommendations to reduce it.

Question 61

The concept of oversight refers to the effort made by

A)Congress to make executive agencies accountable for their actions.
B)the president to make Congress accountable for its actions.
C)the courts to make the legislative and executive branches responsible for their actions.
D)the states to make the federal government responsible for its actions.

Question 62

In 2015, President Obama issued an executive order that required federal contractors to

A)provide health care benefits for all of their employees.
B)report all undocumented immigrants in their employment to the Department of Homeland Security.
C)reduce their lobbying expenditures to 10 percent of the amount of their government contract.
D)pay a $10.10 minimum wage and to provide paid sick leave for their employees.

Question 63

Devolution describes a process through which

A)Congress gives up some of its power to the executive branch.
B)the federal government is downsized by delegating the implementation of programs to state and local governments.
C)state and local governments are downsized by delegating the implementation of programs to the federal government.
D)the federal government is downsized by completely cutting wasteful programs.

Question 64

The largest employer in the country and the largest purchaser of goods and services in the world is

A)Amazon.
B)Walmart.
C)Apple.
D)the U.S.federal government.

Question 65

Which of the following statements best characterizes the government's spending on federal contracts in recent years?

A)The amount of spending on federal contracts has remained the same since 2000.
B)The amount of spending on federal contracts has decreased steadily since 2000.
C)The amount of spending on federal contracts has increased significantly overall since 2000, but for the first time in 13 years, spending on outside contractors declined in 2011.
D)The amount spent on federal contracts declined between 2000 and 2005 but has dramatically increased since 2005.

Question 66

The mission of the National Performance Review was to

A)reorganize the federal bureaucracy to make it more efficient, more accountable, and less wasteful.
B)review each administrative agency every four years to determine whether it is necessary.
C)analyze the job performance of federal employees.
D)make recommendations to Congress on government reforms.

Question 67

Why are state governments more likely than the federal government to cut spending on programs that serve low-income residents?

A)State governments cannot run deficits as the federal government can, and state governments have more limited taxing capabilities than the federal government.
B)The federal government cannot run deficits as state governments can, and the federal government has more limited taxing capabilities than state governments.
C)The federal government must abide by the "general welfare" clause of the Constitution and provide minimal levels of support for low-income residents, while state governments do not.
D)State governments only began enacting spending programs for low-income residents in the 1990s, while the federal government has been providing such services since the 1800s.

Question 68

Making permanent cuts in existing agencies is often difficult because

A)most agencies have a supportive constituency that will fight to reinstate any cuts that are made.
B)the Constitution prevents cuts to federal agencies lasting longer than five years.
C)every permanent cut to a federal agency must be reviewed by the Supreme Court before it can be put into effect.
D)federal law requires that the government cut every agency equally.

Question 69

In 1988, Congress established the ________ to decide on military base closings, allowing Congress only an up or down vote on the group's proposals.

A)Department of Homeland Security
B)National Security Council
C)Defense Base Closure and Realignment Commission (BRAC)
D)Unified Combatant Commands

Question 70

Which president's approach to the managerial presidency featured a deep belief in the importance of scientific expertise in government service?

A)Barack Obama
B)George W.Bush
C)Ronald Reagan
D)Bill Clinton

Question 71

One drawback of devolution is that

A)the standards associated with particular programs become increasingly rigid and hard to enforce.
B)the standards associated with particular programs become increasingly variable between states.
C)Congress is removed completely from the U.S.foreign policy process.
D)states have a much harder time implementing programs than the federal government does.

Question 72

The amount of national debt that can be issued by the Treasury is referred to as

A)sequestration.
B)the fiscal gap.
C)the treasury cap.
D)the debt ceiling.

Question 73

Which of the following is an agency created by Congress to assist in overseeing the federal bureaucracy?

A)Congressional Budget Office
B)Congressional Office on Legislative Affairs
C)Office of Management and Budget
D)Congressional Oversight Office

Question 74

During the administrations of Ronald Reagan and George H.W.Bush, ________ federal agencies or programs were terminated.

A)0
B)10
C)156
D)849

Question 75

The phrase blended workforce refers to

A)a recruitment and hiring policy implemented by the federal government in order to increase racial and ethnic diversity within the federal workforce.
B)the federal government's policy of replacing 10 percent of all employees with automated technology by 2020.
C)the fact that most federal employees now have appointments in two or more separate cabinet-level departments.
D)the fact that contract employees now work side by side with government employees in most areas of government activity.

Question 76

Which of the following statements best describes how recent administrations have approached the issue of bureaucratic reform?

A)Republican administrations have aimed to make the existing bureaucracy work more effectively, while Democratic administrations have sought to reduce bureaucracy by contracting out government work to private companies.
B)Democratic administrations have aimed to make the existing bureaucracy work more effectively, while Republican administrations have sought to reduce bureaucracy by contracting out government work to private companies.
C)Both Democratic and Republican administrations have rejected the idea of reducing bureaucracy and have aimed to make existing bureaucracy work more effectively.
D)Both Democratic and Republican administrations have given up on trying to make the existing bureaucracy function more effectively and instead sought to reduce bureaucracy by contracting out government work to private companies.

Question 77

In his attempt to manage the federal bureaucracy, the president can use all of the following tools EXCEPT

A)appointing top officials to lead government agencies.
B)replacing low-level civil service employees with people loyal to the president.
C)altering an agency's budget.
D)changing an agency's organizational scheme.

Question 78

The "Commission on Wartime Contracting" found that the use of private contractors during the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq

A)wasted between $31 and $60 billion.
B)saved between $31 and $60 billion.
C)saved between $1 trillion and $2 trillion.
D)had no effect on the federal government's spending.

Question 79

The MOST significant example of devolution in recent decades has been in the area of

A)homeland security.
B)crime enforcement.
C)education.
D)welfare policy.

Question 80

In 1937, the Committee on Administrative Management claimed that "the president needs help" because

A)President Roosevelt had serious health problems related to polio and could not fulfill all of the constitutional responsibilities of the presidency.
B)President Roosevelt needed to devote all of his energy to guiding the American military's efforts in World War II and he could not effectively manage the federal bureaucracy.
C)the "spoils system" had filled the executive branch with Republicans who were refusing to enact key parts of President Roosevelt's agenda.
D)the national government had grown rapidly during the preceding 25 years, but the structures and procedures necessary to manage the burgeoning executive branch had not yet been established.