The Federal Bureaucracy and the Public Policy Process
Response to the following multiple choice questions:
1. The __________ is a form of organization that delivers goods and services at the lowest cost through specialization of jobs, close supervision of employees, and uniform regulations and procedures.
a. administration b. bureaucracy c. cabinet d. civil service e. iron triangle
2. What are the four broad types of departments and agencies for which federal employees work?
a. federal departments, state departments, independent agencies, and independent regulatory commissions
b. departments, cabinets, independent agencies, and independent regulatory commissions
c. departments, administrations, independent agencies, and independent regulatory commissions
d. departments, independent stand-alone agencies, independent regulatory commissions, and government corporations
e. federal departments, state departments, agencies, and government corporations
3. Which of the following is a nongovernmental organization that seeks to influence public policy through research and education?
a. citizen action group b. think tank c. special-interest group d. political party
e. independent regulatory commission
4. __________ are rules created by government agencies that determine how laws are implemented.
a. Policies b. Procedures c. Regulations d. Standards e. Statutes
5. Which law designates the steps that federal agencies must follow in issuing rules and regulations?
a. the Administrative Procedure Act b. the Freedom of Information Act c. the Hatch Act
d. the Pendleton Act e. the Privacy Act
6. __________ refers to the authority of administrators in the federal bureaucracy to make choices concerning the best way to implement policies.
a. Adjudication b. Discretion c. Division of labor d. Independence e. Rule-making
7. Cabinet secretaries are appointed by __________ and confirmed by __________.
a. the president; the Senate b. the president; the House of Representatives
c. the president; the Supreme Court d. the Senate; the president
e. the House of Representatives; the Supreme Court
8. On what basis are people hired to be part of the Senior Executive Service?
a. their loyalty to the president b. their party affiliation c. their length of service in government
d. their experience in international diplomacy e. their leadership and management skills
9. Which of the following best describes the distinction between the policy agenda and problems?
a. Problems are a result of physical realities, while the agenda comes from people.
b. The agenda comes from many sources, while problems generally come from one.
c. The agenda is a direct product of politics, while problems are distinct from politics.
d. The agenda arises from events, while problems are difficulties caused by those events.
e. Problems are created when policy makers put them on the agenda, which is a list of a political party's goals.
10. One purpose of the Administrative Procedure Act is to __________.
a. ensure opportunities for public participation in the rule-making process
b. give federal agencies greater discretion in the rule-making process
c. streamline bureaucratic activities in the rule-making process
d. give the president greater control over the rule-making process
e. discourage agencies from drafting new regulations
11. Which of the following is an example of a distributive policy?
a. Social Security b. welfare program c. Head Start d. job-training program
e. food stamps
12. Which of the following is an example of a government corporation?
a. the Food and Drug Administration b. the Federal Elections Commission c. Amtrak
d. the Occupational Safety and Health Administration e. the Environmental Protection Agency
13. What are the three sides of an iron triangle?
a. a federal department or agency, the president, and a set of interest groups
b. a federal department or agency, a set of interest groups, and a House and/or Senate committee
c. a set of interest groups, a House and/or Senate committee, and a public opinion group
d. a federal department or agency, a House and/or Senate committee, and the president
e. a House and/or Senate committee, a set of interest groups, and a set of campaign contributors
14. Which statement best describes what political scientists call a nondecision in the public policy process?
a. The policy problem was based on a false assumption. b. The process stops before final action.
c. The process is completed but policy is never implemented. d. No policy problem is identified.
e. The process does not begin.
15. How do government corporations differ from private companies?
a. Government corporations perform activities that private companies cannot.
b. Government corporations cannot borrow money, whereas private companies can.
c. Government corporations cannot sell stock, whereas private companies can.
d. Government corporations can borrow money, whereas private companies cannot.
e. Government corporations need less government oversight than private companies.
16. How are independent regulatory commissions similar to independent stand-alone agencies?
a. Both are headed by a single administrator. b. Both are part of the president's Cabinet.
c. Both operate outside of executive department control. d. Both are allowed to charge for their services.
e. Both perform activities that private investors cannot.
17. Which of the following groups is likely to have the most influence over the construction of regulations during the rule-making stage of the policy process?
a. citizens b. interest groups c. Congress d. the president e. a department or agency
18. Which of the following would be an example of a redistributive policy?
a. an increase in defense spending to build more ships b. an improvement program for national parks
c. an educational program for poor minority high school students
d. an educational program to provide additional training for air traffic controllers
e. funding to build a new cross-country interstate
19. Under what circumstance are bureaucrats most likely to exercise discretion?
a. when an agency is creating environmental regulations
b. when an agency is under congressional investigation
c. when an agency is implementing a law that contains ambiguity
d. when an agency is elevated to the status of a Cabinet department
e. when an agency is proposing legislation
20. How did the British Petroleum oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico illustrate what can happen when a government agency has too much control over an industry and the two develop a "cozy relationship"?
a. The agency in charge of setting safety standards for oil and gas drilling also issued permits to the oil industry, which created a conflict of interest.
b. British Petroleum was contributing large amounts of money to the campaign of the congressional representatives in charge of setting safety standards for oil and gas drilling, which created a conflict of interest.
c. The political appointee who headed the agency in charge of issuing permits held stock in the oil and gas industry and used his influence to push the department in charge of safety standards to look the other way.
d. A member of the oil industry served on the independent regulatory commission that set safety standards for oil and gas drilling, which created a conflict of interest.
e. The Department of the Interior, which set safety standards for oil and gas drilling, did not properly supervise the agency in charge of issuing permits, and that agency and BP had a close relationship.
21. Which of the following public policy approach might result from a view that hard work does not necessarily pay off?
a. support for privatization of Social Security b. an increase in the interest on student loans
c. an expansion of job training programs d. trade agreements to open new markets overseas
e. reductions in the food stamp program
22. How does an iron triangle work in creating change in public policy?
a. Members of Congress protect their constituencies and interest groups; constituencies reelect the congressional representatives and give money to interest groups; and interest groups support members of Congress and their constituencies.
b. Interest groups provide funds to members of Congress and their constituencies, who in turn pressure the president to push through policies the interest groups want, at which point constituencies will give their economic support to interest groups.
c. Members of Congress protect agencies and interest groups; agencies give special services to interest groups and congressional representatives' constituencies; and interest groups support members of Congress and agencies.
d. Agencies supply services to the public and in return the public supports agency activities, which puts pressure on Congress to pass laws in favor of the agencies.
e. Members of Congress from the same political party as the president support the president's policies and protect agencies that do the same; in return, the agencies help both when election time comes around.
23. Iron triangles have been replaced by issue networks for which of the following reasons?
a. The increase in corporate-sponsored interest groups made one corner of the iron triangle too powerful.
b. Because interest groups no longer have the kinds of influence they once had, public opinion as gleaned through polls has taken their place.
c. Fewer numbers of small, highly specialized groups has made one corner of the iron triangle less functional.
d. Issue networks consist of large numbers of individuals who are specialized in different fields and can provide Congress with needed information that the members of the iron triangle could not.
e. Increasing numbers of small, highly specialized groups have made one corner of the iron triangle harder to fill with a steady occupant.
True-False Questions:
24. An incremental policy causes a dramatic change in the government's role, whereas a punctuating policy makes only a small adjustment in an existing program.
25. Because the bureaucracy is so complex and full of red tape, citizens do not have much recourse when they are dissatisfied with public policy other than voting to change their representatives.
26. Regulations are usually created by Congress.
27. The policy process does not vary greatly throughout the world other than in the level of influence citizens have on the process.
Fill-in-the-Blank Questions:
28. The federal bureaucracy consists of the departments, agencies, and offices within the __________that perform the functions of government.
29. According to the __________ Act, federal agencies must solicit public comments before issuing new rules and regulations.
30. Under __________, jobs in the federal bureaucracy are awarded on the basis of skills and expertise.
31. __________ often holds oversight hearings to investigate the policies and performance of agencies and departments in the federal bureaucracy.
32. A specific course of action that government takes to address a problem is called __________.
33. After a president nominates an individual to be a Cabinet secretary, that appointment must confirmed by __________.
34. When Congress reads agency reports, monitors budgets, and routinely pays attention to the ways agencies are running, it is engaging in __________ oversight.
35. When the U.S. Department of Transportation stipulates how many hours truck drivers can be on the road per week, the department is creating a(n) __________.
36. National parks and the interstate highway system are both examples of a __________ policy. distributive
37. An __________ is a special kind of independent agency whose independence is protected by Congress so the agency is insulated from congressional and presidential control.
38. A redistributive policy is also referred to as a __________ game.
39. When the Environmental Protection Agency sets standards for air pollution, it is fulfilling the __________ function of the federal bureaucracy.
40. The purpose of the __________ was to prohibit federal employees from engaging in partisan political activities.
41. One consequence of ambiguity in the laws passed by Congress is that government agencies exercise __________ in the implementation of those laws.
42. One function of __________ is to provide public services that the private sector is unwilling or unable to do.