BUREAUCRACY BASICS
This is the general form of organization built on specialization and repeated tasks.
bureaucracy
All proposed federal rules pass through this Executive Office of the President agency.
Office of Management and Budget (OMB)
Government decisions about taxation and spending belong to this type of economic policy.
fiscal policy
This 1935 law is considered the foundation of the modern American welfare state.
Social Security Act
Security, prosperity, and the creation of a better world are the three major goals of this area of public policy.
U.S. foreign policy
The federal bureaucracy's main responsibility is to do this with the laws passed by Congress.
implement (or carry out) the laws
Steady, routine congressional monitoring of executive agencies is known by this law-enforcement-style name.
police-patrol oversight
This central banking system conducts monetary policy by influencing the availability of money to banks.
Federal Reserve System
Social Security, Medicare, and unemployment insurance are examples of these programs financed by contributions from current or future recipients.
contributory programs
This agreement between the president and another country's leader has the force of a treaty but does not require Senate ratification.
executive agreement
This hiring and promotion system bases federal employment on qualifications rather than political loyalty.
merit system
Congressional oversight triggered by complaints, media reports, or a crisis is known by this emergency-response-style name.
fire-alarm oversight
When the federal government spends more in one year than it collects in revenue, the result is this.
budget deficit
TANF, Medicaid, and SNAP are examples of these means-tested programs.
noncontributory programs
These economic penalties are often used to weaken a hostile regime without using military force.
sanctions
These senior federal officials are selected for leadership positions by the president rather than hired through the career civil service.
political appointees
These independent, nonpartisan watchdogs investigate possible wrongdoing within most federal agencies.
inspectors general
This policy uses government power to break up monopolies and preserve fair competition.
antitrust policy
This 2010 law expanded the federal role in health care and remained a major subject of political debate.
Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (ACA)
This process allows neutral third parties to settle international disputes and protect property and contractual rights.
dispute arbitration
This problem can occur when Congress delegates authority to an agency, but the agency develops priorities that differ from Congress's goals.
principal-agent problem
This occurs when a regulatory agency becomes too closely aligned with the industry or interests it is supposed to oversee.
regulatory capture
During a recession, followers of this theory would support increased public spending and tax cuts to stimulate demand.
Keynesian economics
These indirect social benefits operate through the tax code and often provide the greatest advantages to middle- and upper-income Americans.
tax expenditures
Announced after the September 11 attacks, this doctrine argued that the United States should take preemptive action against threats to national security.
Bush Doctrine