AP®︎ U.S. Government & Politics: Topic 2.12 Flashcards

A large administrative organization characterized by hierarchy, specialization, formal responsibilities, and standardized procedures

The departments, agencies, commissions, government corporations, and employees that administer federal law and carry out federal policy

Turning laws and executive directives into operational rules, programs, services, and enforcement actions

Excessive or burdensome administrative rules and procedures that make bureaucratic action slow or difficult to navigate

One of the 15 major executive-branch organizations responsible for a broad area of public policy and headed by a secretary or the attorney general

An executive agency outside the Cabinet departments, usually created to perform a narrower or more specialized mission

An agency led by a multimember body with fixed terms that regulates a particular economic sector or area of public activity with some insulation from immediate political pressure

A publicly created organization that pursues a public purpose by providing services in a businesslike manner, often charging fees or generating revenue

A detailed agency rule, issued under authority granted by law, that has the force of law once validly adopted

A durable, mutually beneficial relationship among a congressional committee or subcommittee, a bureaucratic agency, and an interest group in one policy area

A broad, loose, and often temporary coalition of changing participants connected by a shared policy issue or agenda

The primarily civilian, career workforce that performs the continuing work of the federal government across presidential administrations

Officials selected by an administration, usually to lead agencies and advance the president’s policy priorities rather than hold permanent career positions

The distribution of government jobs based on political support, party loyalty, or personal connections

Hiring and promotion based primarily on qualifications, professionalism, specialization, neutrality, and job performance rather than partisan loyalty

The law that began the shift from federal patronage to merit-based employment by creating a civil service commission and competitive examinations for covered jobs

The law restricting partisan political activity by many federal employees to protect civil-service neutrality and prevent political coercion