Time Schedule:
Barry R Pump
POL S 470
Seattle Campus
Growth, power, and roles of governmental bureaucracies in America: conflict and conformity with American political thought, other political institutions, and the public.
Class description
We all know that Congress makes policy through laws and the president makes policy through executive orders and proclamations. The ways in which bureaucracies make policy, though, are more obscure and less commonly discussed. This course deals with the role of federal agencies and bureaucracies in the policymaking process.
This course will focus on:
• Organizational design, culture and decision-making in bureaucracies generally
• The ways bureaucracies make policy
• The ability of Congress, the president, the courts, and interest groups to influence bureaucratic decisions
• The role of information and expertise in bureaucracies’ ability to influence Congress, the president, and the courts
The first part of the course will cover the mechanisms of bureaucratic policymaking and rulemaking as well as methods for assessing that process. The second part of the course will cover the politics of bureaucratic interactions with Congress, the president, the courts, and interest groups.
Student learning goals
General method of instruction
Lectures and in-class discussions based on readings and case studies. Student participation is required.
Recommended preparation
Familiarity with American politics (preferably having taken POL S 202: Introduction to American Politics). The course, however, is not a prerequisite.
Texts: Kerwin and Furlong, “Rulemaking: How Government Agencies Write Law and Make Policy,” 4th ed. (2011), CQ Press.
James Q. Wilson, “Bureaucracy: What Government Agencies Do and Why They Do It,” New Edition (2000), Basic Books.
There will also be supplemental readings posted online.
Class assignments and grading
There will be two short-answer essay exams administered during class. A final project will consist of an explanatory essay that resembles a comment on a proposed agency rule and presentation of the same.
Grading: Exam 1=30%, Exam 2=30%, Final Project=30%, and Participation=10%
