BUSL 2600 Exam 1

The law of government administration
Prescribes the ground rules for creating administrative agencies and defines the powers of those agencies

Provides the basic framework for federal administrative law
Functions as sub-constitution for federal agencies

Statute that creates an agency

Statute that grants powers to an agency

free-standing units of the government or subunits within agencies

responsive to the political and policy direction of the president; individual heading agency serves at the "pleasure of the President"

usually led by group of individuals with membership balanced between two major political parties; subject to removal "for cause"

•Congress creates agencies as a means of addressing public problems that existing institutions have been unable to solve.
•Agency decision-making process provides a forum for public deliberation on proper resolution of problems.

•Considers agencies as "political brokers"
•Agencies make decisions by trading off claims for preferential treatment pressed on them by special interest groups.
•Agency decision-making process does not provide a forum for public deliberation; competition among interested parties.

•Congress creates agencies as a bargained for exchange among members of Congress and interest groups seeking mutual advantage.
•Agency decision-making process does not provide a forum for public deliberation; economic marketplace / agency officials negotiate a "deal" that reflects their relative power, intensity of interests, assessment of how their own interests are best served.

•Agency publishes a "general notice of proposed rule making" (APA 553(b))
•Members of the public interested in the rulemaking have an opportunity to submit written comments on the agency's proposal
•AKA "notice and comment"

•Agency publishes notice of proposed rulemaking and of the eventual final rule along with statement of basis and purpose
•[no request for public comments]
•Formal rulemaking follows trial-type procedures

A mixture of formal and informal rulemaking

1.Notice;
2.Opportunity to comment;
3.An informal hearing with oral and/or written submissions and the opportunity for rebuttal and cross-examination if issues of material fact are in dispute; and
4.A requirement that the final rule be based on the rulemaking record.

Informal adjudication

Formal adjudication

adjudication (not rulemaking)

•Gives you the right to access information from the government

•People make a formal request filing a form of which information you want (some information may be redacted)

•Enacted to make people aware of what is happening within agencies
•Gives people the right to attend agency meetings
•"Let the light shine in on this information"

Allows people to voice their beliefs/concerns about agency actions or proposed rulemakings

People can contact Senators, Representatives, or members of congress about issues (write a letter)

Agencies