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15.5: Key Terms

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    bureaucracy
    an administrative group of nonelected officials charged with carrying out functions connected to a series of policies and programs
    bureaucrats
    the civil servants or political appointees who fill nonelected positions in government and make up the bureaucracy
    civil servants
    the individuals who fill nonelected positions in government and make up the bureaucracy; also known as bureaucrats
    government corporation
    a corporation that fulfills an important public interest and is therefore overseen by government authorities to a much larger degree than private businesses
    merit system
    a system of filling civil service positions by using competitive examinations to value experience and competence over political loyalties
    negotiated rulemaking
    a rulemaking process in which neutral advisors convene a committee of those who have vested interests in the proposed rules and help the committee reach a consensus on them
    patronage
    the use of government positions to reward individuals for their political support
    pay schedule
    a chart that shows salary ranges for different levels of positions vertically and for different ranks of seniority horizontally
    privatization
    measures that incorporate the market forces of the private sector into the function of government to varying degrees
    public administration
    the implementation of public policy as well as the academic study that prepares civil servants to work in government
    red tape
    the mechanisms, procedures, and rules that must be followed to get something done
    spoils system
    a system that rewards political loyalties or party support during elections with bureaucratic appointments after victory
    whistleblower
    a person who publicizes misdeeds committed within a bureaucracy or other organization

    This page titled 15.5: Key Terms was last modified on Thu, 07 Aug 2025 18:48:06 GMT and is shared under a CC BY 4.0 license and was authored, remixed, and/or curated by OpenStax via source content that was edited to the style and standards of the LibreTexts platform.