Pojam, vrste i aktivnosti federalnih agencija u pravnom sistemu SAD
Definition, Types and Functions of Federal Agencies in the U.S. Legal System

Author(s): Marko Davinić
Subject(s): Public Administration, Government/Political systems
Published by: Institut za uporedno pravo
Keywords: federal agencies ; departments ; independent regulatory agencies ; independent government corporations
Summary/Abstract: The federal bureaucracy comprises the diverse collection of departments, bureaus, services, commissions, boards and other units that carry out national policies (e.g. regulating private conduct, managing federal property, giving or denying persons welfare benefits, licensing, etc). For the sake of the simplicity, we have classified all federal agencies into four broad categories. The most important agencies are departments, and their heads (secretaries) form the President’s Cabinet. At the moment, there are 15 Departments with different roles and functions (e.g. the Department for Homeland Security was formed in 2002 with the main responsibility to organize the defense against terrorism). Departments normally contain a number of agencies within them (e.g. The Federal Bureau of Investigation is placed inside the structure of Department of Justice). The heads of these agencies are appointed by the President, or by the head of the Department. Third category of agencies finds its place outside Departments, but still inside Executive Branch (e.g. the Central Intelligence Agency). The heads of these agencies are also appointed by the President, with the advice and consent of the Senate. All these agencies are considered part of the Executive Branch and are under substantial control of the President. On the other side, Independent Regulatory Agencies (Commissions, Boards) are designed to maintain their independence from the President and executive departments. They are founded to regulate vital areas which are too dynamic, technical or unpopular to be regulated by Congress (e.g. Federal Reserve Board is in charge of U.S. monetary policy). They are run by boards of commissioners, who are appointed by the President, with the advice and consent of the Senate. However, they can not be removed without “cause” (malfeasance), which means that they have substantial level of independence in their work. Sometimes, those agencies are even described as “the headless fourth branch of government”. In addition, there are independent government corporations responsible of delivering the kinds of services usually provided by private corporations (e.g. National Railroad Passenger Corporation – Amtrak). Despite the striking similarities with previous entities, they are not generally considered public agencies. Deregulation process was dominant movement worldwide in the last two decades of the XX century, with the dogmatic belief that the free market and private initiative take necessary corrective measures to solve all problems in modern society. However, corporate failures and scandals at the beginning of the XXI century (e.g. Enron, WorldCom) and especially huge economic crisis in 2008 have been warning signs for more regulatory reforms concerning markets, banks, insurance companies and corporations. Taking that into account, there is no doubt that federal agencies will play even more important role in American society in the years to come.

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