Government agency

Last updated
Various headquarters for United States federal government agencies along Pennsylvania Avenue in Washington, D.C., including the Federal Triangle, J. Edgar Hoover Building, and National Archives Building. Also visible is the United States Capitol. OldPostOfficePennAve.jpg
Various headquarters for United States federal government agencies along Pennsylvania Avenue in Washington, D.C., including the Federal Triangle, J. Edgar Hoover Building, and National Archives Building. Also visible is the United States Capitol.

A government agency or state agency, sometimes an appointed commission, is a permanent or semi-permanent organization in the machinery of government (bureaucracy) that is responsible for the oversight and administration of specific functions, such as an administration. [1] There is a notable variety of agency types. Although usage differs, a government agency is normally distinct both from a department or ministry, and other types of public body established by government. The functions of an agency are normally executive in character since different types of organizations (such as commissions) are most often constituted in an advisory role — this distinction is often blurred in practice however, it is not allowed.

Contents

A government agency may be established by either a national government or a state government within a federal system. Agencies can be established by legislation or by executive powers. The autonomy, independence, and accountability of government agencies also vary widely.

History

Early examples of organizations that would now be termed a government agency include the British Navy Board, responsible for ships and supplies, which was established [2] in 1546 by King Henry VIII and the British Commissioners of Bankruptcy established [3] in 1570.

From 1933, the New Deal saw growth in U.S. federal agencies, the "alphabet agencies" as they were used to deliver new programs created by legislation, such as the Federal Emergency Relief Administration.

From the 1980s, as part of New Public Management, several countries including Australia and the United Kingdom developed the use of agencies to try and improve efficiency in public services.

By country

Australia

Canada

France

Administrative law in France refers to autorité administrative indépendante (AAI) or Independent Administrative Authorities. They tend to be prominent in the following areas of public policy;

Independent Administrative Authorities in France may not be instructed or ordered to take specific actions by the government.

Germany

Greece

The General Secretariat for Macedonia and Thrace (Greek: Γενική Γραμματεία Μακεδονίας-Θράκης), previously Ministry for Macedonia and Thrace (Greek: Υπουργείο Μακεδονίας-Θράκης) is a government agency of the Hellenic Republic that is responsible for the Greek regions of Macedonia and Thrace.

Iceland

India

The term agency in India has several meanings; for example, the Cabinet and the parliament Secretariat describes itself [4] as a "nodal agency for coordination amongst the ministries of the Govt. of India". Most notably as an international feature, what appear to be independent agencies (or apex agencies) include some that have active roles for Ministers: such as, the National Security Council, the Medical Council of India, the Pharmacy Council of India (PCI), the Indian Council of Agricultural Research, and the NITI Aayog, which is chaired ex officio by the Prime Minister.

Russia

Russia has had many government agencies throughout its history. The USSR had the secretive KGB. Today, Russian government agencies such as the FSB, FSO, and the GRU use Spetsnaz or other masked operators for any missions. Other organizations include Kremlin and presidential security.

Sweden

The Government agencies in Sweden are State controlled organizations who act independently to carry out the policies of the Government of Sweden. The Ministries are relatively small and merely policy-making organizations, allowed to control agencies by policy decisions but not by direct orders. This means that while the agencies are subject to decisions made by the Government, Ministers are explicitly prohibited (so-called ban on ministerstyre ) from interfering with the day-to-day operation in an agency or the outcome in individual cases as well.

In addition to the State and its agencies, there are also local government agencies, which are extensions of municipalities and county councils.

United Kingdom

Agencies in the United Kingdom are either executive agencies answerable to government ministers or non-departmental public bodies answerable directly to parliament or the devolved assemblies of the United Kingdom. They are also commonly known as Quangos.

Agencies can be created by enabling legislation by the Parliament of the United Kingdom, Scottish Parliament or the Welsh Parliament.

United States

The Congress and President of the United States delegate specific authority to government agencies to regulate the complex facets of the modern American federal state. Also, most of the 50 U.S. states have created similar government agencies. Each state government is similar to the national government, with all but one having a bicameral legislature. The term "government agency" or "administrative agency" usually applies to one of the independent agencies of the United States government , which exercise some degree of independence from the President's control. Although the heads of independent agencies are often appointed by the government, they can usually be removed only for cause. The heads of independent agencies work together in groups, such as a commission, board or council. Independent agencies often function as miniature versions of the tripartite federal government with the authority to legislate (through the issuing or promulgation of regulations), to adjudicate disputes, and to enforce agency regulations. Examples of independent agencies include the Federal Communications Commission (FCC), Federal Reserve Board, U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) and the Federal Trade Commission (FTC).

A broader definition of the term "government agency" also means the United States federal executive departments that include the President's cabinet-level departments and their sub-units. Examples of these include the Department of Energy (DOE) and the Internal Revenue Service (IRS), which is a bureau of the Department of the Treasury.

Most federal agencies are created by Congress through statutes called "enabling acts", which define the scope of an agency's authority. Because the Constitution does not expressly mention federal agencies (as it does the three branches), some commentators have called agencies the "headless fourth branch" of the federal government. However, most independent agencies are technically part of the executive branch, with a few located in the legislative branch of government. By enacting the Administrative Procedure Act (APA) in 1946, Congress established some means to oversee government agency action. The APA established uniform administrative law procedures for a federal agency's promulgation of rules and adjudication of claims. The APA also sets forth the process for judicial review of agency action.

See also

Related Research Articles

Administrative law is a division of law governing the activities of executive branch agencies of government. Administrative law includes executive branch rule making, adjudication, and the enforcement of laws. Administrative law is considered a branch of public law.

A quango or QUANGO is an organisation to which a government has devolved power, but which is still partly controlled and/or financed by government bodies. The term was originally a shortening of "quasi NGO", where NGO is the acronym for a non-government organisation.

In the United Kingdom, non-departmental public body (NDPB) is a classification applied by the Cabinet Office, Treasury, the Scottish Government, and the Northern Ireland Executive to public sector organisations that have a role in the process of national government but are not part of a government department. NDPBs carry out their work largely independently from ministers and are accountable to the public through Parliament; however, ministers are responsible for the independence, effectiveness, and efficiency of non-departmental public bodies in their portfolio.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Eastern Macedonia and Thrace</span> Administrative region of Greece

Eastern Macedonia and Thrace is one of the thirteen administrative regions of Greece. It consists of the northeastern parts of the country, comprising the eastern part of the region of Macedonia along with the region of Western Thrace, and the islands of Thasos and Samothrace.

The following list outlines the structure of the federal government of Canada, the collective set of federal institutions which can be grouped into the legislative, executive, and judicial branches. In turn, these are further divided into departments, agencies, and other organizations which support the day-to-day function of the Canadian state.

The Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine, commonly referred to as the Government of Ukraine, is the highest body of state executive power in Ukraine. As the Council of Ministers of the Ukrainian SSR, it was formed on 18 April 1991, by the Law of Ukrainian SSR No.980-XII. Vitold Fokin was approved as the first Prime Minister of Ukraine.

A regulatory agency or independent agency is a government authority that is responsible for exercising autonomous dominion over some area of human activity in a licensing and regulating capacity.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Secretariat of the Interior</span> Executive department of the Mexican government

The Mexican Secretariat of the Interior is the public department concerned with the country's domestic affairs, the presenting of the president's bills to Congress, their publication in the Official Journal of the Federation, and certain issues of national security. The country's principal intelligence agency, CISEN, is directly answerable to the Secretary of the Interior. The Secretary is a member of the president's Cabinet and is, given the constitutional implications of the post, the most important cabinet member. Additionally, in case of both temporary and absolute absences of the president, the Secretary of the Interior assumes the president's executive powers provisionally. The Office is practically equivalent to Ministries of the Interior in most other countries and is occasionally translated to English as Ministry, Secretariat or Department of the Interior.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Deputy Minister for Macedonia and Thrace</span> Greek government minister

The deputy minister for Macedonia and Thrace is the government minister in charge of Greece's Sub-Ministry of Macedonia and Thrace, part of the Ministry of the Interior.

A statutory corporation is a government entity created as a statutory body by statute. Their precise nature varies by jurisdiction, but they are corporations owned by a government or controlled by national or sub-national government to the extent provided for in the creating legislation.

The Public Service of Canada is the civilian workforce of the Government of Canada's departments, agencies, and other public bodies.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Federal administration of Switzerland</span> Executive branch of the federal authorities of Switzerland

The federal administration of Switzerland is the ensemble of agencies that constitute, together with the Swiss Federal Council, the executive branch of the Swiss federal authorities. The administration is charged with executing federal law and preparing draft laws and policy for the Federal Council and the Federal Assembly.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Executive agency</span> Part of a UK government department

An executive agency is a part of a government department that is treated as managerially and budgetarily separate, to carry out some part of the executive functions of the United Kingdom government, Scottish Government, Welsh Government or Northern Ireland Executive. Executive agencies are "machinery of government" devices distinct both from non-ministerial government departments and non-departmental public bodies, each of which enjoy legal and constitutional separation from ministerial control. The model has been applied in several other countries.

Following the 2010 United Kingdom general election, the UK Government under the Cameron–Clegg coalition announced plans to curb public spending through the abolition of a large number of quasi-autonomous non-governmental organisations (quangos). This was styled in the national press as a "bonfire of the quangos", making reference to Girolamo Savonarola's religiously inspired Bonfire of the Vanities.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ministry of Macedonia and Thrace</span>

The Ministry of Macedonia and Thrace is a former ministry of Greece. Responsible for the regions of Macedonia and Thrace, since 2015 it has been demoted to the level of a sub-ministry within the Ministry of the Interior. The incumbent Deputy Minister for Macedonia and Thrace is Stavros Kalafatis of New Democracy.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Administrative Procedure Act</span> US federal statute

The Administrative Procedure Act (APA), Pub. L.Tooltip Public Law  79–404, 60 Stat. 237, enacted June 11, 1946, is the United States federal statute that governs the way in which administrative agencies of the federal government of the United States may propose and establish regulations, and it grants U.S. federal courts oversight over all agency actions. According to Hickman & Pierce, it is one of the most important pieces of United States administrative law, and serves as a sort of "constitution" for U.S. administrative law.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Decentralized Administration of Macedonia and Thrace</span>

The Decentralized Administration of Macedonia and Thrace is one of the seven decentralized administrations of Greece, consisting of the peripheries of Central Macedonia and Eastern Macedonia and Thrace. The region is centered in the metropolitan city of Thessaloniki in Central Macedonia.

Secretary is a title often used in organizations to indicate a person having a certain amount of authority, power, or importance in the organization. Secretaries announce important events and communicate to the organization. The term is derived from the Latin word secernere, "to distinguish" or "to set apart", the passive participle meaning "having been set apart", with the eventual connotation of something private or confidential, as with the English word secret. A secretarius was a person, therefore, overseeing business confidentially, usually for a powerful individual.

The state agencies that form Thailand's public sector consist of several types of functioning bodies. While some agencies established by mandate of the constitution are independent, others are directly or indirectly answerable to the executive of the Royal Thai Government. The majority of these are government agencies, which employ the civil service as well as the military. Others include public organizations and state enterprises.

Primary legislation and secondary legislation are two forms of law, created respectively by the legislative and executive branches of governments in representative democracies. Primary legislation generally consists of statutes, also known as 'acts', that set out broad principles and rules, but may delegate specific authority to an executive branch to make more specific laws under the aegis of the principal act. The executive branch can then issue secondary legislation, creating legally enforceable regulations and the procedures for implementing them.

References

  1. ↑ Anglim, Christopher. "Learning Resources Division: Government Information Help Guide: Government Agencies". udc.libguides.com. Retrieved 2023-08-02.
  2. ↑ A brief history of the Royal Navy, Royal Navy Museum, accessed at Archived 2006-07-15 at the Wayback Machine June 9, 2006,
  3. ↑ Macleavy, J. and O. Gay (2005) The Quango Debate, House of Commons Library Research Paper 05/30, p. 8 accessed at "The Quango Debate" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 2006-06-19. Retrieved 2006-06-09.
  4. ↑ Cabinet Secretariat, Government of India at , accessed June 30, 2006

Further reading

This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.