Structure of the federal government Essay Example for Free

Structure of the federal government Essay Determine where each agency lies in the administrative structure of the federal government. Identify it as an executive department or an independent agency. The purpose of U.S. Environmental Protection Agency is to protecting human health and the environment by writing and enforcing regulations based on laws passed by Congress. According to EPA website, Born in the wake of elevated concern about environmental pollution, EPA was established on December 2, 1970 to consolidate in one agency a variety of federal research, monitoring, standard-setting and enforcement activities to ensure environmental protection. This agency, US Environment Protection Agency is run by its Administrator. The current Administrator is Lisa P. Jackson. The President appoints an administrator for U.S. Environment Protection Agency and Congress can approve or decline the person. The US Environmental Protection Agency is an independent agency. The agency has approximately 17,000 full-time employees and engages many more people on a contractual basis. The purpose of U.S. Army of Corps of Engineer is to provide vital public engineering services in peace and war to strengthen the nations security, energize the economy, and reduce risks from disasters. According to US Army of Corp Engineers website, the history of United States Army Corps of Engineers can be traced back to June 16, 1775, when the Continental Congress organized an army with a chief engineer and two assistants. Colonel Richard Gridley became General George Washingtons first chief engineer; however, it was not until 1779 that Congress created a separate Corps of Engineers. Army engineers, including several French officers, were instrumental in some of the hard-fought battles of the Revolutionary War including Bunker Hill, Saratoga, and the final victory at Yorktown. The US Army Corps of Engineer is a U.S. federal agency that is under the Department of Defense. It organization is made of Army command that is made up of 38,000 civilian and military personnel. It’s the world’s largest public engineering, design and construction management agency. It specializes in dams, canals and flood protection in the US. The purpose of the U.S. Coast Guard is to maritime homeland security, maritime law enforcement (MLE), search and rescue (SAR), marine environmental protection (MEP) and the maintenance of river, intra-coastal, and offshore navigation. According to http://www.uscg.mil/history/, the Coast Guards official history began on 4 August 1790 when President George Washington signed the Tariff Act that authorized the construction of ten vessels, referred to as cutters, to enforce federal tariff and trade laws and to prevent smuggling. Known variously through the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries as the revenue cutters, the system of cutters, and finally the Revenue Cutter Service, it expanded in size and responsibilities as the nation grew. It operates under the Department of Homeland Security during peacetime and can be transferred to the Department of the Navy by the President at any time or by Congress during time of war. As of August 2009 the Coast Guard had approximately 42,000 men and women on active duty, 7,500 reservists, 30,000 auxiliaries and 7,700 full-time civilian employees. The purpose of U.S Fish and Wildlife Services is for management of fish, wildlife, and natural habitats. In 1871, the U.S. Commission on Fish and Fisheries is created by Congress and charged with studying and recommending solutions to the decline in food fishes and to promote fish culture. Spencer Fullerton Baird is appointed as the first Commissioner. A year later, the Commissions Baird Station in northern California is used to collect, fertilize and ship salmon eggs by rail to the East Coast. According to http://www.fws.gov/director/dan-ashe/dan.cfm?reint=1, Daniel M. Ashe was confirmed on June 30, 2011 as the 16th Director of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, the nations principal Federal agency dedicated to the conservation of fish and wildlife and their habitats. His appointment by President Obama is the culmination of a lifetime spent within the Fish and Wildlife Service family. The United States Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS) is a federal government agency that is under US Department of the Interior. Today, the Service consists of a central administrative office with eight regional offices and nearly 700 field offices distributed throughout the United States. Determine which of the appropriation subcommittees has jurisdiction over agency’s budget request. According to http://www.opencongress.org/wiki/Committees_and_their_jurisdiction, subcommittee of Interior, Environment and Related Agencies has jurisdiction over US Environmental Protection Agency budget request. The subcommittee on Energy and Water has jurisdiction over US Army Corps of Engineers budget request. The subcommittee on Coast Guard and Maritime Transportation has jurisdiction over the US Coast Guard and Interior subcommittee has jurisdiction over US Fish and Wildlife Service. Determine where each agency’s operations fall in the functional classification of the federal budget. This portion was time consuming and was research this information for a long time. I look over and over on some many website until I got confuse. But after my break and according to http://budget.house.gov/budgetprocess/budgetfunctions.htm#function300, that U. S. Environmental Protection Agency, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, and U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service with function 300: Natural Resources and Environment includes programs concerned with environmental protection and enhancement; recreation and wildlife areas; and the development and management of the nations land, water, and mineral resources. It includes programs within the following federal departments and agencies: Agriculture, Commerce, Interior, Transportation, the Army Corps of Engineers, and the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). The U.S. Coast Guard operation’s fall in function 400: Transportation that’s consists mostly of the programs administered by the Department of Transportation, including programs for highways, mass transit, aviation, and maritime activities. This function also includes two components of the Department of Homeland Security: the Coast Guard and the Transportation Security Administration. In addition, this function includes several small transportation-related agencies and the research program for civilian aviation at the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA). Pick one (1) agency from the list and, for a recent budget year, determine: The budget authority and outlays proposed for the agency, and the actual outlays and budget authority for the agency in that year. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency will be the agency from the list to determine the budget authority and outlays. Budget authority provided through appropriation, borrowing authority, or contract authority allows agencies to enter into commitment that will results in immediate or future spending (Mikesell, 2010). I choose Protect Our Nation’s Water Supply to compare EPA budget authority versus outlay. According to EPA website, the EPA’s FY 2010 Budget requests 10.5 billion in discretionary budget authority and 17,384.3 Full Time Equivalents (FTE) to accomplish EPA’s efforts to build a greener economy, move into a clean energy future, and protect human health and the environment in communities across the nation. The FY 2010 Budget provides a substantial increase from FY2009, reflecting an enhanced focus in addressing public health and environment challenges. Increased funding will be targeted at vital areas including investing in water infrastructure, prote cting our freshwater resources, creating a foundation to address climate change and identifying research gaps as well as chemical management. The FY 2010 Budget provides 24 million to fully fund five Water Security Initiative (WSI) pilot cooperative agreements and the Water Alliance for Threat Reduction Activities. The WSI was launched in 2006 to demonstrate, test, and evaluate contamination warning system at drinking water utilities. Adoption of effective water security guidance on contamination systems will be issued upon completion of these projects. According to EPA website, EPA uses 18.6 million out of the 24 million that they requested. This projection was set up for 3 phases. Phases 1 consist of Conceptual Design, Phase 2 consists of pilots at drinking water utilities, and the final phase is Guidance and Outreach. The 2011 Water Security Imitative Pilot program budget was reducing from 24 million to 11.6 million. The budget outlays plans 24 million and most of the outlays are based on the proposal in the budget. References Mikesell, J,L (2010). Budgeting, Budget Structures, and Budget Reform, Fiscal Administration. Custon Edition, Cengage Learning, Mason, OH 45040 Ryan, P. (n.d). Committee on the Budget. House of Representatives. Retrieve on July 21, 2012, from http://budget.house.gov/budgetprocess/budgetfunctions.htm#function300 (n.d). The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers: A brief History. US Army Corps of Engineers Retrieve on July 21, 2012, from http://www.usace.army.mil/About/History/BriefHistoryoftheCorps/Beginnings.aspx (2009). Committee and their Jurisdiction. Open Congress for 112th United States Congress. Retrieve on July 21, 2012, from http://www.opencongress.org/wiki/Committees_and_their_jurisdiction 2012). Conserving the Nature of America. U.S. Fish Wildlife Service. Retrieve on July 21, 2012, from http://www.fws.gov/ (2012). EPA: United States Environmental Protection Agency. Retrieve on July 21, 2012, from http://www.epa.gov/aboutepa/ (2012). United States Coast Guard. U.S. Department of Homeland Security. Retrieve on July 21, 2012, from http://www.uscg.mil/history/