Government and Civil Service Public Administration and Government Operations 2 — Questions and Answers
Question 1: What is federalism in the US context?
- A system where only the federal government holds power
- A system dividing power between the national and state governments (Correct answer)
- A system where states hold all governmental power
- A system where power is held by regional organizations
Correct answer: A system dividing power between the national and state governments
Federalism is the constitutional division of governmental power between the federal national government and the fifty state governments.
Question 2: What is the primary function of the Office of Management and Budget (OMB)?
- Audit federal agency spending
- Assist the President in preparing the federal budget and overseeing agency management (Correct answer)
- Set pay rates for federal employees
- Manage the federal government financial accounts
Correct answer: Assist the President in preparing the federal budget and overseeing agency management
OMB helps the President develop the annual budget request to Congress and oversees the management, performance, and regulatory activities of executive branch agencies.
Question 3: What is a continuing resolution (CR)?
- A congressional resolution to continue a government program indefinitely
- Temporary legislation that keeps the government funded at current levels when new appropriations are not ready (Correct answer)
- A presidential order to continue operations during a shutdown
- An OMB directive to spend reserved funds
Correct answer: Temporary legislation that keeps the government funded at current levels when new appropriations are not ready
A continuing resolution is stopgap legislation that allows the government to keep operating at existing funding levels when Congress has not finished passing regular appropriations bills by the fiscal year start.
Question 4: What is the purpose of the Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR)?
- Regulate foreign business operations in the US
- Govern the acquisition process for all federal government contracts and purchases (Correct answer)
- Set standards for federal property management
- Regulate financial disclosures for public companies
Correct answer: Govern the acquisition process for all federal government contracts and purchases
The FAR is the primary regulation governing how federal agencies acquire goods and services through contracts, ensuring fair and transparent procurement.
Question 5: What is a grant in the context of federal-state relations?
- Permission given by Congress to a state to pass new laws
- Federal funds transferred to states or localities for specific purposes (Correct answer)
- Federal authorization for states to collect taxes
- A congressional pardon for state law violations
Correct answer: Federal funds transferred to states or localities for specific purposes
A federal grant is money provided to states, localities, or organizations by the federal government to fund specific activities, often with conditions on how the money is spent.
Question 6: What is the Government Performance and Results Act (GPRA) designed to achieve?
- Reduce federal workforce through automation
- Improve government effectiveness by requiring agencies to set goals and measure results (Correct answer)
- Standardize pay across all federal agencies
- Evaluate congressional performance on legislation
Correct answer: Improve government effectiveness by requiring agencies to set goals and measure results
GPRA requires federal agencies to develop strategic plans, set performance goals, measure results, and report on their performance to promote accountability and efficiency.
Government and Civil Service Public Administration and Government Operations 2
What is federalism in the US context?