ABSTRACT
This chapter begins with observations on legalistic and formalistic behaviors in policy change. Forms of legalism and formalism have been recognized in differing ways at different levels of the executive branch. A complementary aspect of legalism, and one more closely related to traditional organizational roles, is an adherence to hierarchical lines of authority. Career managers in the bureaus, especially the division chiefs and branch chiefs below the office directors, appear to have hewn quite closely to hierarchical lines of both command and communication. A comparison of the departments of Transportation and Agriculture suggests the effects of the hierarchical difference. A more explicit example of obstructionism arose during the Carter administration, when policy offices within the Office of the Secretary of Transportation worked with the Department of Housing and Urban Development in an effort to apply urban development criteria to highway projects.
