Legislating Bureaucratic Change is an in-depth analysis of the Civil Service Reform Act of 1978. This legislation, hailed by many as the major domestic achievement of the Carter presidency, was a far-reaching attempt to change and control the massive federal bureaucracy. Not since the passage of the Pendleton Act in 1883 had so major a reform been attempted.

Legislating Bureaucratic Change reveals this process of change and reform. As a collection, its chapters advance our understanding of the dimensions and problems of bureaucratic change. In a larger sense, by focusing on civil service reform as public policy, the book also provides valuable insights into the ability of American policy institutions to address critical public problems.