Bureaucrat
A bureaucrat (sometimes called a civil servant) is a specialist profession involved in the day-to-day operations of government. Though technically some other government professions, such as enforcers, politicians, and soldiers can be considered bureaucrats, the term almost universally refers to the administrative staff employed by the state primarily in office environments. As the profession is closely linked to the government, the form that a bureaucrat can take differs greatly based on said government. In one star nation, regional governors may be directly appointed, while in another, everything down to local judges and sheriffs may be directly voted on by their constituents.
Due to the nature of interstellar governments, bureaucracies are responsible for coordinating tens of billions of individuals. Due to the sheer scale of the task, bureaucratic agencies have greatly expanded from their pre-FTL counterparts. Even states that eschew expansive bureaucracies still employ tens of millions of civil servants to perform critical tasks such as censuses, payments, and record-keeping. Most states, however, do employ expansive bureaucracies as the role of government has grown ever larger. Depending on the nature of their employment, bureaucrats are used to keep records of populations and organisations, collect taxes, pay out salaries to government employees, undertake studies on policy, act as a representative to the public, ensure laws and regulations are being abided by, hand out permits, transfer money from the government to intended recipients (including other government agencies), analyse intelligence reports, and carry out oversight on other government employees.
Bureaucrats generally have a poor reputation with the galactic population, as they are responsible for interfacing between the heights of power and the public. Department officials, such as those that disribute permits, licenses, and funding to the public, are often the targets of information campaigns or general ire when they are slow or refuse to cooperate with demands. In democracies in particular, the unelected nature of bureaucrats means they are often accused of anti-democratic behaviour, such as the common "deep state" conspiracy theory - where the real power in government is held by bureaucrats, and elected officials have no real authority. Additionally, many religious governments use priests or members of the clergy as bureaucrats, rather than the secular kind seen in most galactic societies.
Due to the nature of interstellar governments, bureaucracies are responsible for coordinating tens of billions of individuals. Due to the sheer scale of the task, bureaucratic agencies have greatly expanded from their pre-FTL counterparts. Even states that eschew expansive bureaucracies still employ tens of millions of civil servants to perform critical tasks such as censuses, payments, and record-keeping. Most states, however, do employ expansive bureaucracies as the role of government has grown ever larger. Depending on the nature of their employment, bureaucrats are used to keep records of populations and organisations, collect taxes, pay out salaries to government employees, undertake studies on policy, act as a representative to the public, ensure laws and regulations are being abided by, hand out permits, transfer money from the government to intended recipients (including other government agencies), analyse intelligence reports, and carry out oversight on other government employees.
Bureaucrats generally have a poor reputation with the galactic population, as they are responsible for interfacing between the heights of power and the public. Department officials, such as those that disribute permits, licenses, and funding to the public, are often the targets of information campaigns or general ire when they are slow or refuse to cooperate with demands. In democracies in particular, the unelected nature of bureaucrats means they are often accused of anti-democratic behaviour, such as the common "deep state" conspiracy theory - where the real power in government is held by bureaucrats, and elected officials have no real authority. Additionally, many religious governments use priests or members of the clergy as bureaucrats, rather than the secular kind seen in most galactic societies.
Type
Government
Other Associated professions
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