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Independent agencies of the United States government are those executive branch agencies of the federal government of the United States that exist outside of the federal executive departments. Established through separate statutes passed by the Congress, each respective statutory grant of authority defines the goals the agency must work towards, as well as what substantive areas, if any, over which it may have the power of rulemaking. These agency rules (or regulations), while in force, have the power of federal law. The federal executive departments are the major operating units of the federal government, but many other agencies have important responsibilities for serving the public interest and carrying out government operations. Executive branch independent agencies are not part of a fourth branch of government; they are part of the executive branch, but are not part of a specific executive department. A few independent agencies are part of the legislative branch under Congress, such as the Government Accountability Office (formerly called the General Accounting Office), the Library of Congress, the Congressional Research Service, and the Government Printing Office. The nature and purpose of independent agencies vary widely. Some are regulatory agencies with powers to supervise certain sectors of the economy. Others provide special services either to the government or to the people. In most cases, the agencies have been created by Congress to deal with matters that have become too complex for the scope of ordinary legislation. In 1970, for example, Congress established the United States Environmental Protection Agency to coordinate governmental action to protect the environment.
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