Independent Regulatory Agencies Research Articles

Regulating broadcast media adult content: A case of Kenya and selected other countries

This study sought to regulate broadcast media adult content in Kenya and selected countries. The study was conducted through desktop research. This includes searches on government websites, academic databases, relevant book and journal literature, online publications, and reviewing primary legislation and regulatory instruments. Five jurisdictions (the US, Canada, South Africa, Britain and Australia) were selected for comparative analysis. The findings demonstrate that Kenya’s mainstream media frequently promotes unrealistic, sexually suggestive behaviour. It was also established that Kenyan television and radio are not adequately regulated. Furthermore, consistency and persistence in monitoring and rating media content prevent ‘ratings creep’ whereby, as earlier explained, content meant for adults is gradually and increasingly included in programs meant for children. A clear and consistent rating system must therefore be developed for Kenya by an independent regulatory authority to avoid ratings creep.

HUKUK VE EKONOMİ DİSİPLİNLERİ İLİŞKİSİNDE GÜVENİLİR TAAHHÜDÜN ÖNEMİ

Bu çalışmada öncelikle hukuk ve ekonomi disiplinleri ilişkisinden bahsedilmektedir. İki disiplinin birlikte geliştirdiği, kurumsal politikaların nasıl oluştuğu ve politika oluşturma süreci devam eden alt başlıktır. Burada kurumsal yapıda kamu politikasını oluşturan erklerin arasındaki işleyiş anlatılmaktadır. Ardından güvenilir taahhüt kavramı açıklanmaktadır. Devletin yatırımcıya vereceği taahhüdün güvenilir olması için alternatif 4 farklı rejimden bahsedilmektedir. Bunlar bağımsız düzenleyici kurumlar, sözleşme hukukunun kullanılması, düzenleyici süreç, hukuki denetim ve uluslararası tahkim şeklindedir. Sonuç bölümünde güvenilir taahhüdün iktisadi büyüme açısından neden önemli olduğu tartışılmaktadır.

Policy coherence versus regulatory governance. Electricity reforms in Algeria and Morocco

AbstractThe diffusion of independent regulatory agencies (IRAs) in utilities sectors in developing countries is underpinned by the idea that IRAs are highly effective institutional devices to signal policy credibility to private investors. But is it really so? Institutional economists tend to confirm the effectiveness of IRAs, while also highlighting the many factors that condition its positive impact on investments. Acknowledging the importance of interaction effects, this paper proposes to shift the level of analysis, moving away from IRAs to look at the overall complementarity between policy objectives, instruments, and the wider political context. In sum, it argues that IRAs are, as such, irrelevant. What matters instead is policy coherence. A comparison between two case studies on electricity policy reforms in Algeria and Morocco lends credit to the policy coherence approach. It shows that policy incoherence may deprive IRAs from any impact on sectoral evolution and that there are effective alternatives to IRA to signal policy credibility and attract investors. The paper concludes by suggesting practitioners to relax the focus on preconceived policy solutions, to be open to alternative policy approaches and to focus on helping developing countries designing coherent policies.

Regulatory reforms, normative changes, and performance: Evidence from the electricity sector in Latin America

AbstractOver the past three decades the Latin American region has experienced various regulatory reforms, and distinctive normative changes have been introduced in the framework, instruments, or procedures adopted by independent regulatory agencies (IRAs). While there is evidence that the establishment of an IRA positively affects regulated sector performance, little is known about the effects of these additional legal dispositions when incorporated in primary or secondary legislation. However, normative changes may shape IRAs' actual regulatory activities and the signals they send to their stakeholders, potentially influencing sectoral performance. This research traces the evolution of several instruments and procedures legally adopted by IRAs located in Latin America and comprehensively assesses the influence of these normative changes on the performance dimensions of the electricity sector. We built indexes that describe the adoption of specific legal dispositions in the region. These indexes reveal that the evolution of the normative dispositions varies in terms of extent, context, and timing of adoption. In addition, the changes are not equally or even positively associated with specific performance dimensions. While economic regulatory instruments shape many performance dimensions, “soft” procedural dispositions also play an important role in perceptions of quality in the electricity sector.

The Fix is in? Parliamentary Scrutiny of Appointments of the Heads of Brazilian Regulatory Agencies

Abstract This manuscript analyses the parliamentary scrutiny of the presidential appointments to the direction of independent Brazilian Regulatory Agencies from an in-depth case study of the heads of the Brazilian Health Regulatory Agency—ANVISA, between 1999 and 2021. In Brazil, the Senate has the final decision on these appointments, exercising a dual function: parliamentary control over presidential patronage and selecting future heads of agencies. The objective of this article was to explain how the parliament exercises these functions and interferes in the appointment process. The results indicate that, although the formal process of parliamentary scrutiny seems like a game of marked cards, where it is already known in advance that the result will be approval, the Parliament plays an anticipatory role of presidential decisions, interfering in the timing of appointments and the possibility of influence over the choice of nominees.

Rules or legacies? Industry and political revolving doors in regulators' careers in Portugal

AbstractThe movement of personnel between roles in regulation, politics, and regulated industries is thought to affect the risks of politicization and industry capture of independent regulatory agencies. To test whether such movements are better explained by formal rules or by sector‐specific patterns, we employ an original dataset of the 152 appointees to 11 IRAs in Portugal over the last 3 decades. We find that variations in the formal independence of agencies have been of little consequence. Instead, revolving doors abound in the financial sector, with a disproportionate share of regulators of that sector coming from, and moving back, to the industry. In turn, appointment of regulators with political links to Portuguese IRAs seems related with legacies of sectoral public control.

Taking root: Independent Regulatory Agency model of regulation in Indian electricity sector

The rise and spread of Independent Regulatory Agencies (IRAs) represented institutional change to bring credibility and efficiency to the sectoral governance, more so in the case of developing countries. On functional grounds a set of responsibilities were delegated to IRAs but over years research has shown that regulatory decision-making hasn't remained insulated from political pressures, precisely what it was intended to do. Using case of Indian electricity sector this article examines decades after being established how IRAs are taking root. To this purpose, it relies on ‘regulatory arrangement’ over analysing IRAs in isolation, and, measures formal and de facto actor influence in regulatory decision-making. Electricity in India is a concurrent subject, so data has been collected from three states. The findings suggest an emerging pattern that IRA's consolidation of decision-making role is not as Electricity Act, 2003 envisaged, though design of regulatory process has altered previous arrangements and put IRAs at the centre of decision-making. This could potentially guide redesign of sectoral regulation and role of IRAs to meet changing nature of electricity governance when attempts are being made to make substantive modifications to the Electricity Act, 2003.

Interests and Influence: Stakeholder Participation in the Regulatory Process

This article deals with stakeholder participation in the formulation of regulatory decisions. The objective is to understand the relationship between the interests and influence of stakeholders in the regulatory game. The largest independent regulatory agency in Brazil has been investigated on this issue. Based on the characterization of the mechanisms for consulting stakeholders, regulators and representatives of relevant groups were heard about the relationship between the interests of each segment and the influence exerted on the agency’s regulatory process. The data obtained draws different scenarios from those expected by the theory of regulation. Structures and processes aimed at promoting the expansion of the participation of different actors result in the deepening of the concentration of influence power of a certain dominant group. The conclusions point to a new vision about the relationships established between stakeholders and regulators, and show new influence strategies and behaviors of these actors.

Towards a European Principle of Independence: The Ongoing Constitutionalisation of an Independent Energy Regulator

This article analyses recent case law of the European Court of Justice in which the European requirements concerning the political independence of national regulatory authorities in the energy sector were interpreted in a broad way. These judgements were delivered in a time in which a strong independent authority plays a crucial role in the acceleration of the energy transition by safeguarding fair market access to new entrants offering innovative energy services. At the same time, the European developments towards a politically independent regulatory authority with discretionary, regulatory, powers is at odds with the way the democracy principle and the legality principle have traditionally been interpreted in several Member States, such as in the Netherlands and Germany. However, it is argued that the latter principles do offer scope for a different interpretation than the more traditional one of the principle of legislative supremacy. A condition, however, is that accountability mechanisms must be improved to provide citizens a legal guarantee that they can have a say and that the regulatory authority can be held accountable by the courts.

Incorporating Public Values Through Multiple Accountability: A Case Study on Quality Regulation of Emergency Care in the Netherlands by an Independent Regulatory Agency

In this paper, we explore how multiple accountability (MA) can enable an independent regulatory agency to deal with multiple conflicting public values in a complex and politically salient decision-making process. We examined the decision-making process of the Dutch National Health Care Institute on quality regulation of emergency care in the Netherlands. Using insights derived from ethnography, document analysis, and interviews, we show that MA resulted from strategic interactions between the Institute’s vertical and horizontal accountability forums. We argue that MA impeded efficiency but also enabled the Institute to deal with multiple conflicting public values.

Can independent regulatory agencies mend Europe’s democracy? The case of the European Medicines Agency’s public hearing on Valproate

In 2017, the European Medicines Agency staged the first effort at democratic innovation within transnational European Union institutions directly influencing the transnational regulation of medicines. Alongside its public consultation on epilepsy drug Valproate, European Medicines Agency included a public hearing involving representatives of patients and testimony from those directly affected by the medicines. Using this critical case study, the article argues from a deliberative democratic perspective that although the hearing in many ways exhibited the traditional shortcomings of elite-driven deliberation, it also demonstrated unexpected and surprising deliberative qualities. Based on new quantitative analysis of the hearing using the Discourse Quality Index, and qualitative observation of over 4 hours of footage, the article argues European Medicines Agency’s hearing facilitated equitable access and influence of patients and members of the public who had previously been excluded from decision making on drug distribution. These findings provide important new evidence of the deliberative democratic value of public hearings.

Legislative direction of regulatory bureaucracies: evidence from a semi-presidential system

ABSTRACT Independent regulatory agency has become the standard institutional choice in Western Europe. Little is known, however, about the involvement of legislators in their design and in their monitoring. In this paper, we analyse ex-ante and ex-post legislative involvement for 48 regulatory agencies enacted in France. We show that legislators debate and design more substantially agencies for which the government bill has already granted them more powers to appoint members to their board, or to be appointed as board members themselves. Once enacted, agencies that allow greater participation by legislators in their decision-making are subject to greater scrutiny, and this even after controlling for routine oversight activities. Regulatory domains matter, though only for ex-post legislative oversight. These results suggest that legislative involvement is selective and driven by strategic considerations. More fundamentally, they imply that legislative involvement could be more important in regulatory agency activities than usually assumed.

Managing expectations in financial markets: voluntary accountability practices of capital market regulators in Spain and Turkey

AbstractIn recent decades, independent regulatory agencies (IRAs) have been introduced as part of public administration reforms around the world. Unlike traditional administrative agencies, most IRAs are not accountable to the executive and their accountability relationship to the legislative tends to be weak. Nevertheless, these agencies often engage in acts of voluntary explanation and justification of their decisions to stakeholders. Based on a comparative study of financial regulation agencies, this article shows that these IRAs resort more actively to voluntary accountability when the expectations of actors interacting with the agency are at conflict. Specifically, we argue that the agency’s ability to manage expectations is shaped by the level of agency independence and the degree of organizational capacity. Our findings contribute to the existing debates by conceptualizing voluntary accountability as a mechanism for managing stakeholders’ conflicting expectations through the lens of financial regulation based on original evidence from Spain and Turkey.

Digital literacy: another aspect of policy-making by media Independent Regulatory Authorities

Digital literacy: another aspect of policy-making by media Independent Regulatory Authorities

Challenging the regulators: Enforcement and appeals in financial regulation

AbstractThis article investigates the conditions under which regulatees challenge regulatory sanctions in court. Targets of enforcement have the right to make independent regulatory agencies (IRAs) accountable in court, but IRAs would prefer not to have their enforcement actions challenged. This article argues that, when deciding whether to contest regulators through appeals, regulatees consider the price of harming the regulatory relationship. Regulatory litigation is expected to be shaped by the type of enforcement measures at stake, the type of entity (i.e., firm or individual), and the kind of relation between firms and authorities (i.e., primary regulators). The empirical analysis relies on more than 3,700 cases from 18 financial regulators covering 13 European countries between 2004 and 2020. Results suggest that enforcement actions that impose costlier sanctions and target individuals are at higher risk of appeal; in contrast, firms sanctioned by their national primary regulators show less appetite for appeals.

The role of the globalisation process on mitigation of carbon dioxide emissions of Latin American & Caribbean countries

The impact of globalisation on carbon dioxide emissions was analysed in a panel data of thirteen LAC countries for the period from 1991 to 2012. A panel autoregressive distributed lag methodology was used to decompose the total effects of globalisation on carbon dioxide emissions both in short- and long-run components. There is evidence that globalisation contributes to reducing carbon dioxide emissions in the long-run. A possible explanation of this result is that the process of globalisation causes technological enhancement in LAC countries, which contributes to a decrease in environmental degradation. Globalisation has other implications, such as the transfer of responsibility from the state to the private sector, where this transfer corresponds to the shifting of regulatory attributes to independent governmental regulatory authorities, in other words, “regulation for competition”.

The role of the globalisation process on mitigation of carbon dioxide emissions of Latin American & Caribbean countries

The impact of globalisation on carbon dioxide emissions was analysed in a panel data of thirteen LAC countries for the period from 1991 to 2012. A panel autoregressive distributed lag methodology was used to decompose the total effects of globalisation on carbon dioxide emissions both in short- and long-run components. There is evidence that globalisation contributes to reducing carbon dioxide emissions in the long-run. A possible explanation of this result is that the process of globalisation causes technological enhancement in LAC countries, which contributes to a decrease in environmental degradation. Globalisation has other implications, such as the transfer of responsibility from the state to the private sector, where this transfer corresponds to the shifting of regulatory attributes to independent governmental regulatory authorities, in other words, “regulation for competition”.

Delegation versus Control: A Comparison of Reform Patterns and Diffusion Channels in Latin American Regulatory Agencies

Regulation is a policy instrument that governments use to achieve their goals. This is affected by the delegation and control schemes to which independent regulatory agencies (IRAs) are subject. The article compares how countries evolved following the introduction of IRAs in the early 1990s in the telecommunications, gas, and electricity sectors in Latin America. It develops a model based on the logics of delegation and diffusion channels to determine which patterns are encountered in the region. It was found that, in the three sectors, control has increased more than delegation, and this has followed mainly a sectoral diffusion pattern.

TMT Characteristics and Organizational Performance in a Regulatory Setting in Kenya

Some previous studies in organizational performance have illustrated that top management team (TMT) characteristics have the ability to lead to more practical strategic decisions, better creativity, value adding innovations and to assist organizations to engage with diverse stakeholders that in effect positively impact on organizational performance. The specific objectives of the study were; to determine the effect of top management team demographic characteristics, to examine the effect of top management team psychological characteristics and to assess the effect of top management team cognitive characteristics on organizational performance of the independent regulatory agencies in Kenya. To achieve these objectives, the study adopted descriptive cross-sectional research design. The target population of the study was all the twenty-three independent regulatory agencies currently existing in Kenya. Due to the uniqueness of each independent regulatory agency and the distinct roles played by each top management team member in their organization, the study adopted a census survey of all the top management team members in all the twenty- three independent regulatory agencies in order to capture the required information. Primary data was gathered using structured questionnaire administered through drop and pick later method. Descriptive statistics was then used to summarize the survey data into percentages, frequencies, means and standard deviations. Inferential statistics employed regression analysis to test hypotheses and draw conclusions. The findings of the study showed that there is no significant effect of top management team demographic characteristics on organizational performance. The findings further showed that top management team psychological characteristics significantly affect organizational performance. Lastly, the findings established that top management team cognitive characteristics significantly affect organizational performance. The study recommends that the recruitment process of TMTs should include psychological and cognitive characteristics as requirements apart from the normal demographic characteristics requirements mostly in use.

Independent Regulatory Agencies, Evaluation of Audit Functions and Independance in Turkish Administration System

Değişen ve karmaşık hale gelen kurumsal ve düşünsel yapıların insan hak ve özgürlükleri üzerindeki etkileri daha çok olumsuz olmuştur. Bu etkiler ve faktörlerin sebep olabileceği olumsuzlukların önünü alabilmek için klasik kurumlardan farklı olarak oluşturulan bağımsız idari otoritelerin ne olduğu bu çalışmada irdelenmiştir. Örgüt yapısı, denetimleri, çalışma şekilleri farklı olan ve bağımsız idari otorite olarak adlandırılan bu yapılara duyulan ihtiyaç, özellikleri, denetlenmeleri ve bağımsızlıkları bu çalışmamızda ortaya konulmuştur. Bu idari yapılar önemli ve hassasiyet arz eden iletişim, medya, bankacılık ve rekabet gibi alanlarda oluşturulmuştur. Bu kurumlar, özellikleri itibariyle ülkeden ülkeye değişik yapılar arz etmektedirler. Bu çalışmada kuruldukları alanlarda geniş yetkilerle donatılan bu kurumların kısaca ne oldukları, denetimleri ve bağımsızlık durumları ülkemiz açısından ortaya konulmaya çalışılacaktır.