Turf Wars in the Madisonian Model: Removal, Accountability, and the Curious Case of the Constitutionality of Independent Regulatory Agencies

Independent regulatory agencies( IRAs) in a democratic system of government are designed to ensure and promote their independence and autonomous functioning. It is rooted in the concept of regulatory state. Developing countries like India stepped into this direction in the 1990s. In this article, an attempt has been made to analyse the working of IRAs with special reference to the electricity sector. The article demonstrates how the rollout of the agencies brought into light the difficulties of achieving functional independence and operational effectiveness. The discretionary authority is limited from within and without although the institutional space for regulatory policy is slowly but certainly becoming more open. The study seeks to identify some of the weaknesses of this new institutional arrangement that have become evident over the last few years.

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Diffusion agents and institutional change: The variable influence of independent regulatory agencies across sectors in India

Utilities Policy ◽

10.1016/j.jup.2020.101041 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 64 ◽

pp. 101041

Author(s):

Shashwat Kumar

Keyword(s):

Institutional Change ◽

Regulatory Agencies ◽

Independent Regulatory Agencies ◽

Variable Influence

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Independent regulatory agencies in Turkey: are they really autonomous?

Public Administration and Development ◽

10.1002/pad.448 ◽

2007 ◽

Cited By ~ 1

Author(s):

Ser??ye Sezen

Keyword(s):

Regulatory Agencies ◽

Independent Regulatory Agencies

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Regulation and Sustainable Energy Systems

The Oxford Handbook of Regulation ◽

10.1093/oxfordhb/9780199560219.003.0023 ◽

2010 ◽

pp. 571-589 ◽

Cited By ~ 1

Author(s):

Catherine Mitchell ◽

Bridget Woodman

Keyword(s):

Sustainable Energy ◽

Energy Systems ◽

Regulatory Agencies ◽

Basic Premise ◽

The Public ◽

Sustainable Technologies ◽

Policy Goals ◽

Sustainable Energy Systems ◽

Independent Regulatory Agencies ◽

Enhance Efficiency

This article discusses the extent to which regulation has a role to play in the development and operation of sustainable energy systems, in other words, the extent to which regulators' decisions should be shaped by broader policy goals on sustainability, and how regulators might devise frameworks to encourage the deployment of sustainable technologies and practices. Its basic premise is that the development of sustainable energy systems is vital in the public interest and that economic regulators can play a key role in delivering such systems. This article highlights that inherent conflicts between policy and regulatory objectives, especially in an area that seeks to incentivise investment, achieve goals in terms of climate change commitments and enhance efficiency. It points to the tensions that arise between levels of government as well as in terms of allocation of decision-making authority between government departments and supposedly independent regulatory agencies.

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