lecture 5 Flashcards
What is implementation?
➞ legislation has to be implemented in order to be effective. Depending on how it is implementing changes how effective it is.
= what happens after a bill becomes a law (Bardach)
- you also look at the evalution (so the effectiveness)
It’s a circle ➞ agenda-setting ➞ legislation ➞ implementation ➞ evalution ➞ agenda setting ➞ etc
Why is implementation important?
Legislation → Implementation → Effects
Government officials will have to decide on the implementation, and the effects of the law are based on how it is implemented. This doesnt always fit the original will of the law
➞ that’s also why law in action is different than law in the books
rules are not complied with automatically, people need to know them in order to comply with them
Levels of implementation in the EU
1. Policy formulation at EU level:
- Agenda setting and decision making
➞ then 3 levels
2. Implementation: transposition
- National laws need to be adapted. ministries in the MS will do so
3. Implementation: application
- People addressed by the law need to comply with it
4. Implementation: enforcement
- Mainly done by courts or other bodies tasked with enforcement.
- To see if the laws are abided by, if not than they can sanction
➞ this whole process is supervised and enforced by the EU commission and the CJEU can give sanctions otherwise
Dörrenbächer: “Frontline implementation” article
What EU level of implementation is this?
Study on how caseworkers in migration services in Germany and the Netherlands implement EU law
In this case the implementation level was application because it is about how the caseworkers are applying laws that have been transposed by national governements (they are the ones which are implementing them)
examples of ‘frontlne implementers’?
Police officers
Courts ➞ they apply the law
Safety inspectors ➞ those who check companies whether they comply
Nora Dörrenbächer (2018) Frontline uses of European Union law
what were the two hypotheses created by her?
Hypothesis 1:
・ Frontline implementers who operate in a discretion-constrained structure do not use EU law independently of national law and instructions
Hypothesis 2:
・ Frontline implementers who operate in a discretionary structure use EU law independently and alongside national law and instructions
What is a nondiscretionary/discretionary structure?
= a margin of appreciation (of some kind). You have the rules which you have to interpret, but because some rules are unclear, you have some kind of human judgement/margin of appreciation.
- Discretionary = a lot of margin of appreciation
- Nondiscrenary structure = little room for own judgement
table of nondiscretionary and discretionary structure
Application of policy - street-level bureaucrats
➞ in direct contact with general public and making decisions which will be of influence to them
➞ they are able to exercise discretion when making a decision
Why do street level bureaucrats have discretion?
= because street-level bureaucrats need to interpret and imply (vague) policies
- The discretion that they have forms an explenation as to why law in the action is different than law in the books ➞ it can differ than what was origionally intended because of their discretion
Discretion
= the empty area of policies and procedures
Critique for street-level bureaucrats for using discretion
they aren’t elected. Because of their discretion it could form tension from a democratic perspective. They can imply the rules more to a certain type of people (form of discrimination or random treatment)
Screen-level bureaucracy and System-level bureaucracy
‘Screen-level bureaucracy’ ➞ where they need to fill out all kind of information to control them
‘System-level bureaucracy’ ➞ whole process is taken over by ICT (its all automated). So kind of the next step to the one above
Can you think of factors that could result in different patterns of implementation (transposition, application, enforcement) in Member States?
- Issue salience ➞ that the body doesnt think that the issue is that important or doesnt agree with the content
- Fit/misfit: how well does the legislation fit in with existing regulation and practice in the MS? ➞ if there is a misfit the imlementation wouldnt be as smooth
- Veto players and what they want
- Domestic isues: how does regulation fit into national priorities and situation in the MS?
Comparative research methodology in social science + approaches
A lot of the reading we have done have been comparative, becasue this can give reasoning/help to validate possible explanations
- a most similar approach:
cases that are as much alike as possible except for the variables of interest - a most different approach:
cases that are as different as possible except for the variables of interes
Problems in cross-national research
- Availability of data
- Comparability of data, concepts, statistics
- Problems of translation and interpretation
- Ethnocentrism
- Choice of countries
