Political Control of Arm’s-Length Agencies: One Standard Does Not Fit All
研究了荷兰半自主机构（ZBOs）的政治控制情况，发现实际控制比预期更强，且统一指南的应用存在很大差异，提出了基于公民服务需求的新解释工具。
The increased use of semi-autonomous agencies for the delivery of government services has often been criticized for leading to a loss of political control. In the Netherlands, the debate is most strong regarding the so-called ZBOs, which are agencies that produce unilaterally binding legal decisions. Based on data from secondary sources and interviews, an assessment was made of the level and type of controls of 11 ZBOs. Results show that political controls are stronger than expected, negatively affecting ZBOs’ autonomy. Also, there is large variety in the application of uniform guidelines. We introduce a citizen demand perspective of services as a new tool for the explanation of variety in control. This tool, together with political saliency and the legal status of ZBOs, has an impact on the actual levels of control.