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Concept Version 6
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Regulatory Commissions

Independent regulatory agencies create and enforce regulations to protect the public at large.

Learning Objective

  • Use the work of the FDA as an example to describe the activity and mission of regulatory agencies more broadly


Key Points

    • Independent regulatory agencies are situated in the executive branch of the government but are not directly under the control of the President.
    • Regulatory agencies conduct investigations and audits to ensure that industries and organizations do not pose threats to public safety or well-being.
    • Regulatory agencies are intended to be transparent, such that they are accountable to public oversight and legal review.

Terms

  • regulatory agency

    A public authority or government agency responsible for exercising autonomous authority over some area of human activity in a regulatory or supervisory capacity.

  • Food and Drug Administration

    An agency of the United States Department of Health and Human Services, one of the United States federal executive departments, responsible for protecting and promoting public health.


Example

    • The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) is an independent regulatory agency intended to promote public health by overseeing food and drug safety.

Full Text

A regulatory agency is a body in the U.S. government with the authority to exercise authority over some area of human activity in a supervisory capacity. An independent regulatory agency is separate from the other branches of the federal government. These agencies are within the purview of the executive branch of government, but are internally regulated rather than subject to the direct control of the President.

Regulatory agencies exist to supervise the administrative functions of organizations for the benefit of the public at large. To carry out this function, regulatory agencies are composed of experts in a specific policy area of administrative law, such as tax or health codes. Agencies may carry out investigations or audits to determine if organizations are adhering to federal regulations.

To better understand how independent regulatory agencies function, let us consider the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA). The FDA's mission is to promote public health by regulating the production, distribution, and consumption of food and drugs. When a pharmaceutical company produces a new drug, the manufacturers must submit it to the FDA for approval. The FDA employs experts in pharmaceuticals and drug safety, who evaluate the potential benefits and consequences of the drug. Following reports on the safety of the drug, the FDA determines whether it can be distributed, to whom it can be distributed, and under what conditions it can be safely consumed. The FDA thus uses internal expertise to regulate the pharmaceutical industry.

Regulatory agencies are authorized to produce and enforce regulations by Congress, and are subject to Congressional and legal review as they carry out their functions. Congress may determine that regulatory agencies are obsolete, for example, and may therefore discontinue funding them. Similarly, Congress may choose to expand the authority of a regulatory agency in response to a perceived threat to public safety. Additionally, regulatory agencies are designed to be transparent, such that their decisions and activities are able to be evaluated by the public and by legal review boards.

Food and Drug Administration Regulations

The FDA sets regulations governing which drugs can be distributed over the counter and which require a prescription based on an expert evaluation of the drug's effects.

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