4 - Administrative Regulation

Summary

This chapter analyses the practice of regulatory oversight of charitable trusts. It first analyses the powers and responsibilities assigned to each of the regulators and the relationship between them in law. This analysis shows that the vagueness of the law creates scope for regulators to consider extra-legal factors when engaging with the law. Next, the chapter examines the regulatory practice in light of China’s particular political, social, and economic conditions. The findings from semi-structural qualitative interviews point towards three factors that are especially influential in the decision-making of regulatory officials: the regional development agenda, the tension between regulatory capacity and regulatory objectives, and the regulators’ perceptions of risk. The chapter provides an in-depth analysis of each factor and highlights the regional differences in regulatory practice caused by these factors.