Question

Do you think the numerous state agencies in Texas reflect democracy in action, or do they work against the ideal of democracy? Give reasons for your answer.

Answer 1

In my opinion, as far as purely democracy is concerned, the numerous state agencies in Texas are against the ideal of democracy. My reasoning is as follows-

• While Texas has many elected executives, it also has appointed executives. There are many agencies which do not get affected directly by the public. These include-

1. Specialized agencies.
2. Agencies not reporting to the governer.

• There is also the fact that there is no state cabinet. This and the above fact combined result in plural executive. What it means is that one part of executive is elected and is answerable to the public that way (the way its supposed to be in a democracy), there is another part of executive which is not affected by elections and is not answerable to the public directly. This is against the spirit of democracy.
• A high level of bureaucracy in these agencies also results in their own set of rules, hierarchies and principles that they follow. This means that they are more concerned about their rules etc than serving the public. Too much procedural emphasis results in lesser service to the public and lesser answers to them.
• Having numerous agencies also means that their jurisdictions often overlap- resulting in confusion among themselves and even more so in the public- about who is answerable for what.

For the above reasons, I believe the numerous state agencies of Texas are a hindrance in effective democracy.