European Administrative Networks in-between Audiences : Accountability Dilemmas in Multi-Level EU Governance

At the same time that differentiation has provided the European Union (EU) with tools to manage increasing diversity, it has posed significant challenges to the achievement of collective EU goals and an even level playing field across member states. In this context, European Administrative (EANs) have been presented as promising solutions to overcome differentiated implementation of EU policy through exchange of knowledge and pooling of resources. However, even though EANs have expanded and acquired more competences over time and across policy areas, they come with considerable accountability problems. Despite previous literature identifying the main shortcomings of EANs in terms of accountability - namely, their insulated work mode, membership, informal and opaque nature -, we do not know how wide-spread these accountability issues actually are and whether they have any ramifications for the functioning of EANs. This paper takes a first step to uncover and assess the multi-level accountability webs EAN members are embedded in by looking at the exchanges of information and best practices at the Head of Environmental Protection Agencies Network (EPA Network). Through the application of social network analysis to unique survey data, the intra-network interactions are traced, and the underlying structure of the network is assessed in terms of whether it reflects predominantly horizontal collaboration or hierarchical control. The findings show that despite being a voluntary and informal network without a formal steering actor, the EPA Network presents an underlying hierarchical structure centred around key members. The dynamics within the network have thus strong implications for the assumption ofpeer accountability within EANs