The impact of inter-actor competition on administrative burdens: theorizing “consequent populations” using the illustrative case of gamete donation governance

Abstract Research on administrative burdens has highlighted how policy design and implementation shape citizens’ experiences of the state. Little attention has been paid to how conflicts between target populations can also generate administrative burdens. Using the case of gamete donation policies in Canada, this article argues that target populations can shape administrative burdens for one another through competition within policy arenas, with winners experiencing less costly policy implementation at the expense of other target populations. In doing so, it positions citizens as agents who both experience and produce the costs of policy implementation. To capture these dynamics, the article introduces the concept of consequent populations to identify distinct groups disadvantaged by the outcomes of target group competition, and consequent costs to specify the sub-category of administrative burden borne by this group.