To promote economic growth and job creation, we need cost-justified, evidence-based regulation. Which is why, almost exactly a year ago, President Obama issued an Executive Order calling for a government-wide review of regulations to reduce costs, to eliminate unnecessary burdens, and to get rid of what the President has called “absurd and unnecessary paperwork requirements that waste time and money.” Twenty-six executive agencies produced final plans, spanning over 800 pages and offering more than 500 proposals. Sixteen independent agencies followed suit, responding to a historic request from the President to eliminate unjustified costs on their own.
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These changes are already producing measurable savings for consumers and businesses. Over the next five years, more than $10 billion in savings are anticipated from just a small fraction of the hundreds of initiatives now underway.
The effort to look back at existing rules, and to streamline, fix, or eliminate those that aren’t working, is now becoming a regular part of agency practice. One of the most important features of the current process is the continuing request for public suggestions – for ideas about regulations that might be streamlined, improved, reformed, or eliminated. We are already eliminating billions of dollars in unjustified costs; as the plans are implemented, we expect to save a great deal more.
