Editor’s Note: See also Retrospective Regulatory Review in the States: Arkansas.
From: The Regulatory Review
Given its recent advance notice, EPA should implement retrospective analysis of its regulations in several ways.
How well do environmental regulations perform? Are environmental standards “job-killing regulations” that merit elimination? Does environmental policy strike a balance of reducing pollution without undermining economic growth?
Thoughtful policy debates about the future of environmental regulation require rigorous, transparent evidence addressing these questions. Evaluating the performance of regulations—through retrospective analysis of their impacts, benefits, and costs—can play a critical role in informing these debates. Indeed, these analyses can illustrate whether fully-implemented regulations are making the whole of society better off.