Regulatory Reform in Florida: An Opportunity for Greater Competitiveness and Economic Efficiency

As the quantity and scope of regulations in Florida grow, so does the degree to which they affect the economy. In these circumstances, a little reform to the process of creating regulations can go a long way toward crafting an environment that fosters competitiveness and economic efficiency. This paper proposes two simple yet effective regulatory reforms that Florida could adopt to make new regulations more economically efficient. First, before designing a regulation, regulators should define the problem the regulation is supposed to address, which should include determining whether a widespread and systemic problem exists and identifying its causes. Second, once a problem has been identified, regulators should consider a wide range of alternatives before selecting a course of action. Both suggested reforms could be usefully applied to all regulatory actions, thereby improving Florida’s competitiveness and helping to prevent unnecessary regulatory burdens to its economy.

Patrick A. McLaughlin, Jerry Ellig, and Dima Yazji Shamoun

Mercatus Center

March 2014

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