Archive for August, 2013
Cass Sunstein and the power of ‘nudge’
Aug 13th
From: Maclean’s
Obama’s ‘invisible hand’ talks ‘regulatory moneyball’ and the potential of policy based on data-driven, cost-benefit analysis
by Luiza Ch. Savage
He is called “the most evil, dangerous man in America” and Barack Obama’s “invisible hand.” Conservatives and progressives alike distrusted his project to use government power to shape human behaviour in ways that people may not even notice. He endured a tumultuous Senate confirmation, battled conspiracy theories and even fended off death threats in his job as the director of OIRA—the Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs—an obscure-sounding but powerful office that has the final say on government rules about everything from air pollution to product safety.
Regulatory Lookback Eliminates Major Paperwork Burden
Aug 12th
From: Office of Management and Budget/OMBlog
Posted by Howard Shelanski
Truck drivers have a tough job, and one that is essential to the U.S. economy. They work for small businesses and large; many are small business owners in their own right. They put in long days on the road. And at the beginning and end of every one of those days, they have to inspect their trucks and file a report—even if they don’t find any problems. It’s a lot of paperwork—about 50 million hours per year, if you add up all the daily inspection reports filed by drivers across the country.