On the value of formal assessment of uncertainty in regulatory analysis

The US Office of Management and Budget introduced in 2003 a new requirement for the treatment of uncertainty in Regulatory Impact Analyses (RIAs) of proposed regulations, requiring agencies to carry out a formal quantitative uncertainty assessment regarding a regulation’s benefits and costs if either is expected to reach $1 billion annually. Despite previous use in other contexts, such formal assessments of uncertainty have rarely been employed in RIAs or other regulatory analyses. We describe how formal quantitative assessments of uncertainty – in particular, Monte Carlo analyses – can be conducted, we examine the challenges and limitations of such analyses in the context of RIAs, and we assess how the resulting information can affect the evaluation of regulations. For illustrative purposes, we compare Monte Carlo analysis with methods typically used in RIAs to evaluate uncertainty in the context of economic analyses carried out for the US Environmental Protection Agency’s Nonroad Diesel Rule, which became effective in 2004.     

Globalization and legal change: The “Americanization” of European law?

Intensified global economic competition, economic liberalization, and the rise of EU governance have led some observers to argue that there has been a trend toward the “Americanization” of the European “way of law.” This article addresses that contention, focusing on legal change in European member states. It first describes ways in which the American legal tradition has differed most sharply from the national legal systems of Western Europe (including Great Britain) and the political and economic factors that account for this “American legal distinctiveness.” Similar political and economic factors currently are at work in Europe, the article acknowledges, creating incentives for legal convergence. But it also argues that European legal culture and the political organization of European national states generate path‐dependent forces that impede European movement toward American ways of law, and it discusses six important differences between European and American law that remain entrenched and are unlikely to disappear.     

The economic significance of “insignificant” rules

We know relatively little about the economic effects of “insignificant” rules because they are not typically analyzed. Yet, these rules could be cumulatively important. We provide an economic analysis of one proposed rule to control hazardous air pollutants, which is not considered to be economically significant. This rule is of particular interest because it is one of the first in a long series of rules that Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) will consider for limiting hazardous air pollutant emissions. Our analysis suggests that the proposed controls that EPA has considered are not likely to pass a benefit–cost test. We recommend that an agency base its decision to allocate additional resources to benefit–cost analysis on the expected value of the improved information. In addition, agencies should consider applying a rule of thumb that would specify a threshold level of risk reduction that needs to be achieved before some kinds of regulation are considered.     

Regulating Lobbyists: A Comparative Analysis of the United States, Canada, Germany and the European Union

Lobbying is central to the democratic process. Yet, only four political systems have lobbying regulations: the United States, Canada, Germany and the EU (most particularly, the European Parliament). Despite the many works offering individual country analysis of lobbying legislation, a twofold void exists in the literature. Firstly, no study has offered a comparative analysis classifying the laws in these four political systems, which would improve understanding of the different regulatory environments. Secondly, few studies have analysed the views of key agents—politicians, lobbyists and regulators—and how these compare and contrast across regulatory environments.
We firstly utilise an index measuring how strong the regulations are in each of the systems, and develop a classification scheme for the different 'ideal' types of regulatory environment. Secondly, we measure the opinions of political actors, interest groups and regulators in all four systems (through questionnaires and elite interviews) and see what correlations, if any, exist between the different ideal types of system and their opinions. The conclusion highlights our findings, and the lessons that can be used by policy-makers in systems without lobbying legislation.     

关于制定《国有企业企业家奖罚条例》的构想

缺乏一支高素质的企业家队伍是当前我国国有企业中遇到的一个严重问题,制定《国有企业企业家奖罚条例》,建立奖罚机制是培育优秀企业家的有效途径之一。《条例》的有效实行还具有推动现代企业制度建设,促进国有资产保值增值和企业技术进步,防止社会不正之风等意义。初步构想的《条例》应该由两两部分内容组成,即确定考核企业家业绩的客观准确的经济指标和具体的奖罚条款。     

对监听措施的法律建构

监听措施是世界各国为应付犯罪形势的变化而发展起来的一种高技术化、高隐密性的强制侦查措施,其出现对于侦查机关打击和惩罚犯罪发挥了极其重要的作用。作为一种重要的技术侦查手段,我国刑事诉讼法也应对其进行必要的规制,以确保在惩治犯罪的同时兼顾保护公民的基本权利。     

论法规批准制度

法规批准制度是指有关主体制定的法规范性文件需经特定主体的批准才能生效的法律制度。现行法规批准制度存在批准范围小、批准程序缺少操作性等不足。完善法规批准制度需合理设置批准范围、完善批准程序等,并对经批准的法规性质进行了法理考察。     

我国信用制度的确立与完善

不完善的信用制度已经成为影响我国经济发展和市场化进程的重要制约因素。我国信用制度完善的主要措施应当是:树立信用观念和信用意识;加强企业信用的构建;强化信用立法和执法,建立有效的信用规范体系;重建政府信用,树立行政权威;规范和加强政府对信用和信用管理行业的监督和管理;建立信用管理的民间机构,发展信用管理教育和理论研究等。     

关于制定我国《艾滋病防治条例》若干问题研究

近年来我国日益严峻的艾滋病形势要求必须尽快制定艾滋病防治条例。条例内容主要应包括立法目的、范围、防治方针与主管部门、预防与控制、检测与监测、治疗与救助、权利与义务、法律责任等。在制定条例时，应注意突出宣传教育、行为干预、自愿咨询检测、职业暴露等内容，以体现时代特点。     

我国公务员考核制度存在的问题及对策

《中华人民共和国公务员法》中公务员的考核制度存在诸多问题:比如考核标准过于笼统;没有解决考核内容,缺乏针对性;激励不显著;考核打乱了组织中的权责配置关系等。只有加强平时考核的力度,建立以绩效为核心的定期考核指标体系,加强考核工作的监督,公务员考核制度才可能得到进一步完善。