Commentaries & Insights

Our Commentaries and Insights are short-form publications intended to distill long-form research and synthesize current policymaking activity into easily understood concepts.


Reflections on the E.O. 12866 Anniversary Event from a Bureaucrat Turned Academic

Summarizing how this event panel started with the story of how E.O. 12866 came to be and moved forward from there.

Congressional Views on the Bipartisan Principles of E.O. 12866

Shawne McGibbon summarizes the panel she moderated, which captured the congressional perspective on the value of Executive Order 12866 and its future prospects.

Tracing Executive Order 12866’s Longevity to its Roots

After 25 years, some marvel at the fact that Executive Order 12866 has survived through Republican and Democratic administrations.

Executive Order 12866: Regulatory Principles Survive and Thrive for 25 Years

Experts discuss why the principles and processes of E.O. 12866 have withstood the test of time across changes in administrations and political parties.

“Behavioural Government:” Implications for Regulator Behavior

The Behavioural Insights Team (BIT) in the UK published a new report titled Behavioural Government. Although we usually talk about “nudging” to correct irrational choices of individual citizens, this report focuses instead on the behavioral biases of policymakers. The report considers various forms of behavioral bias and proposes a set of strategies to mitigate them.

EPA Proposes Replacement for Obama’s Signature Climate Initiative

The Environmental Protection Agency announced the Trump administration's proposed replacement for the Obama-era Clean Power Plan.

Trump Administration Picks up the Regulatory Pace in its Second Year

The first 6 months of the Trump administration’s second year reveal a quicker pace than its first, though still slower compared to the Obama administration.

FCC Process Reform Underscores Need for Economic Review at Independent Regulatory Agencies

At a June 2018 policy seminar, Chairman O’Rielly focused his remarks on the next steps in the FCC’s process reform efforts.