Australia

Through the Council of Australian Governments (COAG), governments agreed to revise their Regulatory Impact Assessments (RIA) procedures to consider for new regulatory initiatives whether an existing regulatory model outside their jurisdiction would efficiently address the policy issue in question and whether a nationally uniform, harmonised or jurisdiction-specific model would be best for the community. This involves a consideration of: the potential for regulatory competition, innovation and dynamism; the relative costs of the alternative models in use, including regulatory burdens and any transition costs; whether the regulatory issue is state-specific or national, and whether there are substantial differences that may require jurisdiction-specific responses.

Canada

In Canada, a Federal, Provincial and Territorial Working Group on Regulatory Reform acts as a forum to develop government’s capacity to produce quality regulation and encourage regulatory co-operation across jurisdictions. Its work includes developing common regulatory principles, developing a consistent approach to regulatory impact analysis and sharing best practices. 

France

France initiated a policy of administrative simplification and reduction of regulatory burden. The circular from the Prime Minister of 17 July 2013 has introduced a "freezing" of applicable regulatory standards to local governments, businesses and the public (individuals, associations). Moreover, communities are closely associated with the work of simplifying the texts of general application under the aegis of the Secretary of State for State reform and simplification. The objective is to reduce the annual net cost of new standards for local authorities to zero by the year 2017. 

Korea

Evaluate “hidden” regulations: The Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport recently charged municipal authorities with having too many “hidden” local regulations that impeded private investment in construction.  The Ministry requested that National Association of Architects take stock of this type of local regulation.

Mexico

Mexico is working to improve regulatory capacity at the sub-national level. Twenty out of 31 states and the Federal District have issued regulatory reform laws; eight states have laws on economic development containing a section on regulatory improvement; ten of the 32 sub-national units have a commission in charge of advocating and implementing better regulation; 20 have a unit within a ministry, and two have another body fulfilling this role. In addition, e-government tools are widely employed by states and municipalities to enhance regulatory transparency and simplify formalities.

Spain

In October 2012 Spain’s Council of Ministers launched a process of public administration reform, establishing a Commission for the Reform of the Public Administration (CORA). The focus is administrative streamlining, simplifying legislation and procedures, and avoiding duplication between the state and the Autonomous Communities (ACs). Of the 217 proposals presented in the reform, 118 relate to eliminating duplications at the national level and between the national and sub-national levels. A code of best practices is also proposed in order to rationalize public expenditure and increase the efficiency of public services by optimizing the use of new technologies.