Regulatory Reform

Advocacy’s April 2020 report, Reforming Regulations and Listening to Small Business, relays what small businesses in every state have told us between June 2017 and December 2019. It contains links to dozens of articles describing small regulatory compliance issues. And it lists the regulations of greatest concern and provides progress updates on many of them.

Illustration of the Office of Advocacy sending regulatory reports to Congress.
Illustration of the Office of Advocacy sending regulatory reports to Congress.

Advocacy’s December 2018 report, What Small Businesses Are Saying and What Advocacy Is Doing About It, details the foundations of the Regional Regulatory Reform Roundtable initiative.

Presidential Executive Order on Reducing Regulation and Controlling Regulatory Costs Budget and Spending January 30, 2017

What is Regulatory Reform? In January 2017, President Trump issued two executive orders directing federal agencies to relieve the burden and cost of federal regulation on business. The Office of Advocacy is the voice of small business in government, so the office began working to inform agencies about the regulations of greatest concern to small businesses. The core of Advocacy’s effort is input from small businesses. Learn More

How can you get involved in Regulatory Reform? Roundtables, site visits, and online comments. Advocacy attorneys and economists are traveling around the country inviting small businesses to share their experiences at roundtable discussions. While in a city or region, Advocacy staff also visit small businesses for a firsthand introduction to their everyday operations.

Where has Advocacy been? Between June 2017 and September 2018, Advocacy held 37 roundtables in 24 states and made more than 80 small business site visits. The small business concerns raised during each trip are documented in roundtable reports and site visit reports. Trace Our Journey

An illustration of roundtable meetings held across the United States.

What has Advocacy done? Follow up. Follow up. Follow up. Advocacy tracks small business concerns and directs them to agencies. These include letters to heads of agencies and their regulatory reform officers, in-person meetings with rule makers, teleconferences, and roundtable discussions with agency officials and small businesses. Learn More

What improvements have been made? Check out our Regulatory Reform Improvements page.