Regulation University

Regulation University is a series of educational programs designed for congressional staff to provide the skills and information essential to regulatory oversight and to understand the legal and institutional framework that produces and supports federal regulation.

Research

Beware the Surge of Midnight Regulations Sherzod Abdukadirov \| Jul 17, 2012 Administrations face fewer political constraints during the midnight period and, thus, take the opportunity to impose their policy preferences. These rushed, politically motivated regulations have poor quality analysis and face less stringent oversight from OIRA. Stemming the surge of midnight regulations requires comprehensive reform to constrain agencies’ ability to issue too many regulations and improve OIRA’s ability to oversee regulatory quality during the midnight period.	The Role of Retrospective Analysis and Review in Regulatory Policy Randall Lutter \| Apr 18, 2012 There are many obstacles to better regulatory measurement, analysis and review. But major setbacks include the agencies’ lack of impartiality in reviewing their existing regulations, an inappropriately narrow focus, and a failure to promote steps to better measure the actual benefits vs. the costs of regulations.
Is There a Market Failure In Cybersecurity? Eli Dourado, Jerry Brito \| Mar 06, 2012 Like gardens, the Internet developed without government intervention. Unnecessary regulation could break down the norms and practices that caused the Internet flourish in the first place.	Regulatory Alternatives James Broughel, Jerry Ellig \| Feb 21, 2012 This Mercatus on Policy shows how regulatory process reforms should require agencies to thoroughly analyze alternatives and publish that analysis for public comment before they propose a regulation.
The Law and Economics of Shareholder Voting Reform and the Costs of Proxy Access Thomas Stratmann, J. W. Verret \| Jan 17, 2012 The Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act of 2010 gave the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) the authority to adopt a proxy access rule. Though the legislation urged an exemption for companies with less than $75 million in market capitalization, the SEC unexpectedly failed to provide a permanent exemption from the rule for those companies. This paper finds that, for the roughly 900 publicly traded companies studied with under $75 million in market capitalization, the proxy access rule caused on the order of $335 million in shareholder losses.	The Poor Quality of Affordable Care Act Regulations Christopher J. Conover, Jerry Ellig \| Jan 09, 2012 This Mercatus on Policy catalogs the main deficiencies of the regulatory analysis for the ACA regulations and compares them to other economically significant regulations proposed in 2008 and 2009.

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Testimony & Comments

Fixing the Watchdog: Legislative Proposals to Improve And Enhance the Securities and Exchange Commission

J. W. Verret | Sep 15, 2011

J.W. Verret testified before the House Committee on Financial Services about proposals to improve the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Who's Watching the Watchmen?

Todd Zywicki | May 24, 2011

Todd Zywicki testified before the House Subcommittee on TARP, Financial Services and Bailouts of Public and Private Programs.

Videos

The Search for Solutions: Looking Beyond Prescriptive Regulation

Henry Butler J. W. Verret, Jerry Brito, Henry Butler | May 01, 2012

This panel addresses regulatory issues in three major policy areas: Technology -- Is regulation necessary to ensure cybersecurity? What should we know about market responses to cyber threats before we select a course of action? Health Care -- What is the market failure in health care? What roles do the federal and state governments have in finding solutions? Financial Markets -- When does federal pre-emption produce bad outcomes in financial regulation? How to recognize a regulatory failure and what to do about it.

Who Regulates the Regulators?

Todd Zywicki | April 03, 2012

Todd Zywicki examines the degree to which executive branch and independent agencies are subject to checks and balances on their regulatory authority. Topics include why it is necessary to regulate regulators, the factors that strength or weaken regulatory accountability, and what Nixon-era bureaucracy and the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau have in common.

Getting the Job Done Right: Essential Skills for Regulatory Oversight

J. W. Verret | March 01, 2012

Several key debates this year will focus on the economic impact of federal regulations. The Mercatus Center at George Mason University is pleased to offer a series of courses designed to help congressional staff better understand the regulatory process. The first course uses examples from newly-minted financial markets regulations to review: -The stages involved in developing and finalizing a regulation -How to find and use information about a regulation -The best tools to help policy makers make the case for or against a change in regulation…

Podcasts

Regulation University: Dodd-Frank: What It Does and Why It's Flawed

Hester Peirce | April 09, 2013

Hester Peirce Discusses Dodd Frank at this Regulation University event.

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Regulation University: The Role of the Federal Reserve as a Financial Regulator

Lawrence H. White | April 03, 2013

It is commonly understood that the Federal Reserve determines monetary policy, but less well known is its role as a broad-based federal regulator of financial holding companies, select state banks, international bank operations, designated systemically important non-bank financial companies, and systemically important financial market utilities. Lawrence H. White examined how the Fed regulates and affects monetary policy.

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Regulation University: Beware of Inflated Benefits and Hidden Costs

Patrick McLaughlin | March 28, 2013

It is widely acknowledged that an agency’s decision to create a new regulation should be informed by an analysis of the regulation’s potential benefits and costs. The quality of these analyses, however, depends on the availability and appropriate use of information about potential benefits and costs. This program examines factors that can inflate benefit estimates and the implications of benefit inflation to regulatory policy and the reasons why certain costs of a regulation can be hidden even from those who bear that cost.

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Hester Peirce Discusses Regulatory Oversight Essentials at Regulation University

Hester Peirce | February 21, 2013

Hester Peirce discusses how regulations bring laws to life at this Regulation University event.

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Recent Events

Regulation University: The Role of the Federal Reserve as a Financial Regulator

Lawrence H. White | April 03, 2013

Please join the Mercatus Center for Regulation University’s 2013 series. Lawrence H. White, Ph.D a Senior Scholar at Mercatus, will discuss the Federal Reserve and its dual role as both chief monetary policy manager and a rising federal financial regulator.

Regulation University: Beware of Inflated Benefits and Hidden Costs

Patrick McLaughlin | March 27, 2013

Please join the Mercatus Center for Regulation University’s 2013 series. Patrick McLaughlin, Ph.D a Senior Research Fellow at Mercatus, will discuss how errors, information gaps and misapplied theory can inflate regulatory benefit estimates, and why the costs of regulation can be difficult to nail down.

Regulatory Oversight Essentials, Part II: Keeping a Congressional Eye on the Ball

Hester Peirce | March 12, 2013

Please join the Mercatus Center for Regulation University’s 2013 series. Hester Peirce, J.D., senior scholar the Mercatus Center, will discuss skills and tools essential to conducting regulatory oversight.

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Experts

Maurice P. McTigue

Maurice McTigue is vice president for outreach at the Mercatus Center at George Mason University. He is director of the Mercatus Center's Government Accountability Project and a member of its Spending and Budget Initiative and State and Local Policy Project.

Jerry Ellig

Jerry Ellig is a senior research fellow at the Mercatus Center at George Mason University. His primary research interests include the federal regulatory process, economic regulation, and telecommunications regulation.

Jerry Brito

Jerry Brito is a senior research fellow at the Mercatus Center and directs the Technology Policy Program. His primary research interests are technology and telecommunications policy, government transparency and accountability, and the regulatory process.

Todd Zywicki

Todd Zywicki is a senior scholar at the Mercatus Center and a George Mason University Foundation Professor of Law at George Mason University School of Law. His primary research interests are consumer credit regulation, bankruptcy, credit cards, and mortgages.

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Books

Government Performance and Results

Jerry Ellig, Maurice P. McTigue, Henry Wray | Sep 08, 2011

Summarizing the lessons learned from 10 years of research that evaluated the performance reports produced by federal agencies, the book assesses how the Government Performance and Results Act (GPRA) has affected the quality of agency performance reporting.

Beware the Surge of Midnight Regulations Sherzod Abdukadirov \| Jul 17, 2012 Administrations face fewer political constraints during the midnight period and, thus, take the opportunity to impose their policy preferences. These rushed, politically motivated regulations have poor quality analysis and face less stringent oversight from OIRA. Stemming the surge of midnight regulations requires comprehensive reform to constrain agencies’ ability to issue too many regulations and improve OIRA’s ability to oversee regulatory quality during the midnight period.	The Role of Retrospective Analysis and Review in Regulatory Policy Randall Lutter \| Apr 18, 2012 There are many obstacles to better regulatory measurement, analysis and review. But major setbacks include the agencies’ lack of impartiality in reviewing their existing regulations, an inappropriately narrow focus, and a failure to promote steps to better measure the actual benefits vs. the costs of regulations.
Is There a Market Failure In Cybersecurity? Eli Dourado, Jerry Brito \| Mar 06, 2012 Like gardens, the Internet developed without government intervention. Unnecessary regulation could break down the norms and practices that caused the Internet flourish in the first place.	Regulatory Alternatives James Broughel, Jerry Ellig \| Feb 21, 2012 This Mercatus on Policy shows how regulatory process reforms should require agencies to thoroughly analyze alternatives and publish that analysis for public comment before they propose a regulation.
The Law and Economics of Shareholder Voting Reform and the Costs of Proxy Access Thomas Stratmann, J. W. Verret \| Jan 17, 2012 The Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act of 2010 gave the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) the authority to adopt a proxy access rule. Though the legislation urged an exemption for companies with less than $75 million in market capitalization, the SEC unexpectedly failed to provide a permanent exemption from the rule for those companies. This paper finds that, for the roughly 900 publicly traded companies studied with under $75 million in market capitalization, the proxy access rule caused on the order of $335 million in shareholder losses.	The Poor Quality of Affordable Care Act Regulations Christopher J. Conover, Jerry Ellig \| Jan 09, 2012 This Mercatus on Policy catalogs the main deficiencies of the regulatory analysis for the ACA regulations and compares them to other economically significant regulations proposed in 2008 and 2009.