Richard Williams

Managing Director, Regulatory Studies Program and Government Accountability Project

Richard Williams is the managing director of the Regulatory Studies Program and the Government Accountability Project. Prior to joining the Mercatus Center, he served as the director for social sciences at the Center for Food Safety and Applied Nutrition in the Food and Drug Administration for 27 years. He also served as an advisor to the Harvard Center for Risk Analysis and taught economics at Washington and Lee University. Dr. Williams is a U.S. Army veteran who served in Vietnam.

Dr. Williams is an expert in benefit-cost analysis and risk analysis, particularly associated with food safety and nutrition. He has published in Risk Analysis and the Journal of Policy Analysis and Management and has addressed numerous international governments, including the United Kingdom, South Korea, Yugoslavia, and Australia.

Dr. Williams received his PhD and MA in economics from Virginia Tech in Blacksburg, VA, and his BS in business administration from Old Dominion University in Norfolk, VA.

PUBLISHED RESEARCH

Research Paper/Study

21st Century Regulation: Discovering Better Solutions to Enduring Problems

Bruce Yandle, Henry Wray, Richard Williams, Scott Farrow, Andrew Perraut, Gary E. Marchant | Jan 07, 2009

This publication is the first in a new series of long-term research and discussions focused on finding solutions to the most pressing regulatory hurdles. This compendium consists of five papers addressing multiple regulatory challenges for the new presidency and the federal government to consider.

WORKING PAPERS

Regulation Checklist: Common Pitfalls in Regulations

Richard Williams | Jan 12, 2010

Federal regulations are mandated by the executive branch of the federal government and are used to implement, in some cases to finely tune, laws from Congress. They reach most aspects of American life and touch every single individual in some way. The U.S. federal government creates an average of about 4,000 final regulations each year with about 500–700 reviewed by the White House (the Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs).

Facilitated Market Solutions for Social Problems

Richard Williams | Sep 2008

This working paper by Mercatus Center Research Associate, Andrew Perraut and Richard Williams, the Managing Director of Regulatory Studies Program and Government Accountability Project explores the use of market based solutions to address social problems.

POLICY BRIEFS

Food Safety in the 21st Century

Richard Williams, Robert Scharff, David Bieler | Feb 24, 2010

In a March 2009 address, President Obama declared, “There are certain things only a government can do. And one of those things is ensuring that the foods we eat . . . are safe and don’t cause us harm.” Though this idea that only the government can control food safety risk may have been true at the turn of the 20th century, since then three important changes have occurred.

Taxing Sin

Richard Williams, Katelyn Christ | Aug 2009

In this Mercatus on Policy, Richard Williams and Katelyn Christ of the Mercatus Center discuss the dangers and shortfalls of excise taxes.

Taxing Sins: Are Excise Taxes Efficient?

Richard Williams, Katelyn Christ | May 2009

In this Mercatus on Policy, Richard Williams and Katelyn Christ of the Mercatus Center discuss the dangers and shortfalls of excise taxes on soft drinks.

MORE POLICY BRIEFS

TESTIMONY & COMMENTS

Public Interest Comment

Comment on Methyl Mercury Risk Assessment

Richard Williams | Jun 09, 2009

In this Public Interest Comment, Managing Director of the Regulatory Studies Program Richard Williams suggests that the benefit/risk approach is the best method to assess the risk of methyl mercury in commercial fish.

Congressional Testimony

Recommendations for OIRA Reform

Richard Williams | Mar 10, 2009

Director of the Regulatory Studies Program at the Mercatus Center, Richard Williams, suggests three recommendations for the president's upcoming executive order on regulatory reform.

Public Interest Comment

OMB's 2007 Report to Congress on the Cost and Benefits of Federal Regulations

Richard Williams | Aug 31, 2007

This public interest comment is a review of the OMB's 2007 draft report to Congress on the benefits and costs of federal regulation.

Mercatus Center

Richard Williams