Regulatory Gatekeeping
In 2008, the Western Australian Government formed the Regulatory Gatekeeping Unit (RGU) to establish and administer a new best practice process of Regulatory Impact Assessment (RIA). The RGU serves as the primary contact to assist Government agencies to meet Western Australian Government’s best practice RIA requirements, and in monitoring and reporting on compliance with those requirements.
The RIA process will be applied to new and amending regulatory proposals. It has been designed to encourage careful consideration, at an early stage, of the fundamental question of whether regulation is required or if policy objectives can be achieved by alternate measures, with lower cost for business and the community. The process aims to ensure increased transparency in the decision making process, rigour of analysis and broad public consultation of proposals. It should also provide an early warning to the Government of unintended consequences of regulatory proposals.
The RGU will provide guidance to Government agencies, interested businesses and individuals on the RIA process.
The RIA Process
Regulatory Impact Assessment is a two-tiered process to assess regulatory proposals to determine their impact on business, (including Government businesses), consumers or the economy, that will generally be undertaken by agencies.
A Preliminary Impact Assessment (PIA) should first be undertaken on all regulatory proposals.
If the impacts of the proposal are adverse and significant, a Regulatory Impact Statement (RIS) is required. This consists of two documents:
- A Consultation RIS is first published for consultation purposes.
- The results of consultation and further analysis are then developed into a Decision RIS for presentation to the decision maker.
A RIS is not required for regulatory proposals that a PIA shows as having no or low impact on business, consumers or the economy.
Training
All agency policy staff in Western Australia will have access to training in the RIA process prior to it going live and it is envisaged that a comprehensive training program will be ongoing.
Guidelines
Regulatory Impact Assessment Guidelines for Western Australia