Case Study: Idaho's zero-based regulation

The Competitive Enterprise Institute’s report “The Beauty of Regulatory Sunsets” describes a regulatory reform approach based on Idaho’s experience with zero-based regulation, where all existing rules were allowed to expire unless agencies chose to re-justify them. It explains that this process led to a large reduction in regulatory volume and that establishing periodic review cycles can prevent the automatic accumulation of outdated or unnecessary regulations. The study suggests that setting sunset dates and requiring regular evaluation encourages agencies to assess the value of their rules and align regulation with current conditions, with the goal of reducing overall regulatory burden while preserving necessary protections.

Read the report