Iceland has made significant efforts over the last few years to improve their systems for RIA and stakeholder engagement. On 1 January 2016, the new Law on Public Finances no. 123/2015 came into force, which establishes the requirement to conduct RIA for all primary laws (Article 66). This provision is reinforced by the Cabinet Resolution of 10 March 2017, which establishes the requirement to draft and circulate a “Legislative Intent” document with preliminary impact assessment to other Ministries for comment prior to drafting a bill. Once the Ministries have commented, the Resolution also requires an early-stage consultation on the same document and preliminary RIA with citizens and stakeholders. The Resolution also calls for public consultation on the full draft bill and full RIA before being presented to Cabinet.
To support engagement efforts, Iceland launched a new public consultation website in February 2018 that provides citizens and stakeholders with a single portal to view all draft laws and provide comments electronically. Ex post evaluation continues to be non‑mandatory, but is used periodically for some primary laws and subordinate regulations. While the efforts to improve RIA and stakeholder engagement moves Iceland forward, careful attention should be given to fully implementing the new requirements to ensure their intended effect is achieved and to extend the efforts to subordinate regulations.
