Israel made significant progress in improving its regulatory policy since 2015. The Government Resolution No. 2118 of 22 October 2014, accompanied with stricter rules and RIA guidance in 2016, provides a solid basis for a whole-of government regulatory policy. The focus is mostly on reducing regulatory burdens, both through comprehensive reviews of the existing regulations and through ex ante regulatory impact assessment.
As of 2016, conducting RIA is obligatory for all legislative proposals initiated by the executive. This obligation, however, does not concern the over 40% of laws initiated by members of the Knesset. The 2014 Resolution and the guidance issued determine some key analytical steps that a RIA should entail and prescribes forms of stakeholder engagement in the execution of a RIA. Israel would benefit from targeting the RIA efforts in order to allocate most analytical resources where they deliver greatest added value.
The 2014 Resolution also sets an obligation for each ministry to formulate a five-year plan to reduce regulatory burdens in its area of competence. However, the programme examines burdens far in excess of compliance costs — it also considers other factors such as organisational and process aspects, quality of service, time and market saving. The programme has helped reduce regulatory burdens by 2.67 billion NIS in annual direct costs and saved over 40 million ‘waiting’ days.
Most of the legislative planning activities are in the hands of individual ministries, with limited inter-ministerial co-ordination. This is one of the key factors behind inflationary regulatory activity. The Government is working on reforming the planning system. The Better Regulation Department’s role in regulatory oversight, such as issuing substantive opinions on RIAs on the basis of transparent criteria, should be strengthened.
