Idaho Legislators joined Governor Brad Little last week in signing the first two executive orders of the year, aiming to keep Idaho regulations to a minimum and easy enough for Idahoans to understand. These two executive orders build on Idaho’s achievements last year when the state reduced and simplified 75 percent of its red tape, becoming the least-regulated state in the nation. President Pro Tempore Hill of the Idaho State Senate stated, “We cleaned out the mess. Let’s keep this clean so in another 20 years the new governor won’t need to do what’s already been done.” Speaker of the House Bedke added, “We are committed to working with the Governor to reduce regulation. We want to make Idaho as user-friendly as we can, and that’s what good government is all about.”

Executive Order 2020-01: Zero-Based Regulation requires state agencies to justify every regulation it wants to keep. In order to stay on course, state agencies will review every rule chapter in effect on a staggered, five-year schedule—that’s 20 percent of rule chapters every year. The objective is to prevent ineffective and outdated regulations that accumulate over time.

Executive Order 2020: Transparency in Agency Guidance Documents provides a point of contact, giving the public direct access to ask questions and give input on existing statutes or regulations. This executive order also requires every active agency guidance document be posted on the agency’s website, providing a user-friendly approach for the public to access. In addition, agencies will submit a report every year to the Division of Financial Management, detailing which final orders and agency guidance are used and their purposes. For more on these executive orders,