At last, state seeks regulatory reform
10:54 PM 9/15/03

The state Senate's Job Creation Committee today has a chance to start long-overdue reform of a sluggish government regulatory apparatus that impedes Wisconsin's economic growth.

A new measure up for committee review would force state government to make more timely decisions on licenses, permits and other approvals for new and expanding business in Wisconsin. The bill (SB 246) requires agencies to set and meet deadlines for granting or denying permits to businesses. Coupled with Gov. Jim Doyle's recent pledge to reduce red tape in state regulation, the measure could speed economic recovery and help improve Wisconsin's business climate.

At recent hearings, business leaders and others sent a strong message that Wisconsin's permitting process is too cumbersome and time-consuming. Business leaders don't object to important regulations themselves - it just takes bureaucrats too long to figure out if a business is up to snuff.

The new measure, part of the state Senate Republican economic package released last week, would establish clear deadlines that would apply to regulatory reviews by state departments of natural resources, commerce, financial institutions, transportation, revenue and agriculture, trade and consumer protection.

The measure won't sacrifice the public interest in regulating business operations that affect our air, land or water. For example, agencies would be allowed to establish longer deadlines for permits that require an environmental impact statement.

But if an agency fails to meet its deadline, it will either have to grant the permit or refund permit fees paid by the applicant. And agencies may not reject an application solely because they can't get the job done on time.

Doyle, who has proposed his own economic plan emphasizing ideas for making government more responsive to business, is one of many Democrats who have come around to see that the state can effectively protect air, water and land without treating business boosters as enemies to be held at bay. Doyle says the Department of Natural Resources, for example, should be able to approve or deny air operating permits within 180 days of application.

To its credit, the DNR, the most frequent target for industrial ire, has started listening to critics. It has cut the time it takes to get a water permit from an average 110 days six years ago to 34 days now.

More steps are needed. Consolidating the overall number of permits required and pursuing alternatives to regulation - such as cooperative agreements for "good actors" with clean environmental records - will help boost business, too.

Government delays and cumbersome decision-making kill jobs. A streamlined regulatory environment and faster permit processes will help create jobs by encouraging multi-state businesses to keep and expand their Wisconsin operations.