Enterprise Saskatchewan

The Government of Saskatchewan has prioritized the need for addressing regulatory needs for modernization in the province to foster competitive economic growth and prosperity. As a result of this government commitment, the Regulatory Modernization Council (RMC) has been established to guide and direct regulatory reform and business services priorities. This council will be made up of third party representatives of business and industry stakeholders in the province, and will report to the Enterprise Saskatchewan (ES) Board of Directors.

From an earlier assessment of regulatory review activities in other jurisdictions by the ES, 11 strategic themes for regulatory modernization have been identified (below). From this analysis, a background paper wwasn prepared and examined the issues, status and best practices for minimizing the negative regulatory implications associated with each theme. The aim of that discussion paper is to assist the RMC in its discussions regarding regulatory modernization in the province.

The 11 strategic themes that have been identified include:

A priority for government is to ensure that clients and citizens access clear, consistent and timely services and information that will meet their needs. Often, these front-line services are the only point of contact that clients have with government, and therefore will influence the public's perception of government and public policy.

Increasingly, businesses and citizens are turning to online resources to interact with government with progressively greater expectation that they will be able to meet their needs and receive a high level of service using the internet.

The streamlining of information collected by various government institutions helps to avoid unnecessary duplication that results in increased regulatory burden, cost, and paperwork experienced by both government and the client.

Governments are increasingly adopting quantifiable measures and targets to reduce regulatory burden and red tape, increasing the competitiveness of the business environment.

Delays attributed to regulatory inefficiencies and deficiencies can be both costly and frustrating to both clients and government. Efforts to ensure expediency in the delivery of services will help to attract and retain competitive business operations.

Enhancing regulatory transparency contributes to their effectiveness, clarity, accomplishment of stated objectives in the most efficient and fair manner, as well as contributes to an increased likelihood of compliance.

Resolving issues of poor communication, written and orally, is critical to the ease of implementation, cost-effectiveness, understanding, and compliance of regulations.

Understanding the full impact on business operations and their competitiveness resulting from regulatory compliance, including the cumulative impacts is critical for government to effectively address issues of regulatory burden in a meaningful and significant manner.

The harmonization of standards required by multiple government institutions across one or more jurisdictions reduces the instances of overlap in areas of responsibility. This overlap of responsibilities results in the duplication of efforts by business to satisfy necessary requirements and ultimately results in undue costs and delays to their operations.

There are several viable alternatives to enforce the compliance of regulations as opposed to the traditional "command and control" enforcement tool. Such alternatives are: Performance-based regulations; process-based regulations; co-regulation; economic instruments; information and education; guidelines; and voluntary approaches.

Minimizing the financial burden on businesses resulting from the costs associated with business fees and taxes will help to stimulate competitive economic opportunities in the province.