Designing Regulations with Evaluation Built-In

By Jon Silberman

How can regulations be designed with evaluation built in? Actions and answers would include the style and purpose in which regulations are written (in which evaluation can be included), noting the standards of compliance that are utilized with the regulation, having a rule that already deals with contingency situations. Factors included noting the complexity of the rule, the cost-benefit analysis of compliance, and having valid data.

What role can evaluators play in designing and writing regulations? Steps would involve having evaluators be specialized into their careers to become evaluators who can cross-communicate regulations across different standards and being able to utilize and not manipulate statistical data in evaluating compliance.

How to better design rules so facilities, regulators, and the public will know who is regulated, their compliance status, whether the rule is actually achieving its intended benefits? The use of tools and technology such as GIS, eReporting, holistic models, the development of non-universal rules and standards, as well as quasi-experimental design.