Leading and Overseeing Regulatory Review

The Regulatory Review Secretariat leads regulatory reform within the Government of Alberta, and works to support the government’s goals and priorities by placing an emphasis on the impact of regulation on stakeholders, and the development of quality regulation. Effective regulations are essential to a well functioning economy and provide a powerful means of achieving policy goals that support the Government of Alberta’s priorities.

The Regulatory Review Secretariat provides an oversight function to the process of ongoing regulatory review to align the development of regulations with the Government of Alberta’s Guiding Principles of Regulation.

Regulatory Reform

The goal of regulatory reform is to identify opportunities to reduce and simplify the regulatory burden of government on the people and businesses of Alberta. Supporting the development of good regulation creates the conditions for business to thrive and enhance productivity towards sustainable prosperity. Alberta’s regulatory reform places stakeholders at the center of its regulatory activity to uphold the regulatory environment to a standard of excellence. Regulatory reform has been a long standing policy of the Government of Alberta, and endeavors to reduce regulatory burden where possible while ensuring that personal safety, public health and our environment remain protected.

Ongoing Regulatory Review

The framework for Regulatory Excellence is captured in the Government of Alberta’s Regulation Impact Report, which reflects a best practice standard for the review of regulations. The completion of the Regulation Impact Report ensures that the regulatory means of addressing a problem is the most efficient available and the objective of a regulation continues to be relevant. These reports are submitted to the Regulatory Review Secretariat by departments wishing to amend, or create new regulations. The Regulatory Review Secretariat provides consultative support to departments in preparing these reports as well as issues a compliance statement once the Regulation Impact Report has been approved. Obtaining a compliance statement is a pre-requisite to filing a regulation under the Regulations Act Regulation. See also: Regulations Act.