We have a new special report looking at a series of regulatory reform audits from the State Auditor’s Office. Briefly:

• Since 2011, the state auditor’s office (SAO) has been looking at regulatory reform.
• In 2015, it found that Washington does not take a strategic approach to multi-agency coordination.
• In 2013, the SAO found that for 60 percent of all permits, agencies did not provide information on how long it would take to come to a decision.
• Processing times were tracked by agencies for only 62 percent of business permits.
• In 2012, the SAO found that although Washington has three central business websites, none of them provided complete regulatory information.
• The SAO recommends developing a long-term strategy for streamlining regulatory processes through better coordination.
• It recommends that agencies reduce duplication, promote concurrent reviews of applications, make sure regulatory requirements are compatible, and make use of performance measures.
• The 2013 audit recommended that each agency should measure permit decision times and provide businesses with estimates of processing times.
• The 2012 audit recommended creating a one-stop shop for all business transactions with the state.
• Additionally, all agencies should “provide complete and accurate information for all business licenses and permits on their websites.”