WASHINGTON, D.C. — Governor Brad Little attended a meeting this week with President Donald Trump, Vice President Mike Pence, and other governors in the White House to discuss regulatory reform.
The Governors’ Initiative on Regulatory Innovation Roundtable Discussion was an action-oriented meeting on deregulation and smart regulation.
“I appreciate President Trump inviting me to the White House to share how Idaho achieved historic regulatory cuts this year,” Governor Little said. “The Idaho Legislature, agencies within my administration, and I cut and simplified 75 percent of regulations in one year, and Idaho became the least-regulated state in the country. We rewrote our regulations so that they are less burdensome for small businesses and easier for the average Idahoan to understand. I am proud that Idaho is leading in the area of regulatory reform and providing a template for other states and the federal government to follow.”
On October 21, President Trump announced the Governors’ Initiative on Regulatory Innovation – led by Vice President Mike Pence – to work with state, local, and tribal leaders who are championing deregulation. The initiative aims to cut regulations and costs, advance occupational licensing reform, and better align state and federal regulations.
The initiative builds on President Trump’s continuing deregulatory efforts, which already have reduced regulatory costs by nearly $50 billion, with savings reaching $220 billion once major actions are fully implemented. The Trump Administration has cut eight and a half regulations for every new rule.
Idaho’s historic regulatory cuts were achieved through two executive orders Governor Little issued in his first month as Governor earlier this year as well as through the “rules reauthorization process,” under which Idaho’s administrative code expires if it is not reauthorized.
Governor Little’s comments during the meeting focused on working closely with the Legislature to achieve shared goals, working closely with agency directors and their staff, and emphasizing public involvement in the process.
Other participants in the meeting included Alaska Governor Mike Dunleavy, Arkansas Governor Asa Hutchinson, Indiana Governor Eric Holcomb, Mississippi Governor-elect Tate Reeves, Nebraska Governor Pete Ricketts, South Dakota Governor Kristi Noem, Ohio State Senator Larry Obhof, New Mexico State Representative Jim Townsend, and Chairman Christine Sage of the Southern Ute Indian Tribe in Colorado.
