Photo: RNZ
David Seymour's Regulations Ministry says the impact analysis prepared for law changes generally meets Cabinet's requirements - but there's room for improvement.
The Regulatory Impact Statements (RIS) documents look into what effects bills and other legislative changes might have, including cost-benefit analysis, rationale, and other options for addressing the problem.
In a new 12-page report, the ministry said a significant number of proposals had been missing this analysis.
Some 77 percent of proposals in 2023 had the required RIS, increasing to 85 percent in 2024, but falling to 77 percent again for the first quarter of 2025, the report found.
In a written statement, deputy chief executive Andrew Royle laid out the problem.
"The finding that a significant number of proposals were missing impact analysis spans multiple years, across many portfolios, indicating it is a persistent issue. While some proposals are exempted from the requirement, the numbers missing analysis is a concern," he said.
The Justice portfolio had the most missed RIS proposals with eight, followed by Environment with six, and Transport, Conservation and RMA reform with five.
However, Foreign Affairs and Emergency Management at 0 percent had the worst scores when considering the proportion of proposals provided without a RIS, each having produced just one policy proposal, both of which did not have a RIS.
They were followed by Conservation with 29 percent (five of seven were missing a RIS) and Resources with 40 percent (three out of five).
Local Government and Commerce and Consumer Affairs topped the chart, with 92 percent and 90 percent respectively.
Royle said that where a RIS was provided, it was also increasingly likely not to meet quality benchmarks.
"A decreasing proportion of RISs are receiving a 'meets' rating for quality of advice, and an increasing proportion of RISs are receiving a 'partially meets' rating for quality of advice."
The report showed 50 percent of RIS documents fully met quality assurance ratings in 2023, dropping to about 41 percent in 2024, and remaining around the same percentage in the first quarter of 2025.
The ministry said it was looking into reforms to improve the system.
"The Ministry for Regulation is currently working on how to reform the RIA system alongside the move to Consistency Accountability Statements (CASs) under the Regulatory Standards Bill, to make sure there is an effective and efficient system in place to give Ministers, Cabinet, and the public information about the impact of new regulation."
