Rethinking Regulatory Paradigms in a High-Tech Era (Tech Regulation Series)

During this era of disruptive technological change, heavy-handed regulation can stifle innovation and unintentionally undermine the public interest. Yet regulators are tasked by Congress with promoting particular policies, often under old statutes with outdated information. How can regulators best do their jobs in a way that promotes innovation and the public interest?

In a pair of new Gray Center working papers, Gus Hurwitz (University of Nebraska) and Geoffrey Manne (International Center of Law & Economics) offer two new ways to think of the regulatory task: “Regulation as a Discovery Process,” in which the regulatory process is geared toward promoting the creation and spread of knowledge; and “Regulation as Partnership,” in which the regulators and the regulated see each other in less adversarial terms.

To discuss these papers, Adam White interviews Hurwitz, Manne, and Jennifer Huddleston (American Action Forum) to describe the biggest opportunities—and biggest problems—presented in Manne’s and Hurwitz’s proposed reforms.