Human Impact Statements
Inside Liberty Watch Today - Aug. 19, 2005

Reforming the Legislative Process with Human Impact Statements.

According to their proponents, environmental impact statements exist to identify and minimize negative effects of human activity on the environment. For example, the California Environmental Quality Act states that "the purpose of an environmental impact statement is to provide public agencies and the public in general with detailed information about the effect which a proposed project is likely to have on the environment; to list ways in which the significant effects of such a project might be minimized; and to indicate alternatives to such a project."

If the environment is entitled to such a sweeping review process, what about people? Shouldn't governments be required to issue "Human Impact Statements" to identify potential negative effects of proposed legislation on the citizens they represent?

I believe advocates of limited government and free markets, in Nevada and elsewhere, could gain considerable support and political leverage by promoting the implementation of "Human Impact Statements" at all levels of government. This seemingly simple reform has the potential to greatly increase the transparency of the legislative process and enhance the effectiveness of free-market outreach.

Here's how the process might work. Before a piece of legislation were formally introduced, its sponsor would be required to prepare and post on the Internet a Human Impact Statement, which would include the following information:

• Which individuals or groups stand to gain or lose if the legislation is passed
• The estimated costs of implementing the legislation
• The overall benefits to be expected from the legislation

A one- to three-page executive summary of each Human Impact Statement would be prepared by an independent agency, and would include a brief description of the legislation itself, as well as an estimate of who would be helped or harmed by it and to what extent. 

Prior to a legislative vote, the Human Impact Statement, including the executive summary, would be posted for at least seven days on a government website for public viewing and feedback. After that, a summary of public comments would be posted on the website for at least seven more days before the bill could go before the legislature for a vote.

If the proposed legislation were amended in any way, the amended version would have to go through the process again. Once a bill completed the process and came up for a legislative vote, each lawmaker would be required to affirm that he or she has read at least the executive summary of the Human Impact Statement.

In promoting Human Impact Statements, advocates of lower taxes and smaller government would likely receive a sympathetic hearing across much of mainstream Nevada. A campaign to open the legislative process at all levels of government to more citizen scrutiny and participation should generate an enthusiastic response in many quarters, even among people who do not agree with us in other areas.

Currently, efforts by ordinary citizens to influence legislation are severely hampered by the nature of the legislative process. It is a daunting task to track the flood of proposed laws and amendments that originate each year in every legislative body. It is even more difficult to influence the content of these bills or affect their chances for passage. Often an intense, expensive lobbying effort or media campaign is necessary.

Human Impact Statements would provide a powerful new venue for free-market activism. The posting of all summaries on government websites would make it much easier for advocates of smaller government and lower taxes to identify bills that merit our support or opposition.

Individuals and groups promoting responsible spending and tax policies would become much more visible policy participants, and would enjoy greater opportunities to form coalitions with like-minded people and groups.

Human Impact Statements have the potential to greatly enhance the political effectiveness of free-market advocates, add transparency to the legislative process, and provide Nevadans with a powerful new way to make their elected representatives accountable for the legislation they introduce and support.

Liberty Watch Guest Columnist, Charles Barr, Mr. Barr is currently sitting for his PhD at UNLV in environmental science


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