The American Action Forum (@AAF) examined the progress in the federal effort to reduce regulations finding the regulatory burden has actually increased despite the initiative. AAF found more than 1.5 billion hours of paper work and $10.2 billion in new net costs have been added.

The regulatory initiative, announced three years ago this week by President Obama, instructed agencies to conduct a retrospective review to reduce redundant regulations. Other notable examples of increased regulatory red tape include:

• 26 percent increase in paperwork required by the Department of Health and Human Services;
• 7 percent increase in the amount of paperwork required by the federal government; and
• Many of the claimed deregulatory measures predated the initiative and the Administration.

Click here to read the research.