Regulatory Policy in Chile
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OECD Reviews of Regulatory Reform Regulatory Policy in Chile GOVERNMENT CAPACITY TO ENSURE HIGH‑QUALITY REGULATION This work is published under the responsibility of the Secretary-General of the OECD. The opinions expressed and arguments employed herein do not necessarily reflect the official views of OECD member countries. This document and any map included herein are without prejudice to the status of or sovereignty over any territory, to the delimitation of international frontiers and boundaries and to the name of any territory, city or area. Please cite this publication as: OECD (2016), Regulatory Policy in Chile: Government Capacity to Ensure High-Quality Regulation, OECD Reviews of Regulatory Reform, OECD Publishing, Paris. http://dx.doi.org/10.1787/9789264254596-en ISBN 978-92-64-25455-8 (print) ISBN 978-92-64-25459-6 (PDF) Series: OECD Reviews of Regulatory Reform ISSN 1563-4973 (print) ISSN 1990-0481 (online) The statistical data for Israel are supplied by and under the responsibility of the relevant Israeli authorities. The use of such data by the OECD is without prejudice to the status of the Golan Heights, East Jerusalem and Israeli settlements in the West Bank under the terms of international law. Photo credits: Cover © Wesley Hitt/Getty Images. Corrigenda to OECD publications may be found on line at: www.oecd.org/about/publishing/corrigenda.htm. © OECD 2016 You can copy, download or print OECD content for your own use, and you can include excerpts from OECD publications, databases and multimedia products in your own documents, presentations, blogs, websites and teaching materials, provided that suitable acknowledgement of OECD as source and copyright owner is given. All requests for public or commercial use and translation rights should be submitted to [email protected]. Requests for permission to photocopy portions of this material for public or commercial use shall be addressed directly to the Copyright Clearance Center (CCC) at [email protected] or the Centre français d’exploitation du droit de copie (CFC) at [email protected]. FOREWORD – 3 Foreword Chile is one of the most stable economies in Latin America. However, the lack of a comprehensive regulatory reform programme may have reduced possibilities for achieving higher economic outcomes. Most line agencies and regulators prepare regulations based on unclear evidence as to how best to intervene, and good practices in rule-making procedures are limited. In addition, the government of Chile could benefit from reinforcing and introducing regulatory management tools. The OECD was asked by the Ministry of Economy, Development, and Tourism of Chile to undertake a regulatory policy review in Chile. The review was agreed with the objective of contributing to the ongoing debate on how to improve regulatory quality that stems from the National Agenda for Productivity, Innovation and Growth. The agenda has as one of its main objectives to improve the efficiency of regulation and public service delivery. Accordingly, the review focuses on regulatory policy, including the administrative and institutional arrangements for ensuring that regulations are effective and efficient. The assessment and recommendations provided will help the Chilean government improve the processes by which it makes, reviews, and enforces regulations that, in turn, expand the economy, lift productivity, attract and retain investment, improve services, and raise public welfare. The review provides an assessment of and recommendations regarding the management of regulatory policies, institutions, and tools in the Chilean government. The report further provides sector specific recommendations including regulatory management and governance and the regulatory framework for SMEs, the regulation regarding construction permits and land use, and the digital government framework. The OECD Review of Regulatory Reform in Chile was carried out under the programme of work of the Regulatory Policy Committee of the OECD. The OECD Regulatory Policy Committee is mandated to assist both member and non-member countries in building and strengthening capacity for regulatory quality and reform. The methodology of the Regulatory Reform Reviews has developed over two decades of peer learning. It draws on and it is based on the Regulatory Policy Committee’s legal instruments including: the 1995 Recommendation of the Council of the OECD on Improving the Quality of Government Regulation; the 2005 Guiding Principles for Regulatory Quality and Performance; and the 2012 Recommendation of the Council on Regulatory Policy and Governance. The country reviews follow a multi-disciplinary approach and focuses on the governments’ capacity to manage regulatory policy. The report is based on answers provided by the Ministry of Economy, Development and Tourism, and a range of Chilean agencies to an OECD questionnaire, and on various meetings and interviews held in November 2014 and April/May 2015 in Santiago, Chile. REGULATORY POLICY IN CHILE: GOVERNMENT CAPACITY TO ENSURE HIGH QUALITY REGULATION © OECD 2016 4 – ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS Acknowledgements The country reviews on regulatory reform are co-ordinated by the Directorate for Public Governance and Territorial Development, under the responsibility of Rolf Alter, and are carried out by the Regulatory Policy Division, headed by Nick Malyshev. The programme on regulatory reform is led by the OECD Regulatory Policy Committee. The OECD Secretariat is grateful to the Minister of Economy, Development and Tourism, Luis Felipe Céspedes, and to Juan Cristóbal Marshall Silva, Chief Economist of the Ministry of Economy, Development and Tourism. Valuable contributions were also received from officials from the central government, including the Ministry of the Presidency (SEGPRES), Ministry of Environment and its Environmental Assessment Service, Ministry of Energy, Ministry of Public Works, the Ministry of Agriculture, the Office of the Comptroller General of the Republic, the Transparency Council, the Vice- ministry for Regional and Administrative Development, and the Vice-ministry of Transport, as well as from members of the Chamber of Deputies, the Office of the National Economic Attorney, the Budget Office (DIPRES); the National Energy Commission, Water General Direction, and the Superintendencias for Banks, Pensions, Stocks and Insurance, Sanitary Services, Electricity and Fuel, and Environment. The OECD Regulatory Policy Committee also contributed to this review, particularly the delegates of Mexico, Eduardo Romero Fong, General Co-ordinator of Regulatory Impact Assessments, and the productivity commissioner of Australia, Jonathan Coppel, who participated as peer reviewers. The review also benefited from the participation of Virgilio Andrade Martínez, which at the moment of the review was Head of Mexico’s Federal Commission for Regulatory Improvement during a capacity-building seminar organised for the government of Chile. The project was managed by Jacobo Pastor Garcia Villarreal, OECD Senior Policy Analyst, and Guillermo Morales Sotomayor, OECD Policy Analyst, of the Regulatory Policy Division. Delia Rodrigo, consultant and Senior Regulatory Reform Expert, prepared chapters two through eight of the review. Chapter 1 was prepared by Eduardo Olaberria, Economist at the Economics Directorate of the OECD. Chapter 9 was drafted by Lorenzo Allio, consultant on regulatory policy, and benefited from contributions from Tamara Krawchenko, economist and policy analyst from the Regional Development Policy Division at the OECD. Chapter 10 was prepared by Paul Vronhoof; and Chapter 11 was prepared by Barbara Ubaldi, OECD Senior Project Manager of the Reform of the Public Sector Division. Editorial assistance was provided by Jennifer Stein and Cecilia Reilly. Administrative assistance was provided by Sara Kincaid and Deborah Barry-Roe. The overall project received contributions from Nick Malyshev and Guillermo Morales Sotomayor. REGULATORY POLICY IN CHILE: GOVERNMENT CAPACITY TO ENSURE HIGH QUALITY REGULATION © OECD 2016 TABLE OF CONTENTS – 5 Table of contents Acronyms and abbreviations ........................................................................................................ 9 Executive summary ...................................................................................................................... 13 Assessment and recommendations ............................................................................................. 15 Chapter 1. The macroeconomic context in Chile ....................................................................... 25 A sound macroeconomic framework that helps dampen the impact of external shocks........... 26 An economy in transition .......................................................................................................... 28 Sound financial indicators ......................................................................................................... 29 Stronger productivity growth for long-term prospects .............................................................. 30 Improving the business environment for increased productivity growth .................................. 31 More inclusive and flexible labour markets .............................................................................. 32 Raising the quality of human capital ......................................................................................... 34 Investing in R&D and fostering the capacity to innovate ........................................................