A year ago we blogged about how the Common Sense Initiative (CSI) Office successfully spent the first few years of its existence reducing the negative impact of proposed new and no-change rules on businesses. The good news for Ohio is that CSI continued this trend in 2014.

In the 2014 Annual Report, CSI reports that since 2012 it has reviewed more than 5,500 rules and, finding rules that impacted businesses unnecessarily, 56% have either been amended or rescinded. According to Lt. Gov. Mary Taylor, “This report highlights the ways in which the CSI office has not only shaped more effective regulations, but has assisted businesses with regulatory burdens that were standing in their way.”

At the Ohio Chamber, we could not agree more. During a CSI visit to member company Durable Corporation in Norwalk (November 2014), Taylor and her staff detailed specific instances of not only mitigating rules that made operations unnecessarily difficult on businesses, but also instances where CSI served as a liaison between a business and a state agency. For example, a northeast Ohio food company ran into a problem making their Italian marsala sauce due to outdated alcohol requirements for food manufacturers. With the help of CSI, this issue was addressed and now businesses can purchase alcohol wholesale, rather than pay a much higher retail price.

Overall, CSI continues to direct the rule review effort in a positive direction for Ohio businesses. By pursuing common sense and reasonable principles about transparency, neutral (if not beneficial) regulations, and simplicity of compliance, CSI is a unique tool for the Ohio business community. Check out the Executive Summary for highlights of the report and the CSI’s goal progress and Appendix A for specific examples of how CSI assists businesses.