Overall I am heartened that the 2000 review comes much closer to achieving the goals of Section 11 than the 1998 version. However there is still much work to be done on all sides to make the Biennial Review process more productive, complete, and compliant with the intent of Section 11. While biennial review imposes an obligation on the Commission to perform this analysis, it also provides an important opportunity for private parties to advocate the abolition or modification of burdensome regulations. In this case, eighteen parties filed initial comments and four filed replies. While I appreciate these significant contributions, I also encourage other regulated companies to take an active role in this process.
Private parties are in the best position to judge the impact of meaningful economic competition.
The Commission needs their help to generate a meaningful biennial review. As I have stated before, the biennial review is not a burden to be endured or a hoop through which we must dutifully jump every other year. It is, instead, an intellectual prism through which we should evaluate each of our regulatory choices. It is also an opportunity to keep our regulations consistent with marketplace and technological change. This process requires constant vigilance and a commitment to the core philosophy of the statute.