Summary: The economics profession has long proffered Benefit-Cost Analysis (BCA) as the best tool for making balanced and efficient governmental decisions on spending and regulation. Though some critics object to the tool, presidents from both parties for over four decades have endorsed the BCA paradigm as the preferred way to make sound regulatory decisions, and Congress is considering legislation that would require agencies to support major regulatory initiatives with BCA. -- But is BCA a silver bullet for improving policy decisions? If not, what procedural and analytical changes might improve its usefulness as a policy development tool? This diverse panel of legal and policy experts will explore these questions and examine the appropriate role for congressional and judicial oversight, the proper scope of BCA, and when analysis should be conducted and by whom. -- This panel was presented on June 18, 2015, at the Mayflower Hotel in Washington, DC during the Third Annual Executive Branch Review Conference. -- Featuring: Hon. C. Boyden Gray, Boyden Gray & Associates; Mr. Michael A. Livermore, University of Virginia School of Law; Mr. Richard D. Morgenstern, Resources for the Future; and Hon. Eugene Scalia, Gibson Dunn and Crutcher. Moderator: Hon. Susan E. Dudley, The George Washington University.
