In the early nineties, administrative simplification policies have been undertaken through parliamentary laws, and introduced a series of instruments and ad hoc interventions for a procedural simplification of the regulatory system.With the adoption and enactment of the Administrative Procedure Law of 1990 a set of tools have been introduced, in order to make the administration more accountable and efficient.Specific time limits have been set for administrative decision-making, and a general time limit of 3 months. The rule of "silent is consent" which applies unless otherwise stated and the notification of the beginning of an activity, instead of licences and permits previously needed have been introduced, as well as agreements between stakeholders and private administrations, substituting the formal administrative act in some cases.A following law (537/93) has pursued the procedural simplification process and, in particular, the reduction of times and costs of the administrative activities.In the second half of the nineties, simplification has become one of the key element of a broader regulatory reform on-going process, characterised by the delegation of powers from the Parliament to the Government in order to simplify the regulatory environment through secondary regulation (so called de-legislation). The approach to regulatory reform, although keeping its emphasis on simplification, presented new distinctive characters. In particular, the objectives of administrative simplification policies were not only aimed at reducing the times and costs of the administrative activities, but also at cutting off public intervention and useless administrative burdens. The one stop shops for productive activities, introduced in 1998, and the initiatives for a widespread use of self-certifications, instead of the public certifications, are among the range of instruments introduced to realise such objectives.Moreover, simplification policies have become one of the aspects of a wide regulatory reform agenda, enriched with the introduction of regulatory impact assessments for all new regulations, and the production of consolidated codes (containing primary and secondary regulations).With the so-called Bassanini laws (59/1997, 50/99, 340/200), procedural simplification has been carried out through a general de-legification tool, consisting of the indication of specific administrative procedures, to be reviewed and streamlined through regulations (secondary norms). Regions and Municipalities adopt the simplified procedures in some cases (so called administrative federalism). For example, the Governmental Decree of liberalisation of trade transferred to the Municipalities the power of licence issuing.Another tool, that of the annual simplification laws, has allowed the Government to continuously update the simplification process and its results, following parliamentary criteria and principles. Finally, with the aim of supporting the regulatory reform program a central ad-hoc body of experts for the simplification of the norms and procedures has been created, from 1999 to 2002.The simplification policies and instruments introduced have been aimed at realising a systematic regulatory reform. However, the implementation phase has faced difficulties in some cases: for example, the regulatory impact assessments have been carried at an experimental stage only, and more training as well as a cultural change in regulatory and administrative decision making are needed for a full use of its potential. Regulatory reforms framework is now being profoundly reshaped in Italy, with the new allocation of powers, between the State, the Regions and the local entities, following the constitutional reform of 2001.  Indeed, the transfer to Regions of concurrent and exclusive legislative, as well as regulatory powers (the latter in all areas not expressly under the State exclusive responsibility), and the devolution of administrative functions to local entities urge the need for a wide-spread awareness of simplification policies and tools among regional and local decision-makers and administrators.The implementation of the e-government Action Plan (2000) is also having a great impact on simplification policies, enabling the administration to work faster, more efficiently, and with lower costs, in particular in the areas of e-procurement, tax filing, and one stop shops. As for the latter, One-Stop Shops have been created at local level, responding to the needs of business and citizens to interact with a single administration and to receive a single answer, through a single procedure, substituting up to 43 previously needed authorizations and acts.  This tool has notably decreased costs and shortened times, as well as favoured the territorial development.Finally, with the new annual simplification law, approved in July 2003, a new phase of regulatory reform started. Administrative interventions should be eliminated, or substituted with the notification of beginning of an activity, silence is consent, or self regulation, in a broader range of cases. As far as regulatory simplification is concerned, the technique of consolidating primary and secondary regulations in a unique code, is substituted with a new form of "codification": substantial interventions in strategic subject matters will be made possible through the issuing of Government legislative decrees, primary laws "codes" aimed at recasting and reducing the legislative stock.  Among others, a recasting code will be issued in the area of normative production, simplification, and quality of regulation. Mandatory regulatory impact assessment is extended to Independent Authority Regulatory acts.As far as procedural simplification is concerned, de-legification is now only one possible tool of simplification, and the simplification law and the legislative decrees have to determine on a case by case basis if secondary rules are necessary for simplification purposes, also in consideration of the different allocation of regulatory powers between State and Regions.

"The present work express the autors personal opinion and does not bind the Presidency of the Council of Ministers of Italy".