Learn more about Regulatory Impact Analysis

Published in Jul 28, 2026 12:36 PM Updated in Aug 06, 2026 03:09 PM

What is Regulatory Impact Analysis (AIR) and ANEEL’s decision-making process

Regulatory Impact Analysis

In today’s dynamic and complex regulatory environment, Regulatory Impact Analysis (AIR) has become an essential tool for the development of effective regulations. This process aims to assess the potential consequences of new rules before their implementation, ensuring that decisions are well-informed and that the intended outcomes are achieved efficiently and effectively.

What is Regulatory Impact Analysis?

Regulatory Impact Analysis consists of a prior assessment, based on evidence, carried out before the issuance of normative acts. It seeks to analyse, from the definition of a regulatory problem, the possible impacts of the proposed regulatory alternatives in achieving the intended objectives, including non-regulatory solutions and the option of taking no action, with the purpose of guiding and supporting decision-making.

Why is AIR important?

Efficiency and effectiveness: AIR enables regulators to better understand the implications of a regulatory proposal before its implementation. This helps avoid ineffective or excessively burdensome regulations, promoting solutions that maximise benefits while minimising costs and disruption for society and businesses.

Transparency and accountability: By documenting and assessing expected impacts, AIR promotes transparency in the decision-making process. Stakeholders, including citizens, businesses, and civil society organisations, have access to the analyses, which increases regulators’ accountability and public trust in the regulatory process.

Prevention of future problems: Identifying potential problems before implementation allows adjustments to be made in advance. This reduces the likelihood of costly and problematic revisions or corrections after the regulation has entered into force.

How does Regulatory Impact Analysis work?

Problem definition: The first step is to identify and clearly define the problem the regulation intends to address. Understanding the issue in depth is crucial for developing targeted and effective proposals.
Identification of options: Different regulatory alternatives are explored to address the problem. Each alternative is assessed in terms of its ability to achieve the intended objectives and its potential impacts.
Impact assessment: Detailed evaluation of the potential impacts of each alternative.
Public consultation: Stakeholders are consulted to obtain feedback on the analyses conducted. This stage is important to ensure that all perspectives are considered and to improve the proposal based on external contributions.
Decision and implementation: Following the analysis and public consultation, the decision on the regulation is made based on the evidence collected. The regulation is then implemented, and its effectiveness is monitored to ensure that the objectives are achieved.

Benefits of AIR for Businesses and Citizens

For businesses, AIR provides predictability and clarity, helping them plan for and adapt to new regulations more efficiently. For citizens, AIR ensures that public policies are developed with careful consideration of social and environmental impacts, promoting a fairer and more balanced regulatory environment.

In summary, Regulatory Impact Analysis is an essential practice for the development of effective public policies. By providing a clear understanding of the potential impacts of regulations, AIR helps ensure that policies are implemented efficiently, transparently, and beneficially for all involved. In a world where regulations increasingly shape the environment in which we live and work, AIR becomes an indispensable tool for creating a more sustainable and equitable future.

When may it be waived?

Conducting an AIR is mandatory prior to the issuance of Regulatory Resolutions and desirable for any other Agency acts that affect rights and duties and for which the procedure may bring benefits. However, the AIR may be automatically waived for the following normative acts:

acts of an administrative nature whose effects are restricted to the internal scope of the body or entity;
acts with concrete effects intended to regulate a specific situation whose recipients are individually identified;
acts concerning budgetary and financial execution;
acts dealing strictly with exchange-rate and monetary policy;
acts concerning national security; and
acts intended to consolidate other rules on specific matters without changing their substance.

The AIR may also be waived, subject to justification and approval by the Board of Directors, in the case of:

urgency;
normative acts intended to regulate rights or obligations defined in a hierarchically superior rule that does not allow, technically or legally, different regulatory alternatives;
normative acts considered to have low impact;
normative acts intended to update or repeal rules considered obsolete, without altering their substance;
normative acts intended to preserve the liquidity, solvency, or soundness of:
insurance, reinsurance, capitalisation, and supplementary pension markets;
financial, capital, and foreign exchange markets; or
payment systems;
normative acts intended to maintain convergence with international standards;
normative acts that reduce requirements, obligations, restrictions, demands, or specifications with the objective of reducing regulatory costs; and
normative acts reviewing outdated rules to adapt them to internationally consolidated technological developments, pursuant to Decree No. 10,229 of 5 February 2020.

The analysis must assess, in detail within the AIR Report, the following aspects:

an objective and concise executive summary written in simple and accessible language for the general public;
identification of the regulatory problem to be solved, including its causes and scope;
identification of the economic agents, service users, and others affected by the identified regulatory problem;
identification of the legal basis supporting the action of the body or entity regarding the identified regulatory problem;
definition of the objectives to be achieved;
description of the possible alternatives for addressing the identified regulatory problem, considering options of no action, regulatory solutions, and, whenever possible, non-regulatory solutions;
presentation of the possible impacts of the identified alternatives, including their regulatory costs;
impacts on micro-enterprises and small businesses (included by Decree No. 11,243 of 2022);
considerations regarding information and comments received for the AIR through social participation processes or other processes for receiving contributions from interested parties concerning the matter under analysis;
mapping of international experience regarding measures adopted to resolve the identified regulatory problem;
identification and definition of the effects and risks arising from the issuance, amendment, or repeal of the normative act;
comparison of the alternatives considered for resolving the identified regulatory problem, accompanied by a reasoned analysis containing the specific methodology chosen for the particular case and the suggested alternative or combination of alternatives considered most appropriate for resolving the regulatory problem and achieving the intended objectives; and
description of the strategy for implementing the suggested alternative, including the forms of monitoring and evaluation to be adopted and, where applicable, an assessment of the need to amend or repeal existing rules.