Counting the Time Tax: New Ways to Measure Administrative Burden

On Tuesday, May 7, 2024, the McCourt School of Public Policy's Better Government Lab will be hosting a one-day conference on Counting the Time Tax: New Ways to Measure Administrative Burden.

Governments around the world and at multiple levels in the United States have increasingly sought to better capture, calculate, and target administrative burdens (or "sludge") to improve access, equity, and customer experience. Federal employees in the United States are now mandated to find more accurate and holistic ways to submit a "burden cost" for the public as part of their Paperwork Reduction Act reviews of forms, and others are looking for ways to understand when burdens become an issue in the delivery of public services.

Annie Lowrey, author of The Time Tax will headline the event by previewing the findings for her new book on the topic.

The sessions will also include speakers from the United States Federal government, findings from State benefits delivery projects, researchers employing new methodological approaches to capturing burden, and work from governments around the world. In this unique format, practitioners, researchers from multiple disciplines, and civil servants from across the United States and around the world can learn more about each other's work, find ways to collaborate, and join working sessions to discuss approaches employed. Participants will learn cutting edge techniques for measuring administrative burdens, and connect with others with the same interests.

Light morning refreshments, lunch, and an afternoon reception will be served. The event will be organized in a manner compliant with Federal "widely attended gathering" parameters.