Some professional organizers advise discarding clothing that hasn't been worn for a year.
Missouri lawmakers on Thursday approved legislation requiring state agencies to review rules every five years and discard the ones deemed unnecessary. The measure has been advanced to Gov. Jay Nixon.
Under the law, state regulations must be reviewed on a rotating schedule, beginning in 2015.
The review would include an analysis of whether the rule overlaps with others, whether a less restrictive alternative is available and whether the rule remains necessary and relevant.
The sponsor in the upper chamber, Sen. Bob Dixon, R-Springfield, contends the legislation will make Missouri more friendly to businesses.
That's a reasonable expectation, because a number of government rules and regulations mandate what private businesses must and must not do.
Another virtue of the measure is it establishes a regular agenda of executive agency housekeeping.
Rules adopted by state agencies are not unlike clothes collected in family closets.
New ones routinely are added, but rarely does anyone take time to try on old ones to determine if they still fit, are out of style or are threadbare.
The legislation will require departments to inspect those older rules and determine if they remain useful.
Like reorganizing a closet after years of neglect, the initial review will be challenging and time-consuming.
But, when repeated on a regular, recurring basis, it enhances organization and efficiency.
We believe this legislation establishes needed discipline for state government to keep its house in order.