I work in a highly regulated industry (in fact, due to international sales, highly regulated x50). My international colleagues chaff at US rules, but generally calm down once you explain particular rules and how they make sense. They really are good regulations.
Unfortunately, there are also regulations that are terrible. Regulators are people with ambitions and some try to build fiefdoms by creating rules. One example we are dealing with is a new recommendation for an expensive type of user testing, but contradictory advice on what products it applies to, how many people, what constitutes passing, etc. Don’t do it, and you run the risk of one guy vetoing approval for your product. Big companies shell out the 5 or 6 figures to do the testing with no hesitation to minimize risk. Smaller companies have to weigh risk of rejection vs hiring a person vs wasting the money, etc.
While no-one likes extra work from regulations, it’s these minefield of oddball requirements that crop up from regulations that give otherwise good regulations a bad reputation.
I don’t agree with just delaying or killing regulations on principal (and am highly suspicious of what Trump is doing). But I do understand the urge.
