The Determinants of Regulatory Compliance Costs of Non-Listed Small Corporations in Australia

Abstract

Small corporations are the engine room whilst the forgotten corner of the Australian economy. Regulatory burdens are hampering the small corporations from performing to their optimal, which consequently impairs the economic growth of the nation. For policy decision makers, quantifying the regulatory compliance cost is the first priority for evidence-based de-regulatory reforms. Thus, policy options proposed are of practical imperative to future de-regulation reforms. Prior research supporting the estimation and determination of regulatory compliance cost are at a dearth. This paper fills the gap by estimating the regulatory compliance costs of small corporations using the firm level survey data. A non-parametric logit model, Generalised Ordered Logit/Partial Proportional Odds Model (gonlogit2), is developed to estimate the impacts of determinants on regulatory costs. The paper concluded with a discussion of policy implications and future research directions.