Learning from the Cyberspace Solarium Commission

When facing a complicated challenge, individuals may do research and seek expert advice. When the U.S. government faces that kind of challenge, it often stands up a commission — a body tasked with producing a report, recommendations, and an action plan to spur strategic thinking based on in-depth analysis.

Since 1983, the U.S. government has established more than 200 commissions. Some have initiated major reorganizations of government institutions and catalyzed progress on critical initiatives, especially in the national security realm. However, turning recommendations into law or policy is challenging, in part because there is no requirement for Congress or the executive branch to follow through. Commissions rely on persuasion.

The political climate, partisan dynamics of the issue at hand, and an issue’s connection to national crises all play a role in determining the level of policy implementation a commission achieves. Based on his analysis of 51 commissions related to national security, foreign policy scholar Jordan Tama concluded that the most successful commissions were created by the executive branch in response to a crisis. Their narrow scope and the climate of urgency after a crisis provide a unique opportunity to make change. Such commissions, on average, see about half of their recommendations implemented, while commissions that lack a precipitating crisis generally see around 31 percent of their recommendations fully adopted.

Read more at Foundation for Defense of Democracies