In most countries, such assessments are still rare and haphazard: Parliaments often enact policies without knowing whether they are worth the money, and it may take a very long time before ineffective or inefficient policies are terminated. That is why enabling legislation for spending programs should contain sunset clauses, with extensions subject to independent evaluation.
幸运的是，政府可以采取一些措施减轻惯性支出效应。首先，政府可以简单地系统性评估一下公共资金的效率。在大部分国家，这类评估依然十分罕见而偶然：议会常常在不知道政策是不是值得投入那么多钱的情况下就予以批准，而结束无效或低效政策常常需要极长的时间。因此，支出项目的赋权立法应该包括“日落”条款，并根据独立评估扩张调整。