Files
Abstract
We examine the role of repetition in government regulation. Using Florida restaurant
inspection data from 2003 to 2010, we find that inspectors new to the inspected restaurant
report 12.7-17.5% more violations than the second visit of a repeat inspector. This effect
is even more pronounced if the previous inspector had inspected the restaurant more
times. The difference between new and repeat inspectors is driven partly by inspector
heterogeneity in inherent taste and stringency, and partly by new inspectors having
fresher eyes in the first visit of a restaurant. These findings highlight the importance of
inspector assignment in regulatory outcomes.