Brian Armstrong

Official accounts

Progress

The counterpart to Good Intentions: policies and projects that worked better than anyone expected, usually by removing barriers or letting builders compete.

Opening unlicensed spectrum (FCC, 1985)

Intent: Let anyone use a few radio bands without a license, as long as devices followed simple technical rules.
Outcome: Created the foundation for Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, and countless wireless devices, now used by billions of people every day.
Sources: Wikipedia: ISM radio band Wikipedia: Wi-Fi, history

Airline Deregulation Act (1978)

Intent: Remove federal control over airline fares, routes, and market entry.
Outcome: Inflation-adjusted airfares fell dramatically and flying went from a luxury to something most people can afford.
Sources: Wikipedia: Airline Deregulation Act

Staggers Rail Act (1980)

Intent: Give freight railroads the freedom to set their own rates and abandon unprofitable lines.
Outcome: An industry near collapse in the 1970s recovered, while freight rates fell substantially in real terms.
Sources: Wikipedia: Staggers Rail Act

Opening GPS to civilian use (1983, 2000)

Intent: Make the military's satellite navigation system available to everyone, and later turn off the deliberate degradation of civilian accuracy.
Outcome: Enabled navigation in every phone, modern logistics, precision agriculture, and ride sharing, as a free public good for the entire world.
Sources: Wikipedia: GPS, history

Hatch-Waxman Act (1984)

Intent: Create a faster approval path for generic drugs once patents expire.
Outcome: Generics went from a small share of U.S. prescriptions to the large majority, saving patients and taxpayers enormous amounts of money.
Sources: Wikipedia: Hatch-Waxman Act

Orphan Drug Act (1983)

Intent: Give companies incentives to develop treatments for rare diseases that affect small numbers of patients.
Outcome: Hundreds of rare disease treatments have been approved since, compared to only a handful in the decade before.
Sources: Wikipedia: Orphan Drug Act of 1983

NASA Commercial Orbital Transportation Services (2006)

Intent: Instead of designing rockets itself, NASA paid private companies fixed prices for hitting milestones in delivering cargo to the space station.
Outcome: Produced new launch vehicles and spacecraft, including Falcon 9 and Dragon, at a fraction of the cost NASA estimated for a traditional program, and helped create a thriving commercial launch industry.
Sources: Wikipedia: Commercial Orbital Transportation Services

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