Blog
Allergy sufferers to Congress: Please stop trying to help!
The Law of Unintended Consequences gained another data point recently. A bipartisan bill requiring products with sesame to be specially labeled has resulted in…
Letters
CEI Joins Coalition Letter in Opposition of S. 1838 and H.R. 3881 Credit Card Competition Act (CCCA)
Dear Members of Congress: We, the undersigned organizations and individuals, oppose the inaccurately named Credit Card Competition Act of 2023 (S. 1838 and H.R.
Blog
Adam Smith and the wealth of America
2023 is the 300th anniversary of Adam Smith’s birth. This post is part of a series highlighting aspects of Smith’s thought that continue to influence…
Blog
Hey Army Corps, stop delaying wetlands decisions!
Last month in Sackett v. EPA, the U.S. Supreme Court provided some much-needed clarity on what waters are regulated under the Clean Water…
Blog
Regulatory reform in the 118th Congress: The ERASER Act
Our current regulatory state suffocates Americans with high costs. On a micro level, research by CEI Fred L. Smith Fellow in Regulatory Studies…
Blog
No taming inflation without an independent Fed
Federal Reserve chairman Jerome Powell recently testified before Congress for the semi-annual Monetary Policy Report. The Fed has been under fire from both sides…
Letters
CEI Joins Coalition Opposing the Protecting the Right to Organize (PRO) Act
Dear Chairman Sanders; Ranking Member Cassidy; and Members of the Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor and Pensions – On behalf of the millions of…
Forbes
“The FTC-Sony Case Against the Microsoft Activision Deal Is Very Bad”
Paul Tassi from Forbes discusses last week’s hearing in which the FTC is seeking a preliminary injunction.
Blog
Costlier cars help the poor, according to EPA
There is plenty of controversy surrounding EPA’s proposed new tailpipe and greenhouse gas emissions rules for model year 2027-2032 vehicles, ranging from whether the…
Blog
The lethal impact of rising energy prices
Many of us are all too familiar with the grimace we make when we open our monthly utility bills. The soaring cost of energy is…
Blog
This week in ridiculous regulations: reporting stolen drugs and nuclear tariffs
The 2023 Federal Register is on pace to be the third largest in its 86-year history, behind only Obama and Trump’s midnight rush years in…
News Release
Supreme Court agrees to hear Moore v. U.S., consider constitutionality of tax on unrealized income
The Supreme Court announced today that it will hear arguments in Moore v. U.S., a challenge to a provision of the 2017 Tax Cuts…
Real Clear Markets
What Comes After An ESG Craze That’s Not Ready to Die?
Could this year be the end of the beginning for environmental, social, and governance (ESG) investing? Buzz in the business press suggests …
Blog
Progress in Congress for real civil forfeiture reform
For the last couple of years, I’ve been monitoring every change in the law in the United States in the area of civil forfeiture. Last…
Reason
“The Federal Trade Commission’s Latest Frivolous Antitrust Suit Takes Aim at Amazon”
Elizabeth Nolan Brown from Reason magazine details the shortcomings of the FTC’s latest action against Amazon.
Blog
Another sustainable energy company is failing to sustain itself
CNBC’s “Sustainable Future” page reports today that “Siemens Energy shares plunge more than 37% as wind turbine worries deepen.” A “sustainable energy” company failing…
Blog
House hearing warns of Biden’s admin’s ‘death by a thousand regulations’
The House Oversight and Accountability Committee held a hearing last week titled “Death by a Thousand Regulations: The Biden Administration’s Campaign to Bury America…
Forbes
Will NAIC Insurance Regulators In U.S. Import Harmful European Rules?
My colleague Ari Patinkin, research associate at the Competitive Enterprise Institute, contributed to this post. Although the inflation rate may be slowing, the American economy…
Forbes
How Regulating AI Could Empower Bad Actors
A bipartisan group of legislators in the House of Representatives has introduced a bill to establish a national commission on Artificial Intelligence regulation.
Blog
Fed Chair Powell hearing: more to do on inflation
At his semiannual congressional testimony this week, Federal Reserve Chairman Powell hinted that the Fed likely is not done raising interest rates. This comes…
Blog
Free the Economy podcast: online trust with Taylor Barkley
In this week’s episode we talk about a survey on work trends for finance bros, Delta’s questionable bid to become the first…
Blog
Elephant in the elevator: How government manipulates the social cost of carbon to justify regulations
Four CEI colleagues and I each submitted comments this month on the Office of Management and Budget’s proposed update of Circular A-4—OMB’s…
News Release
New CEI report proposes bold reforms to restore Constitution’s constraints on government power
A new Competitive Enterprise Institute report proposes significant reforms aimed at restoring the U.S. Constitution’s separation and balance of powers that are vital to…
Study
Constitutional Restoration: How to rebuild the separation of powers
Introduction A specter is haunting America—the specter of unlimited government. A central feature of our Constitution is that it restricts the federal government’s powers. These…
Blog
European Union says phones and tablets must be easier to break by 2027
The European Parliament agreed on new rules last week that would require smartphone and tablet manufacturers to make it easier for users to remove…
Blog
Businesses flocking to states with lower taxes, better regulations
Experts on U.S. economic policy spend a lot of time looking at competition between states and how good tax and regulatory policy can help…
National Review
Protectionism without Sugarcoating
National Review cites CEI’s Iain Murray about protectionism: Iain Murray of the Competitive Enterprise Institute describes the U.S. sugar quotas as the “platonic form of…
Blog
Younger workers don’t favor full-remote work
Among people who follow the news on workplace (and workforce) satisfaction, the opinions of younger workers are often considered especially relevant, because we assume that…
Blog
Das Adam Smith problem? Nein!
2023 is the 300th anniversary of Adam Smith’s birth. This post is part of a series highlighting aspects of Smith’s thought that continue to influence…
Blog
America takes Entrepreneurship Index top spot, former Soviet bloc countries close behind
Retail software maker Shopify recently released its “Entrepreneurship Index,” a global ecosystem of entrepreneurial activity. Shopify ranks the top ten countries with economies that…
Comment
CEI Comments on Proposed OMB Circular No. A-4
RE: Request for Comments on Proposed OMB Circular No. A-4, “Regulatory Analysis”, 88 FR 20915 (Apr. 7, 2023), Docket OMB-2022-0014 Dear Mr. Revesz, I am…
Wall Street Journal
“Lina Khan’s Recusal Coverup”
The Wall Street Journal’s editorial board contends that FTC Chair Lina Khan may have misled Congress regarding ethics compliance.
CSIS
“Noncompete Agreements, Innovation, and National Security”
Experts from the Center for Strategic & International Studies (CSIS) discuss problems with the FTC’s sweeping rule to ban noncompete agreements in employee contracts.
City Journal
Lab Leak: Likely
Three previously unreleased State Department cables, obtained by the public-health group U.S. Right to Know through a Freedom of Information Act lawsuit, confirm…
Comment
OMB’s Problematic Circular A-4 Rewrite
OUTLINE Discard the pro-regulatory bias of the federal government Restore regulatory streamlining prior to Circular A-4 rewrite Restore the $100 million threshold for regulation…
Comment
CEI Comments on Proposed Circular A-4, Regulatory Analysis
Dear Administrator Revesz: I appreciate this opportunity to provide comments on the proposed Circular A-4, “Regulatory Analysis.”1 The focus of my comments is on the…
Comment
CEI Comments on OMB’s Revision of Circular A-4 Regulatory Accounting Guidelines
Thank you for the opportunity to submit comments on the Office of Management and Budget’s (OMB’s) Draft for Public Review of its proposed update of…
Forbes
Biden’s Top-Down Economy, Powered By Executive Action
Joe Biden didn’t take a Juneteenth break, instead heading to Palo Alto to tout “historic action to combat the climate crisis,…
Blog
This week in ridiculous regulations: tart cherry assessments and big cat safety
The House passed two regulatory reform bills, the REINS Act and the Separation of Powers Restoration Act. The Federal Reserve held interest rates steady. Meanwhile,…
Washington Examiner
The Biden administration shouldn’t waste more taxpayer dollars on COVID vaccines
A Food and Drug Administration advisory committee recently voted to recommend updating the COVID-19 vaccine. But important questions remain: When…
National Review
FTC Continues War on Bigness by Opposing Microsoft Video-Game Acquisition
The FTC is doubling down on its opposition to Microsoft’s acquisition of video-game company Activision Blizzard by filing to block the merger in a…
Blog
Here comes state capitalism. There go our liberties.
CEI’s own Wayne Crews told the Washington Examiner recently, “Everything from local tap water to space commercialization is being turned into a government project.”…
Blog
Free the Economy podcast: growth and taxes with Alex Muresianu
In this week’s episode we talk about Gen Z and remote work, businesses moving between states, and inspiring evidence of human…
Bob Harden
U.S. House Passes Legislation to Preserve Consumer Choice in Kitchen Appliances
We visit with Ben Lieberman, Senior Policy Analyst with the Competitive Enterprise Institute, about the Biden administrations war on gas home…
Bloomberg
“FTC Rejected Ethics Advice for Khan Recusal on Meta Case”
Bloomberg’s Leah Nylen reveals newly unredacted memo showing that FTC Chair Lina Khan declined to recuse herself from the FTC’s case against Meta despite the…
Washington Times
“Republicans Should Be Commended for Working to Rein in FTC”
Grover Norquist, President of Americans for Tax Reform, discusses the importance of work done by congressional Republicans on holding the Federal Trade Commission accountable.
Blog
Market failure? Let’s talk about government failure
Government interventions in the market are often said to be justified by market failures, which prevent the free market from maximizing social welfare. What is…
Blog
Adam Smith on how to love and be lovely
2023 is the 300th anniversary of Adam Smith’s birth. This post is part of a series highlighting aspects of Smith’s thought that continue to influence…
Blog
Is Biden admin disappearing a red flag for costly regulations?
Is the Biden administration trying to do away with the category of “economically significant” regulations altogether? Before this administration, an “economically significant” regulation was one…
Blog
Court punts to FTC, freezing Microsoft purchase of Activision Blizzard
The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) took action Monday to stop Microsoft from purchasing the game developer Activision Blizzard. The FTC filed for both a…
News Release
House passes sensible regulatory reform bills to shrink power of the administrative state
Earlier today, the House passed 220 to 211 the Separation of Powers Restoration Act (SOPRA) sponsored by Rep. Scott Fitzgerald (R-WI).
News Release
CEI expert analyzes the permitting provisions in the Fiscal Responsibility Act of 2023
After several attempts to reform the United States’ broken permitting system for large infrastructure projects, major changes have finally made it to the president’s desk…
Study
Permitting reforms, finally
Introduction The United States has one of the world’s most burdensome, time-consuming, and unpredictable systems for authorizing major infrastructure projects. The centerpiece of that system…
Blog
Adam Smith’s ‘tolerable administration’ vs. America’s increasingly intolerable one
2023 is the 300th anniversary of Adam Smith’s birth. This post is part of a series highlighting aspects of Smith’s thought that continue to influence…
Blog
New Biden White House Agenda shows 3,666 rules in regulatory pipeline
The Spring 2023 Unified Agenda of Federal Regulatory and Deregulatory Actions has been released. A fall version of this twice-yearly document will also contain a…
News Release
Fed holds interest rates steady but shouldn’t have: CEI analysis
The Federal Reserve decided to leave the federal funds rate unchanged at today’s Federal Open Market Committee meeting. CEI senior economist Ryan Young argues…
Blog
Senate Commerce hearing shows why some junk fees aren’t garbage
In his State of the Union address this February, President Biden reiterated his intent to crack down on so-called junk fees. Biden discussed…
Wall Street Journal
Is a U.S. Wealth Tax Constitutional?
The Wall Street Journal encourages the Supreme Court to grant cert in CEI’s Moore v. US case: The Moores have appealed…
Forbes
Virginia’s New Permitting Portal Is A Model For Other States
Our nation’s system of environmental permitting is broken, putting both economic growth and the clean energy transition at risk. So it’s a relief that permitting…
News Release
U.S. House passes legislation to preserve consumer choice in kitchen appliances
The U.S. House of Representatives passed HR 1615 today, a bill that would protect Americans ability to choose the type of stove they want in…
Blog
Time to shine more light on regulators’ ‘shadow boxes’
Accompanying presidential executive orders and memoranda are the numerous sub-regulatory proclamations of departments and agencies we like to call “regulatory dark matter.” Occasionally we…
Blog
The real Adam Smith
2023 is the 300th anniversary of Adam Smith’s birth. This post is part of a series highlighting aspects of Smith’s thought that continue to influence…
News Release
Inflation Slows, Fed Actions Pay Off: CE Analysis
Consumer prices rose 0.1 percent in May (up 4 percent this past year), according new inflation data released today by the Labor Department. Inflation…
Blog
Why Trump and Biden are wrong to sweat a trade deficit
Do trade deficits make American workers worse off? Trade deficits occur when a country imports more goods than it exports, which the U.S. has done…
Blog
This week in ridiculous regulations: fireworks shows and cybersecurity subsidies
Russia destroyed a major dam in Ukraine, putting thousands of homes and a nuclear power plant at risk. Former President Donald Trump was indicted again.
Blog
FTC, or ‘Fundraising Trade Commission,’ tries to shrug off a Supreme Court judgment
If you thought the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) was only coming after “big” business, think again. The FTC is targeting small and family businesses too. …
Blog
Congress should block Biden’s harmful environmental regulations with power of the purse
Congress shouldn’t sit back and watch as the Biden administration proposes and finalizes costly and harmful energy and environmental regulation. Instead, it needs to take…
Blog
SEC just dismissed dozens of cases before its ‘not-quite courts,’ thanks to real court rulings
For over a decade, the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has been forcing people into in-house quasi-judicial proceedings that lack the basic constitutional protections of…
Truth on the Market
“The Robinson-Patman Act: The Anti-Consumer Welfare Statute”
Alden Abbott, former General Counsel at the FTC, explains that a reinvigoration of the Robinson-Patman Act by the FTC would be a detriment to consumers.
Real Clear Markets
“Progressives to Biden: Double Down on Interference”
Paul Steidler, Senior Fellow with the Lexington Institute, argues that calls for the Biden administration and the FTC to ban employee non-compete agreements would have…
Blog
Free the Economy podcast: Immense economic costs with Scott Lincicome
In this week’s episode we talk about central bank digital currencies, bankers backing off of ESG claims, avoiding the mistakes of…
Fox Business
Banking industry pushes back on CFPB’s warning over use of AI chatbots
Fox Business quotes CEI’s John Berlau on the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau’s recent advisory: John Berlau, the Competitive Enterprise Institute’s director…
Blog
Biden Labor pick Julie Su claims she cannot recall her Prop 22 vote
Acting Labor Secretary Julie Su claimed multiple times Wednesday that she could not recall how she voted on California’s Proposition 22, the ballot initiate…
Blog
Activist securities regulators should worry as Supreme Court revisits Chevron doctrine
The U.S. Supreme Court recently issued a major announcement that may impose significant changes to agency statutory interpretation. The Court has agreed to hear…
Blog
Rising small business regs may spur Senate to pass REINS Act
In a bid to restore congressional accountability over the regulatory enterprise, the 118th Congress this week is set to vote on the so-called REINS Act,…
Bloomberg Law
“Courts Should Curb the FTC’s Historic Disgorgement Tactics”
Caleb Kruckenberg, attorney at the Pacific Legal Foundation, explains how the FTC extracts large settlements from small businesses without a trial and without congressional authority.
Blog
War over gas stoves heats up with two House votes today
President Biden’s administration has declared war on gas stoves, but today the House of Representatives is fighting back Two Biden administration agencies, the Consumer Product…
Hannity
FURNACES NOW?! The Biden Admin’s War on American Energy Continues
CEI’s Ben Lieberman is quoted on Hannity on the current crackdown on American energy: “This is a classic example of one size not fitting all,”…
Fox News
Biden admin is preparing to target Americans’ gas furnaces amid stove crackdown
Fox News
Biden admin is preparing to target Americans’ gas furnaces amid stove crackdown
Ben Lieberman is cited on Fox News about the crackdown on gas stoves: “This is a classic example of one size not fitting all,”…
Fox News
Banking industry pushes back on CFPB’s warning over use of AI chatbots
Fox News quotes CEI’s John Berlau on the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau’s recent advisory regarding artificial intelligence in customer service:…
Blog
Biden administration keeps making it harder to track government ‘guidance’ documents
Federal government “guidance documents” consist of agency memoranda, bulletins, circulars, administrative interpretations, letters, manuals, and so much more. These are not supposed to be regulatory…
Blog
Lina Khan’s whole new level of economic bloodletting
The Biden administration in its Executive Order on Promoting Competition in the American Economy and, more pointedly, the Federal Trade Commission in many of…
News Release
SEC’s Case Against Coinbase Threatens All U.S. Entrepreneurs
John Berlau, CEI Director of Finance Policy, today criticized the SEC for its ill-founded lawsuit targeting Coinbase: “The Securities and Exchange…
Washington Times
“FTC Chair Lina Khan Has Abuses Her Power, Needs to Go”
The Washington Times’s editorial board argues that FTC Chair Lina Khan should resign.
National Review
Global Britain Is Closed for Business
One of the supposed benefits of Brexit was that Britain would once again become “Global Britain,” able to adjust its regulatory approaches to one more…
Letters
CEI Joins Coalition Letter Supporting Efforts to Stop Tobacco Prohibitions in Ag Approps Bill
Chairwoman Granger and Ranking Member DeLauro, The undersigned organizations representing millions of consumers and taxpayers support Sections 768 and 769 of the Fiscal Year 2024…
Comment
Comments to the Office of Management and Budget on the proposed draft update to Circular A-4: Regulatory Analysis
The Competitive Enterprise Institute (CEI) is a non-profit public interest organization committed to advancing the principles of free markets and limited government. CEI has a…
Forbes
Biden’s ‘Evil’ Modernizing Regulation Update
Peter Thiel, the Silicon Valley tech tycoon, has a fond aphorism he employs that he apparently borrowed from the late conservative journalist M.
Daily Caller
Biden Wants To Give Power Over Defense Contracts To Climate Activist ‘Cabal’ Bent On Curtailing Economic Growth
The Daily Caller quotes CEI’s Myron Ebell on giving certain climate activist groups veto power over major Pentagon contracts: Myron…
Dr. Rich Swier
Biden Wants To Give Power Over Defense Contracts To Climate Activist ‘Cabal’ Bent On Curtailing Economic Growth
Real Clear Markets
“Lina Khan’s FTC Is Importing Crushing European Tech Banditry”
Daniel Savickas from the Taxpayers Protection Alliance warns that the FTC’s adoption of European style regulation will ultimately harm U.S. innovation and competitiveness.
Wall Street Journal
“Car Shopping Ain’t Broke, So the FTC Will Fix It”
Holman W. Jenkins, Jr., from the Wall Street Journal’s editorial board argues that the FTC’s proposed rule on auto purchases is a solution in search…
Real Clear Markets
“Lina Khan’s ‘Underfunded’ FTC Takes Its Act to Europe”
Market Institute President Charles Sauer explains how FTC Chair Lina Khan is using European regulators and the EU’s Digital Markets Act to get around Congress.
Blog
5 myths about Joe Biden’s crackdown on gas stoves
The Biden administration’s craziest idea yet? The assault on gas stoves. Second craziest? The lame attempts to deny it. Now that two bills…
Blog
This week in ridiculous regulations: electric motors and small business loans
Congress and President Biden reached a debt ceiling deal. Texas attorney general and antitrust hawk Ken Paxton was impeached. Meanwhile, agencies issued new regulations ranging…
Washington Examiner
Low-income communities need affordable energy, not Biden’s ‘environmental justice’
Union jobs, sports fields, and tree cover. What do they have in common? President Joe Biden wants to promote them through his new …
Blog
SPPI-TV hit: How price controls endanger small dollar loans, boost loan sharks
In my first media appearance from the sleek new CEI studios at our offices in Washington, DC, I joined a great panel on the May…
News Release
Labor Market Remains Strong Despite Participation Rate Below Pre-Pandemic Levels
The Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) at the Department of Labor found employers added 339,000 new jobs in May, according to a new report.
National Review
Landmark Supreme Court Ruling on Clean Water Act Case Will Aid Property Rights
On May 25, the U.S. Supreme Court in Sackett v. EPA unanimously held that the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) can’t regulate wetlands on the…