Study
FTC’s Subscription Deception
Proposed Negative Option Rule has no opt-out from bureaucratic overreach Introduction The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) announced a Negative* Option Rule Notice of…
Blog
Raise the Wage Act reintroduced, still wouldn’t help workers
Rep. Bobby Scott (D-VA) has reintroduced the Raise the Wage Act, which would raise the federal minimum wage from $7.25 per hour. Previous…
Study
Four Principles for Real Permitting Reform
Federal legislators continue to focus on permitting reform. For example, the Senate is reportedly1 working on more ambitious reform than those recently enacted in the…
Blog
Free the Economy Episode 31: Reforming the States with Carrie Conko
In this week’s episode we talk about the Federal Trade Commission’s takeover of AI policy, shareholder lawsuits against “woke” corporations, an encouraging…
ICLE
“Five Problems with a Potential FTC Challenge to the Kroger/Albertsons Merger”
Brian Albrecht, Dirk Auer, Eric Fruits, and Geoffrey A. Manne from the International Center for Law & Economics discuss the FTC’s interest in challenging the…
Real Clear Markets
“Why Is Congress Allowing Lina Khan to Collaborate with the EU?”
Charles Sauer, president of the Market Institute, calls on Congress to prohibit the FTC from corroborating with the European Union in enforcing the European Digital…
New York Post
“Cracking Down on AI Companies Could Rob America of Economic Growth”
James Czerniawski from Americans for Prosperity cautions against the FTC’s eagerness to regulate AI companies.
News Release
Economy avoids recession, grows 2.4 percent – but falls short: CEI analysis
GDP numbers released this morning show a healthy 2.4 percent annualized growth in the second quarter. CEI Senior Economist Ryan Young thinks it could…
Wall Street Journal
Population Growth Is Not a Threat to Prosperity
Marian Tupy and David Deutsch’s op-ed “We Will Never Run Out of Resources” (July 21) recalls the work of Julian Simon. The…
Blog
Hollywood and the collateral damage of strikes
The current Hollywood strike by writers and actors has forced several others who don’t have an issue with the studios to stop working.
News Release
Fed raises interest rates, as needed: CEI analysis
The Federal Reserve decided to raise the federal funds rate a quarter of a percent, as expected, at today’s Federal Open Market Committee meeting.
Blog
Teamsters’ UPS win suggests more strikes coming
Tuesday’s announcement that the International Brotherhood of Teamsters and UPS have agreed on a contract is a likely sign that strikes and other union…
Blog
EEOC finds something to do!
Rep. Ann Wagner (R-MO) introduced a sensible bill in Dec. 2022 providing that before issuing a regulation, the Securities and Exchange Commission must “clearly identify…
News Release
CEI supports prohibition on multi-billion-dollar government slush fund in agriculture appropriations bill
The House of Representatives is set to vote on H.R. 4368, the Agriculture, Rural Development, Food and Drug Administration, and Related Agencies Appropriations Act…
The Washington Examiner
Carbon tariffs will hurt trade, national interests, and consumers
Carbon tariffs are a bad idea that won’t go away, and now the European Union has launched the first one, the …
Forbes
Careful: Misbegotten Government-Business “Blueprints” Can Lobotomize Artificial Intelligence
Atop numerous directives and another of Washington’s periodic “Bill of Rights” proclamations misconstruing who is protected from what by such documents,…
Blog
Carbon tariffs are all pain, no gain
Europe recently introduced a carbon tax. The proposed PROVE IT Act would lay the groundwork for one in the United States. Over in the…
Wall Street Journal
“Antitrust Regulation by Intimidation”
Gus Hurwitz and Geoffrey Manne from the International Center for Law and Economics explain that the new merger guidelines provide little clarity and much uncertainty.
Blog
CEI asks Supreme Court to overturn Chevron deference to regulators
Earlier today, the Competitive Enterprise Institute filed an amicus brief at the United States Supreme Court asking the Court to overturn Chevron. Our brief…
National Review
Keep the FTC’s Hands off Artificial Intelligence
The general panic over artificial intelligence and the Federal Trade Commission’s aim to insert itself into every corner of the U.S. economy recently dovetailed in …
News Release
New Study from CEI and Paragon Health Institute finds CDC shortcomings and recommends key reforms
The Competitive Enterprise Institute (CEI) and the Paragon Health Institute published a new paper today by CEI senior fellow and director of…
Study
Unauthorized and Unprepared: Refocusing the CDC after COVID-19
Executive Summary What This Paper Covers The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the nation’s preeminent public health agency, has acknowledged that it failed badly…
Fox News
Biden admin cracks down on another popular home appliance
Fox News cites Senior Fellow Ben Lieberman on proposed regulations on household appliances: “It’s just spreading to more and more appliances.
Blog
This week in ridiculous regulations: soybean standards and pain medication limits
The FTC issued its new draft merger guidelines. Meanwhile, agencies issued new regulations ranging from milk marketing to Postal Service snitches. On to the…
Blog
Congress is set to reauthorize the FAA. Should it?
The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) Reauthorization Act of 2018 expires at the end of September. This week, Congress will consider H.R. 3935 (118). If…
Forbes
AI Economics Must Avoid The Ethical Mistakes Of Climate Economics
Artificial intelligence (AI) has garnered significant public attention in recent months, especially since the groundbreaking launch of the large language model, ChatGPT. Some of that…
Blog
Free the Economy podcast: Ugh! Capitalism! with Jeremiah Johnson
In this week’s episode we talk about Democrat and Republican myths, corporate welfare in Ohio, scams in the carbon offset market,…
Truth on the Market
“New Merger Guidelines Are as Expected. That’s Not a Compliment”
Brian Albrecht, chief economist of the International Center for Law & Economics, argues that the new draft Merger Guidelines would contribute to confusion for both…
Reason
“New Federal Merger Guidelines Hint: Maybe Just Don’t Merge Anything at All”
Elizabeth Nolan Brown from Reason discusses the new merger guidelines.
Truth on the Market
“The New Merger Guideline Commandments: Thirteen is an Unlucky Number”
Alden Abbott, former general counsel at the FTC, describes the new draft Merger Guidelines as an “anti-merger manifesto.”…
Blog
House Republicans continue to grill the FTC for its overreach
The House Judiciary Committee held a hearing on Thursday of last week entitled “Oversight of the Federal Trade Commission.” Lines of questioning were heated…
Forbes
Biden’s Competition Council Targets Free Enterprise, Expands Government
Joe Biden’s Competition Council, created by his executive order dubbed “Promoting Competition In the American Economy,” celebrated its second anniversary and convened its …
Comment
Procedures for Previously Exempt State and Local Government Employee Complaints of Employment Discrimination under Section 304 of the Government Employee Rights Act of 1991, RIN 3046-AB09
Submitted via Regulations.gov RE: Procedures for Previously Exempt State and Local Government Employee Complaints of Employment Discrimination under Section 304 of the Government Employee Rights…
Blog
CEI leads coalition opposing crazy regulatory crackdown on dishwashers
The American public remains angry over federal meddling in gas stoves – for good reason, given that not one but two Biden administration regulatory agencies…
Comment
Comment on Energy Conservation Standards for Dishwashers
I. SUMMARY The proposed rule would tighten the energy and water efficiency standards for residential dishwashers, despite the fact that the standards currently in effect…
Daily Caller
SEAN HIGGINS: Hollywood Unions Are Getting A Bitter Dose Of Reality
The current strike by Hollywood writers and actors is a reactionary, rear-guard effort against changes in technology. The members of the WGA (Writers Guild of…
Blog
Foreign currency manipulation is a red herring
Trade policy is finding its way back into the spotlight thanks to the 2024 election campaign. Both the Biden administration and GOP presidential…
Letters
Letter of Support on the Small Business Regulatory Reduction Act and the POST IT Act
Blog
Actors and writers unions are fighting technological change. Expect change to win.
The current strike by Hollywood writers and actors is a reactionary, rear-guard effort against changes in technology. The members of the WGA (Writers Guild of…
Medium
“The FTC Looks to Become the Federal AI Commission”
The R Street Institute’s Adam Thierer argues that an over-zealous approach to regulating AI by the FTC would ultimately harm innovation and competition in the…
Cato Institute
“If the FTC Gets Its Way, Could This Be the Last Prime Day?”
Jennifer Huddleston from the Cato Institute questions whether the FTC’s suit against Amazon could end the company’s annual Prime Day.
Reason
“With Microsoft Victory, Courts Go on Epic Killstreak Against FTC Antitrust Agenda”
The Cato Institute’s Jennifer Huddleston addresses the FTC’s recent lose in federal court, failing to block Microsoft’s acquisition of game developer Activision.
Human Progress
Three Cheers for Refrigeration—and Four, Once Everyone Has It
It is difficult to overstate the benefits of refrigeration. Even more than its technological sibling air conditioning, refrigeration has dramatically improved public health and the…
Blog
This week in ridiculous regulations: nuclear debt collection and high airports
The FTC lost another major antitrust case, this time its bid to stop the Microsoft-Activision merger. CPI inflation dropped to 3 percent, though…
Blog
Republican Working Group issues first critical report against ESG
Last month, the Republican Environmental, Social, and Governance Working Group (ESG Group) unveiled an interim report outlining GOP efforts to combat the ideological subversion of…
News Release
Court Ruling on Ripple Cryptocurrency Case Curbs SEC Powers
A federal court has weighed in on whether a prominent cryptocurrency can be regulated by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) as a security…
News Release
Coalition warns Congress about Railway Safety Act
The Competitive Enterprise Institute and the Rio Grande Foundation today sent a coalition letter to Congress expressing serious concerns with the Senate’s Railway Safety Act…
Blog
Free the Economy podcast: School Choice for Everyone with Ed Tarnowski
In this week’s episode we talk about trends in self-employment, how rent control leads to more evictions, empty corporate gestures on…
Blog
Congress should vote no on the Railway Safety Act, says coalition
The Competitive Enterprise Institute and the Rio Grande Foundation today sent a coalition letter to Congress expressing serious concerns with the Senate’s Railway Safety…
Real Clear Policy
“For an Overreaching Federal Trade Commission, Sunlight Is the Best Disinfectant”
Asheesh Agarwal discusses this week’s congressional oversight of the Federal Trade Commission.
Letters
CEI Co-Leads Coalition Letter on Railroad Safety Act
Dear Members of Congress: The undersigned individuals write to express concerns with the Railway Safety Act (S. 576). Safety advancement in any mode of…
Daily Caller
Supreme Court’s Embrace Of This Legal Theory Means Biden’s Sweeping Electric Vehicle Plans Could Be Unconstitutional
The Daily Caller cites CEI’s Devin Watkins on the Biden administration’s new vehicle emission plan: The EPA’s new emissions rule,…
City Journal
Rebuilding the Constitutional Structure
City Journal cites CEI’s Dan Greenberg and Devin Watkins on constitutional structure: Consider a new Competitive Enterprise Institute report that provides a timely…
City Journal
Rebuilding the Constitutional Structure
City Journal cites CEI’s Constitutional Restoration study by experts Dan Greenberg and Devin Watkins: Consider a new Competitive Enterprise Institute report that provides…
Blog
Fighting extreme climate policies must happen now
There’s no need to make slippery slope arguments when it comes to analyzing the policies pushed by climate alarmists. There’s a simple reason why: We…
Blog
The Teamsters want UPS drivers to go on strike
UPS’s drivers will likely go on strike at the end of the month. It would be a huge disruption to the broader economy – and…
News Release
July CPI report shows key inflation measure still too high
The Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) released its latest report on the Consumer Price Index (CPI) today, showing inflation up 3 percent from one…
News Release
House Oversight and Accountability Committee unanimously advances regulatory reform legislation
Earlier today, the House Oversight and Accountability Committee advanced 41 to 0 the Guidance Out of Darkness (GOOD) Act from Rep. James Comer (R-KY).
Fox Business
VIDEO: Ben Lieberman on Fox’s Varney & Company
CEI’s Ben Lieberman joined Varney & Company to discuss high gas prices and energy policy.
Letters
Letter of Support on H.R. 890 and H.R. 3230
Comment
Energy Conservation Program: Energy Conservation Standards for Dishwashers; Notice of proposed rulemaking and request for comment
Action Notice of proposed rulemaking and request for comment. Summary The Energy Policy and Conservation Act, as amended (“EPCA”), prescribes energy conservation standards for various…
News Release
Court dismisses meritless FTC case, allows Microsoft-Activision merger to go ahead for now
A federal judge ruled Tuesday that Microsoft could proceed with its acquisition of Activision-Blizzard, despite the Federal Trade Commission’s (FTC) efforts to stop the…
Fox News
Washington State’s Nation-Leading Gasoline Prices Should Serve as a Warning
Vacationers hitting the highways currently face a nationwide average price of $3.52 per gallon of gasoline, according AAA. However, the price varies widely among states. California usually…
Blog
Regulatory reform in the 118th Congress: The Regulatory Transparency Act
The current regulatory approval process lacks transparency and objectivity. While past executive orders and Office of Management and Budget (OMB) directives require that economically…
Real Clear Markets
“Seeking Her (Whale) Bones, Lina Khan Aims to Kill Amazon in Its Present Form”
Robert Bork Jr. discusses Chair Khan’s plan to break up Amazon.
Washington Examiner
“Lina Khan Goes to Congress”
Carl Szabo from NetChoice describes several abuses by FTC Chair Lina Khan in anticipation of the U.S. House Judiciary Committee hearing on Thursday.
Wall Street Journal
“Antitrust Officials Pile on the Paperwork”
Attorneys for Perkins Coie, Christopher Williams and Henry Hauser, address the proposed overhaul of premerger notification filings by the FTC and the Department of Justice.
Cato Institute
“Are the Latest FTC Cases Against Tech Good for Consumers?”
The Cato Institute’s Jennifer Huddleston discusses the FTC’s latest cases against “big tech” companies.
Blog
This week in ridiculous regulations: NASA designations and automatic braking
It was a four-day work week due to Independence Day. Meanwhile, agencies issued new regulations ranging from pot catchers to viticultural areas. On to the…
Blog
Don’t believe the ‘cost-of-thriving’ doom
There has been a lot of discussion in the last several years – and even more so in the last few weeks – about income…
Study
Global Infrastructure Permitting
Executive Summary The construction of major infrastructure projects, such as power plants, highways, and ports, is heavily regulated. In major industrial economies, such projects typically…
News Release
Economy adds 209,000 jobs in June, fewer than expected: CEI analysis
The U.S. economy added just 209,000 jobs in June 2023, under-performing compared to expectations. CEI economy and labor experts offer analysis on what this…
Blog
Free the Economy podcast: teaching capitalism with Allen Mendenhall
In this week’s episode we talk about the cost of thriving in America, the incredible expanding CHIPS Act, and occupational licensing…
Blog
What I told the EPA about its illegal de facto electric vehicle mandates
Yesterday I submitted comments to the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) on its proposed greenhouse gas (GHG) emission standards for model years (MYs) 2027-2032…
Washington Post
How the Supreme Court could thwart Biden’s plan to electrify cars
The Washington Post cites attorney Devin Watkins on the EPA’s proposed rule on greenhouse gas emissions: Republican-led states and conservative groups, including the Competitive Enterprise Institute,…
Blog
Biden admin plans to rig cost-benefit analysis, boosting federal regulations
When the Biden administration took office, one of its first actions was to order a series of updates to the federal rulemaking process, all under…
Blog
Big tech firms pushing AI regulation are not seeking the public interest
Large Language Models (LLMs) have taken the internet by storm thanks to programs like OpenAI’s ChatGPT and Microsoft’s new Bing chatbot. These are opening up…
Forbes
Why The ‘Social Cost Of Carbon’ Can Not Be Used In Cost-Benefit Analysis
The social cost of carbon (SCC) quantifies the economic damage associated with emitting a ton of carbon dioxide into the atmosphere. Regulatory impact analyses from…
National Review
“The FTC Continues to Prioritize Ideology over Consumers”
Rachel Chiu from the Committee for Justice argues that the FTC’s action against Illumina’s acquisition of Grail is driven by ideology.
Real Clear Markets
“The FTC Isn’t Just Blocking Mergers, It’s Playing Favorites”
Tirzah Duren from the American Consumer Institute argues that the FTC’s actions against big tech is the result of bias, not concern for the consumer.
Truth on the Market
“The FTC Shouldn’t Try to Make Amazon Divest Its Logistics Service”
Alden Abbott, former FTC general counsel, discusses several problems with the FTC’s latest focus on Amazon.
Comment
Marlo Lewis CEI Comments on EPA’s Greenhouse Gas Motor Vehicle Standards
Thank you for the opportunity to comment on the Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA’s) proposed greenhouse gas (GHG) emission standards for model years (MYs) 2027-2032 passenger…
Comment
Comment Extension Request, OMB-2022-0014
Dear Administrator Revesz:The Competitive Enterprise Institute (CEI) respectfully requests that the Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs (OIRA) extend the comment period by at least…
Blog
Local zoning boards are not democracy
At the Competitive Enterprise Institute, we have often discussed the need to reform zoning, permitting, and building regulations, so I was intrigued…
Blog
This week in ridiculous regulations: historical captain permits and apricot marketing
The Supreme Court agreed to hear CEI’s Moore v. U.S. tax case in its upcoming term. It also handed down rulings in controversial cases…
New York Post
Memo to critics: Only folks who don’t qualify will lose their Medicaid
Medicaid advocates are demanding the federal government to stop states from removing people from the program after 25 states and the District of Columbia dropped…
Daily Caller
Don’t Stop At College — End Race-Based Admissions In Public Schools
There’s an important battle brewing in our public schools between equity and treating students equally under the law. Equitable treatment of one class of students…
Blog
Adam Smith, George Washington, and the invisible hand in America
Although Adam Smith would have been 300 this year, his birth date is unknown, and his baptism date has shifted from different dates in June…
Blog
Wall Street doesn’t want to come back to the office
The continuing saga of remote versus in-office work acquired a new data point recently when Bloomberg released its latest Markets Live Pulse survey, which…
The Economic Standard
Adam Smith on how trade makes us better people
Economists love efficiency. That is why most of them love free trade. Countries with relatively free trade also tend to be …
Blog
Supreme Court’s Janus case 5 years later: Workers are invoking their rights
A common argument made by unions and their allies is that workers want to belong to unions but that big business uses all manner of…
Blog
Regulatory reform in the 118th Congress: The Regulation Reduction Act of 2023
Federal regulations will continue to grow, if the Biden administration’s recently published Unified Agenda is any indication. It lists 3,666 new rules currently in…
Blog
Free the Economy podcast: importing talent with Connor O’Brien
In this week’s episode we talk about the major income tax case going to the Supreme Court, the looming death of ESG…
The Center Square
Data shows Florida’s electricity consumption increased as population grows
CEI’s Daren Bakst is cited in the Center Square in an article about Florida’s electricity consumption: Daren Bakst, Deputy Director and Senior Fellow of…
Blog
Why Washington state has the highest gas prices
The price of gas in Washington State is currently the highest in the nation averaging $4.99 per gallon as of June 28, 2023. This…
Blog
Bidenomics? Here are the 297 costliest rules in the president’s Spring 2023 Unified Agenda
Federal agencies issue thousands of rules, regulations and guidance documents every year compared to the relative handful of laws enacted by Congress.
Blog
Adam Smith on how trade makes us better people
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…
D.C. Journal
FTC Lawsuit Against Amazon’s Prime Is Poor Use of Limited Resources
The Federal Trade Commission is suing Amazon for allegedly tricking customers into signing up for the company’s Prime membership and making it difficult to cancel…
The Hill
“The Federal Trade Commission’s Embarrassing Antitrust Crusade”
Stephen Kent from Consumer Choice Center underscores Lina Khan’s ideological pursuits as Chair of the FTC.
Bloomberg
“US Merger Review Revamp Set to Delay Deals by Months”
Bloomberg‘s Leah Nylen explains how the FTC’s changes to merger-filing rules will add delays to merger approval.