The Fresno Bee
The NLRB’s Emerging, Disastrous Joint-Employer Cases
Franchise businesses provide us food, tax preparation, daycare, and gasoline. Many of us have worked a temporary job or know someone who has. Businesses commonly…
Blog
UK Banks End Reward Programs in Anticipation of Interchange Fee Caps
File this one under “we told you so.” The Independent reports a scale-back in credit card reward programs in the United Kingdom: The…
Blog
Honeybees are Not Headed for Extinction
Blog
CEI’s Battered Business Bureau: The Week in Regulation
Blog
Pay Discrimination Myths from the AAUW
Blog
SEIU Support for Minimum Wage Hikes Based on Self-Interest
Why is the Service Employees International Union funneling $15 million into the Fight for 15 campaign when the average private-sector union member makes $22 an hour and…
Blog
Operation Choke Point: The CFPB Is Now in Charge
I suggested at TheBlaze some weeks ago that even as the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation was stepping back from its involvement in Operation Choke Point, the…
Blog
Could Alcohol Taxes Reduce Fatal Car Crashes?
A new study from the University of Florida asserts that because Illinois instituted an alcohol tax increase in 2009 and the rate of alcohol-related traffic…
Forbes
How ‘Progressive’ Policy Weakens African-American Banks
The Washington Post and other outlets have highlighted the decline of banks owned by African-Americans, however coverage hasn’t connected that trend with…
The Wall Street Journal
Suspension, Restorative Justice and Productive Schools
News Release
CEI Announces 2015 Julian Simon Award Winner, Nobel Laureate Vernon Smith
Blog
A Voluntary Approach to Helping the Honeybee
Today, the Competitive Enterprise Institute published my paper on the honeybee health issue and pesticide use. We have had several media outlets ask, why…
News Release
Federal Pollinator Policy May Threaten Honeybee Health
Blog
Has Greece Already Decided on Grexit?
It has been a month since Greece was approved a four-month extension of its current bailout program, on condition that the leftist government implements a…
Comment
Congressional Testimony – Fred Smith on the Private Role of “Public Goods”
Read the full testimony here Good afternoon Chairman Calvert, Ranking Member McCollum, and members of the Appropriations Subcommittee on…
Blog
Washington Teachers’ Union Boss Compensation Not Unusual
A recent article in the Yakima Herald-Republic describes a union subsidy, which pays 75 percent of the teachers' union president's salary, as "unusual." Unfortunately, that…
Products
New Rule Empowers Union ‘Ambush Elections’
With declining union membership, the easiest way for the NLRB to help unions increase their ranks is limiting the time that workers have to contemplate the…
Blog
White House Petition Asks President to Veto Online Gambling Ban
Blog
California Drought 2.0, or Is it 3.0?
California’s water woes are back in the headlines after Gov. Jerry Brown commanded a 25 percent cut in consumption last week after extended drought. Pricing matters…
Blog
CEI’s Battered Business Bureau: The Week in Regulation
It was a fairly typical week, with nearly 70 final regulations and more than 50 proposed regulations hitting the books, covering everything from potato handling…
Blog
Tesla vs. the Auto Dealers: A Hilarious Update
Study
“Beepocalypse” Not
Letters
CEI Supports McConnell’s Strategy to Protect States Against EPA Power Grab
The Competitive Enterprise Institute joined Americans for Tax Reform, National Taxpayers Union, and 29 other conservative and free-market organizations in signing a coalition letter in…
Investor's Business Daily
New Rule Empowers Union ‘Ambush Elections’
Americans usually associate mid-April with tax filing — a trying yet predictable annual ritual. This year, however, it will mean a change in America’s workplaces…
Blog
Anti-Business Myths Pervade Reporting on Religious Freedom Legislation
Sometimes, the media propagates anti-business myths, in the course of reporting on legislation that has little impact on business. So it is with its recent reporting…
Legal Brief
CEI v. EPA – No. 15-466
Today CEI filed a new FOIA lawsuit against the EPA—one lawsuit over two different FOIA requests.
Blog
TSCA Reform Debate Is Not about Public Safety
At recent hearings on the Frank R. Lautenberg Chemical Safety for the 21st Century Act (S. 697), senators, environmental activists, and local government officials claimed…
Blog
NLRB Holds Training at Union Office and Top Lawyer Forgets Details of Ambush Election Rule
Congress has held numerous hearings and passed a resolution of disapproval of the National Labor Relations Board regulation known as the "ambush election" rule due…
Blog
President Obama’s UN Climate Plan Ignores American People and Congress
Myron Ebell of the Competitive Enterprise Institute responded to the Obama Administration’s submission of its intended nationally-determined contribution (INDC) to the United Nations:…
Heartland Daily Podcast
Michelle Minton: How Will RAWA Bill Impact Online Gaming/Gambling?
In today’s edition of The Heartland Daily Podcast, Managing Editor of Budget & Tax News Jesse Hathaway speaks with Michelle Minton. Minton is a fellow at the…
Forbes
A Tale Of Two Cities: How Municipal M&A Saves Taxpayers, Prevents Budget Shortfalls
Comment
Remarks at the International Alliance for Electronic Payments Panel on EU Interchange Fee Regulations
Blog
International Panel Outlines Problems with EU Interchange Fee Regulation
On March 17, an international panel of experts gathered in Brussels to discuss the proposed EU interchange fee regulations that are set to be approved…
Blog
Administration’s GROW AMERICA Act 2.0 Mixes Bad with Good
Today, Secretary of Transportation Anthony Foxx unveiled the administration’s latest surface transportation reauthorization proposal. Like the previous White House bill, the latest iteration of the…
Blog
CEI’s Battered Business Bureau: The Week in Regulation
Along with last wwek’s usual slew of final regulations covering everything from power plants to televisions, an additional 55 proposed regulations also hit the books.
The Daily Caller
Labor Board Case Puts New ‘Joint-Employer’ Rule To The Test
Blog
Human Achievement Hour: An Honorable Choice for Saturday Night
Earth Hour vs. Human Achievement Hour—two irreconcilably opposed events scheduled for the same time: 8:30-9:30 pm EST, Saturday, March 28, 2015. Earth Hour protestors will turn…
Blog
Human Achievement of the Day: The Sharing Economy
It’s the most wonderful time of year! Human Achievement Hour is once again upon us, giving us reason to pause and consider recent innovations that…
Human Events
Federal Gaming Bans Undermine Federalism
Forbes
Why Human Achievement Is Worth Celebrating
This Saturday marks the seventh annual observance of “Human Achievement Hour,” a celebration of technology and prosperity hosted by my organization, the Competitive Enterprise…
Blog
Grover Norquist and Americans for Tax Reform Are Wrong about Passenger Facility Charge
I saw some unfortunate news today: Grover Norquist’s Americans for Tax Reform sent a letter to Congress opposing a possible increase in the cap of the…
Blog
Arsenic in Wine: Dangerous or Beneficial?
Dan Nosowitz in Modern Farmer offers some insights on the recent class action lawsuit filed against California winemakers. The plaintiffs found that some inexpensive wines contained arsenic at levels…
Blog
Missouri Government Employers Rarely Keep Track of Union Subsidy
One would expect government employers to know where and what its employees are doing while paid by the taxpayer. Unfortunately, in Missouri, that is not…
Comment
Congressional Testimony – Michelle Minton on the Restoration of America’s Wire Act
Blog
Human Achievement of the Day: Bitcoin
On the eve of the financial crisis of 2007-8, financial systems had grown extremely sophisticated, but were still essentially based on a model of trust.
The Washington Post
Streetcar Fatigue
In the Washington Post, CEI's Marc Scribner discusses "streetcar fatigue" and the quagmire surrounding Washington, D.C.'s H Street Streetcar project: Marc Scribner,…
Washington Free Beacon
Missouri Officials Block Efforts to Track Time Teachers Spend on Union Business
The Washington Free Beacon cites Trey Kovac's study on Missouri union release time: The Competitive Enterprise Institute, a think tank based in…
Citation
The Man Who Brought Obamacare Back to the Supreme Court
Comment
Regulatory comments on NEPA Review of Project-Related Greenhouse Gas Emissions
Products
Wall St. attacked, Main St. wounded
Study
A Remedy for Taxpayer Giveaway to Unions
Full Document Available in PDF Use of taxpayer funds should be reserved for purely public purposes, not the private benefit of an…
News Release
Report: Cost of Labor Union Subsidy in Missouri Unknown Due to Lack of Government Record Keeping
Letters
Coalition letter on the 2015 Small Business Regulatory Sunset Act
Blog
A Bright Future
The following is a guest post by Chelsea German, Researcher and Managing Editor of HumanProgress.org. When Homo erectus first learned to control fire a million years ago, humanity…
Blog
Congress Introduces Bill to Combat NLRB Overreach
Last week, Congress introduced a bill that would restore decades-old National Labor Relations Board precedent by overturning a decision that inappropriately eased union organizing drives.
Blog
Human Achievement of the Day: Guitars
When Human Achievement Hour rolls around each year, I make sure to do two things. One is to play an electric guitar. The other is to…
Blog
Human Achievement of the Day: Higher Education
As the amount of student loans outstanding continues to rise, taxpayers are more on the hook as the Obama administration continues to expand loan repayment…
Blog
CEI’s Battered Business Bureau: The Week in Regulation
New rules published in the last week include everything from the IRS and Executive Office of the President declaring themselves exempt from select transparency laws,…
The Daily Caller
Obama’s Bizarre Executive Privilege Claim Over Fannie And Freddie
Forbes
Enhancing The Private Role For ‘Public Goods’
John Kenneth Galbraith once observed that in America our gardens are beautiful, while our public parks are in a state of disaster. While Galbraith saw…
Blog
Yes, and Water Can Run Uphill!
A recent Washington Post story by Joby Warrick says much about the credulity of the media. The story extols the great gains in wind…
Blog
Is Ferguson “the Norm”? In Some Ways, Yes
Recently, the Justice Department issued a report that was very critical of the Ferguson police department and courts. In response, President Obama stated that “he doesn't believe…
Blog
When Regulations Undermine Justice and Due Process
Recently, I participated in a March 13 panel discussion at the National Press Club titled “Bringing an End to Second-Class Justice,” discussing how federal micromanagement…
Letters
Coalition Letter to Senators Toomey and Feinstein on the Corn Ethanol Mandate Elimination Act
Blog
Data Torturing at the CPSC
James Mills of the National Institute of Child Health and Human Development lamented in an article in the New England Journal of Medicine back in 1993: “‘If…
Blog
Benning Road: The Last Refuge of Streetcar Apologists
Washington City Paper’s Housing Complex blogger Aaron Wiener has an unintentionally hilarious article on the slow-motion implosion of the D.C. Streetcar. But before I get to Wiener’s…
Blog
Least Transparent Administration Closes Records on Fannie and Freddie
This Sunshine Week, the administration that swept into office promising to be the “most transparent” in history was just judged by a major news service…
Blog
CPSC’s Scientific Shenanigans on Phthalates
Many “stakeholders” have complained about the process through which the Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) developed its proposed rule related to a class of chemicals…
Blog
The Republican Budget and Middle Class Economics
Yesterday the House Republicans released their “Balanced Budget for a Stronger America” and the Senate Republicans will release their budget proposal today. House Republicans…
Blog
Maine Legislators Try to Bring Right-to-Work to the Northeast
Last week, Wisconsin became the 25th right-to-work (RTW) state, meaning workers cannot be forced to pay dues to a union which they may disagree with.
Breitbart
Obama Administration’s “Race-Based” Discipline Policies Increase School Violence
Comment
Public Comment to the Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC)
Summary: Since the release of the Chronic Hazard Advisory Panel (CHAP) report in July, many stakeholders have raised serious concerns about the process and report methodologies.
Blog
In re Online DVD Antitrust Litigation: adverse decision and en banc petition
You might recall the settlement approval in Online DVD Antitrust Litigation we briefed back in 2012. A district court held that the Wal-Mart $12.03…
Blog
CEI’s Battered Business Bureau: The Week in Regulation
An otherwise slow week ended with a bang on Friday, with 27 new regulations, or nearly half the week’s total, covering everything from calorie counts…
Human Events
The Most Transparent Administration… Oh, Wait…
Blog
Wisconsin Unions Sue to Maintain Coercive Power
Workers should find the union lawsuit against Wisconsin's recently enacted right-to-work law (RTW) bizarre and, probably, offensive. The argument put forth by unions is that…
Blog
CPSC Proposal on Phthalates Likely to Do More Harm than Good
On Monday, the Consumer Product Safety Commission will close the comment period for a proposed rule related to chemicals used to make soft and pliable…
Letters
CEI and R Street Institute Coalition Letter to Congress Opposing the Marketplace Fairness Act
Letters
CEI and R Street Institute Coalition Letter to Congress on the Harvest Price Subsidy Prohibition Act
Blog
Civil Rights Commissioners Oppose Budget Increase for Education Department’s Office for Civil Rights
On February 26, two members of the U.S. Commission on Civil Rights, Gail Heriot and Peter Kirsanow, wrote to the chairmen of the congressional appropriations committees, to…
Blog
State Labor Law Reform Beyond Right-to-Work
Governor Scott Walker and Wisconsin's legislature are not alone. A number of states are introducing legislation that enhances worker freedom and holds unions accountable to…
Daily Caller
EPA Will Take 100 Years To Fulfill Conservative Group’s FOIA Request
New Republic
Hillary Clinton’s Email Scandal Is About to Cause Headaches for the EPA
Blog
Chaffetz Tells States and Lotteries: If You Don’t Want an Online Gambling Ban, Introduce Your Own
According to a Gambling Compliance story (paywall) posted today, Rep. Jason Chaffetz (R-Utah) participated in a conference call last week with about 20 state and lottery…
Blog
Steelworkers Allegedly Intimidate Members that Just Want to Work
On February 1, the United Steelworkers (USW) instigated a strike at several oil refineries around the country, a first since the 1980s. After contract negotiations…
Blog
Marketplace Fairness Act Is More about Tax Revenue and Rent-Seeking than Fairness
Yesterday, Sens. Mike Enzi (R-Wy.), Dick Durbin (D-Ill.), Lamar Alexander (R-Tenn.), and Heidi Heitkamp (D-N.D.) reintroduced the speciously named Marketplace Fairness Act (MFA) in the…
Legal Brief
CEI v. EPA – No. 15-346
Blog
6 Ridiculous Myths about Legal Internet Gambling Busted
Should the United States government ban online poker? One billionaire casino owner thinks so. In the quest to convince Americans that they shouldn't be able…
News Release
New EPA Email Lawsuit Challenges Administration’s Transparency Claims
Washington Times
Hillary Clinton Could Face Jail Time as Email Scandal Sparks Legal Challenges
Newsmax
Obama Plan Could Cripple IRA Choices
Last week, President Obama called on the Department of Labor (DOL) to "update the rules and requirements that retirement advisers put the best interests of…
Blog
How Not to Fix, and Fix, Federal Surface Transportation Policy
A lot of misinformation and scaremongering swells around transportation infrastructure policy in Washington. We are told our highway network is on the verge of collapse…
Blog
Remembering M. Stanton Evans
Blog
CEI’s Battered Business Bureau: The Week in Regulation
The Supreme Court heard oral arguments on the King v. Burwell case last week. The decision, likely to appear in June, will determine in part whether regulatory…
Human Events
Why Capitalist Virtue Beats Cronyist Sin
Carolina Journal
Quietly, Government Stops Counting ‘Green’ Jobs
Carolina Journal quotes CEI`s John Berlau on the federal government`s `green job` promotion: John Berlau, a senior fellow at the Competitive Enterprise Institute…
Washington Times
The Coming Climate Court
The United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) recently circulated an email breathlessly titled, “Governments on Track to Reaching Paris 2015 Universal Climate Agreement…
Comment
CEI, ICLE, TechFreedom File Comments with FCC in MVPD Definition Proceeding
Full Document Available in PDF In this proceeding, the Commission proposes to expand the definition of a multichannel video programming distributor (MVPD)…
Blog
University of California Dean: Academic Freedom Makes Students “Feel Unsafe”
Recently, the dean of the School of Social Welfare at the University of California at Berkeley condemned a professor’s constitutionally protected remarks, including but not limited…
Washington Times