Blog
This Week in Ridiculous Regulations
A humorous diplomatic row over Greenland was not the only news of the week, with China tariffs, divisive rhetoric, and recession fears also putting in…
Blog
Senator Bernie Sanders Releases $16 Trillion Green New Deal Plan
On August 22nd, Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) released a 14,000-word plan to implement the Green New Deal—a detailed blueprint to “avert climate catastrophe and create…
Blog
Washington Post Uses Dubious Data on ‘Extreme’ Climate Change
The Washington Post ran a long, complicated story by four reporters on August 14th headlined “Extreme climate change is here.”…
Blog
Antitrust Basics: Think Long Term, Not Just Short Term
Moore’s Law states that computing power doubles every year and a half or so. An antitrust case against IBM, by contrast, lasted for 13 years,…
Blog
David Koch (1940-2019), R.I.P.
Friend, philanthropist, inventor, and industrialist David Koch has died at the age of 79. He was a father and husband. Known best for his pro-liberty…
News Release
China Tariff Retaliation Shows Failure of Trump Policy
On news that China plans to raise tariffs on Sep. 1 and Dec. 15, respectively, in retaliation for President Trump's recent increase, Competitive Enterprise Institute…
Blog
Heretics in the Church of Tobacco Control
H.P. Lovecraft opined in 1931 that “if religion were true its followers would not try to bludgeon their young into artificial conformity, but would merely…
Blog
When Did Conservatives Stop Loving a Free Economy?
National Review contributor and rage-inducing controversialist Kevin Williamson has a new book out, “The Smallest Minority: Independent Thinking in the Age of Mob Politics,” which…
Blog
Sealand, from Pirate Radio to Seasteading
Setting up a sovereign free territory has long been a dream of libertarian mavericks, from the ill-fated Republic of Minerva to the nascent Free Republic…
Blog
Will T-Mobile/Sprint Merger Increase Prices?
Lots of things influence prices and, of course, not all are influenced by the same factors. However, the lawsuit filed by several state attorneys general…
Blog
Antitrust Basics: Corruption and Rent-Seeking
Rent-seeking is economics jargon for chasing after unfair special favors from government. Businesses and individuals have a large menu of rent-seeking options to choose from,…
Blog
Where Facebook Interim Report on Bias Falls Short
Today former U.S. Senator Jon Kyl (R-AZ), in fulfillment of an arrangement with Facebook, released an independent Interim Report (and accompanying op-ed) cataloging the primary concerns of…
News Release
Facebook Report on Bias Overlooks Looming Threats of Speech Regulation
Facebook today released an interim report by former U.S. Senator John Kyl (R-AZ) examining claims by some conservatives of political bias on the part of…
Blog
Debt Collectors Keep Credit Market Flowing
Debt collecting is a profession that gets little love, but given the social good done by debt collectors who operate ethically and follow the rules,…
News Release
Mario Loyola Joins CEI as Senior Fellow
Blog
Cataloging Regulatory Costs of Cronyism and Rent-Seeking in a Self-Interested Administrative State
Rent-seeking as a policy concern has been done to death: It’s been described over and over how regulation is often not about elevating the public…
Comment
CEI Comments on CFPB Proposed Rule on Debt Collection Practice
On behalf of the Competitive Enterprise Institute (“CEI"), we are pleased to provide the following comment letter on the Bureau of Consumer Financial Protection’s (“Bureau”…
The Heartland Institute
Households Would Pay Big for GND, Analysis Shows
The Heartland Institute cites CEI’s study by President Kent Lassman and Executive Director of Power the Future Daniel Turner: A new study conducted…
Blog
PRO Act Undermines Employee Choice
Democrats in Congress introduced the Protecting the Right to Organize (PRO) Act with the state goal of strengthening union power and increasing union membership, which…
Blog
Business Roundtable Restates Obvious: Stakeholders Matter (and Always Have)
There’s a flurry of news coverage this morning about the Business Roundtable releasing a new public statement on “the purpose of a corporation.” Whereas previous…
Blog
This Week in Ridiculous Regulations
Last week was the Federal Register’s busiest of the year, with its 3,075 pages almost tripling a normal week’s count. A new economically significant regulation…
Blog
Climate Study Urges Blacklisting of Contrarians
Authors of a study published recently in the journal Nature Communications want editors and journalists to blacklist “climate change contrarians.” Of course, the study doesn’t…
Blog
VIDEO: Why Beer Sucks in Socialist Countries
The trend of younger voters allegedly becoming more favorable to socialism has alarmed and chagrined many observers recently, from members of the New York Post…
CCN
Ron Paul Fights for Bitcoin after Fed’s Payments System Threatens Crypto
The Washington Times
Trump’s Tariff Delay on China Eases Christmas Worries, Sends Markets Higher
The Washington Times cites Senior Fellow Ryan Young on tariffs: Ryan Young, a senior fellow at the free market Competitive Enterprise Institute, said…
Reason
Democrats Join Trump in Seeking Balance by Policing Speech
Reason cites Vice President for Policy Wayne Crews on free speech and Section 230: Removing Section 230 protection from platforms that bureaucrats consider…
Reason
Truck Platooning Is Making Progress
Reason cites CEI’s paper by Marc Scribner on automated vehicle platooning: Platooning is still not allowed in the majority of states. Last month…
The Washington Post
Trump Finally Acknowledges His Tariffs Could Hit Consumers
The Washington Post cites Senior Fellow Ryan Young on tariffs: “The decision to delay new tariffs on Chinese-made toys, smartphones, laptops and other…
Blog
Children’s Environmental Health Programs Translate to Junk Science
For more than a decade now, the federal government has doled out millions of dollars to fund junk science and political activism under the guise…
Blog
States Making Predictable Grab for Revenue via Online Sales Taxes
Fallout from the 2018 South Dakota v. Wayfair Supreme Court decision, which allowed remote sales tax collection from online purchases, has begun and The Wall Street Journal editorialized…
Blog
Modernizing Passenger Facility Charge Can Promote Airport Investment, Reduce Federal Spending
The passenger facility charge (PFC) is a local airport user fee that serves as an important revenue tool with less federal meddling than its primary…
News Release
Report: Congress Should Let Airports Make Infrastructure Decisions, Eliminate Cap on Passenger Facility Charge
A new Competitive Enterprise Institute report argues airport authorities nationwide should be empowered to make their own decisions about how best to finance infrastructure improvements.
News Release
CBS-Viacom Merger Good Sign for Competition in the Multimedia Marketplace
Viacom and CBS today announced a merger that would combine the two entertainment companies into a single entity more able to compete with companies like…
News Release
CEI Experts: Delay on China Tariffs Shows Real Burden Is on Consumers
On news today that the US Trade Representative will delay new tariffs on some consumer items until Dec. 15, as well as exclude some products from tariffs.
Study
Modernizing the Passenger Facility Charge to Increase Airport Investment, Reduce Federal Spending, and Save Travelers Money
The passenger facility charge (PFC) is a congressionally authorized, federally regulated local airport user fee. The PFC exists alongside the Airport Improvement Program (AIP), a…
Blog
This Week in Ridiculous Regulations
Rumblings of a “Navarro recession” are growing louder, and the 2019 Federal Register will likely crack the 40,000-page mark early this week. Rulemaking agencies published…
Blog
Climate Rent-Seeking Backfiring on Chemours
In perhaps the most egregious example of climate change-related rent seeking to date, chemical giants Chemours and Honeywell have joined forces with environmental activists to…
Blog
New Rule to Limit State Government Abuse of Clean Water Act for Climate Activism
Making good on a promise made in an April 10th Executive Order entitled Promoting Energy Infrastructure and Economic Growth, the Environmental Protection Agency has proposed a rule restricting…
Blog
Climate Blame Game
In “Reformed Climate Deniers Don’t Deserve Redemption,” author Dave Leviton argues that Republican pollster Frank Luntz had no business testifying before the Senate Democrats’ Special Committee…
Blog
Leaked White House Executive Order on ‘Censorship’ Violates Two Basic Constitutional Tenets
Earlier this week it was reported that the Trump administration was drafting an executive order to combat perceived “censorship” of conservatives on online platforms such…
News Release
Draft White House Executive Order Aimed at Social Media Companies Would Violate First Amendment
Following yesterday’s Politico report about a draft executive order aimed at social media companies’ policies, CNN obtained a copy of the proposed order on Friday.
Blog
Underfunded Public Pensions Put Future Taxpayers on the Hook
One of the most well-known and enduring lessons of public choice economics is the dynamic of concentrated benefits and diffuse costs. Well-organized groups have both…
Blog
VIDEO: Where the Regulatory State Came From
Our friends at the Pacific Legal Foundation have a funny and insightful explainer video on the historical development of the regulatory state (also known as…
Blog
Limits of ‘Soft Law’ Approach to Tech Regulation
Can the regulation of new technology be voluntary and non-coercive? In a recent op-ed for The Hill, Mercatus Center law and technology analyst Jennifer Huddleston…
The Heartland Institute
Trump Deregulation Will Save $3,100 Per Household, CEA Reports
The Heartland Institute cites CEI’s 10kc report. “The Competitive Enterprise Institute puts the annual economic cost of federal regulations at $1.9 trillion,” Herrick…
The Kevin Miller Show
Kevin Miller 6am 080819
CEI President and CEO Kent Lassman joined the Kevin Miller Show to discuss the state of the economy.
The Washington Examiner
The Truth about Plastic Straws
President Trump’s campaign has raised nearly half a million dollars in a matter of weeks selling plastic straws with “Trump” emblazed on each one. They…
FreedomWorks
Support the Regulations from the Executive in Need of Scrutiny (REINS) Act, H.R. 3972
FreedomWorks cites CEI on the cost of federal regulations. According to the Competitive Enterprise Institute, federal regulation cost nearly $1.9 trillion in 2017…
The Washington Times
Trump Administration Seeks to Juice Dishwashers by Scrubbing Energy Regulations
The Washington Times cites General Counsel Sam Kazman on dishwasher efficiency. Sam Kazman, general counsel of the free-market Competitive Enterprise Institute, which…
Citation
White House Should Refrain from Taking Executive Action against Tech that Violates First Amendment Rights
According to a new Politico report, the White House is considering an executive order to “address allegations of anti-conservative bias by social media companies.”…