Blog
Free the Economy podcast: Revisiting Earth Day with Todd Myers
In this week’s episode we cover the dwindling number of US public companies (via Todd Zywicki of George Mason University), a pro-consumer…
Blog
Quantitative easing and the Fed’s free lunch problem
As Kevin Warsh undergoes his confirmation process for Fed Chair, one of the most consequential yet least straightforward issues in modern monetary policy is returning…
Blog
The GUARD Act dis-GUARDs the First Amendment and competition
When looking at Sen. Josh Hawley’s (R-MO) GUARD Act (S. 3062 – Guidelines for User Age-verification and Responsible Dialogue Act), the puns write themselves.
News Release
Fed Chair nominee Warsh has mixed signals in Senate hearing
Kevin Warsh’s confirmation hearing for Federal Reserve Chair in the Senate today prompted questions about future Fed policies. While his testimony had promising signals, several…
Blog
The Fast and the Spurious: Teamster allies push Faster Labor Contracts Act
Union allies in Congress are trying to force the House to vote on legislation called the Faster Labor Contracts Act. The legislation would amend…
Legal Brief
Amicus Curiae Submission on the SEC’s No-Admit, No Deny Rule
Congress imposed a presumption of disclosure on the government. The SEC has inverted that frameworkby imposing a presumption of silence on private citizens. Since 1972,…
Blog
Forward guidance is not a crystal ball: A case for rules-based monetary policy
Throughout history, the urge to predict the future has been hard to resist. The Federal Reserve is not immune to such temptation. In recent years,…
Blog
An easy win possible on affordability for California regulators
Whether “affordability” is a serious policy prescription or just a campaign buzzword remains to be seen, but California’s Public Utilities Commission has a golden opportunity…
Blog
The week in regulations: Drone settlements and gambling losses
The 2026 Federal Register topped 20,000 pages. President Trump got into a feud with the Pope. Agencies issued new regulations ranging from mail standards to…
News Release
The ESA Amendments Act Includes Important Reforms Aimed at Conserving Species and Protecting Property Rights – CEI Paper
There are simple, common-sense reforms to help ensure that the Endangered Species Act (ESA), enacted in 1973, does a better job of conserving species according to a new report from…
Study
The ESA Amendments Act of 2025 Will Help Species
In 1973, the Endangered Species Act (ESA) was enacted into law. Since that time, more than half a century ago, the law has been unsuccessful…
Blog
The quartz tariff case and why tariffs cause net job loss
Last year, domestic quartz surface product manufacturers filed a petition with the US International Trade Commission (ITC) seeking relief from quartz imports. The ITC…
The Mortgage Note
Federal Court Rejects Costly Green Housing Policy
The Biden administration’s obsession with climate change has contributed to the housing affordability challenges Americans face today, and there are many harmful green policies…
Blog
A constitutional line re-drawn: What McNutt means for liberty
Last week, the Fifth Circuit issued a remarkable decision in McNutt v. U.S. Department of Justice — one that reaches far beyond the niche world…
Blog
Fly the (climate) friendly skies? Delta is having second thoughts
Delta Air Lines has quietly backed away from its pledge to use 10 percent sustainable aviation fuels (SAFs) by 2030, citing the lack…
Blog
From lifeline to lifestyle: How quantitative easing became the Fed’s default setting
The nomination of Kevin Warsh has renewed scrutiny of the Federal Reserve’s expanding role in the economy. One of the most consequential shifts in US…
Blog
Free the Economy podcast: How to Get What You Want with Josh Bandoch
In this week’s episode we cover AI development in China, how large investors recycle homes, and why permitting reform needs to…
Letters
CEI Joins AEA’s Coalition Letter Opposing New Regulations in the Railway Safety Act
Dear Mr. President, America’s energy sector is entering a period of renewed pressure. Rising electricity demand, geopolitical instability, expanding domestic manufacturing, and the rapid growth…
Issues and Insights
After Iran, Trump Needs To Bomb The Administrative State Into Submission
Issues and Insights cites CEI’s Clyde Wayne Crews on the release of his new report, the 2026 edition of Ten Thousand Commandments. “The regulatory tax of…
Blog
Dual mandate, dual headache: Why the Fed should focus on price stability
With Kevin Warsh set to appear before the Senate for his Fed confirmation hearing, the question of his monetary priorities is taking center stage. Warsh…
Blog
Questions Kevin Warsh needs to answer if he is to become the next Fed Chair
A new CEI paper out today by John Berlau, Ryan Young, and myself offers some questions that Federal Reserve Chair nominee Kevin Warsh should…
Comment
CEI Comments RE: Rule Concerning the Use of Prenotification Negative Option Plans; Advance notice of proposed rulemaking; request for public comments
The Competitive Enterprise Institute (CEI) appreciates the opportunity to comment on the Federal Trade Commission’s (FTC) advanced notice of proposed rulemaking (ANPRM) on the Rule…
News Release
Report: Senate questions for Fed Chair nominee Kevin Warsh
As the US Senate prepares to consider the nomination of Kevin Warsh to head the Federal Reserve, the Competitive Enterprise Institute today offered lawmakers a…
Study
Questions for Kevin Warsh
Kevin Warsh is President Trump’s choice to succeed Jerome Powell as the Chair of the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System. Warsh’s credentials…
Blog
House expected to consider common sense Clean Air Act permitting bills
Any serious federal permitting reform effort must address the massive obstacles created by the Clean Air Act (CAA).This week, the House is expected to address…
Blog
FAR too restrictive: Time to repeal floor area ratio limits
In cities across the world, fights over housing affordability come down to a simple question: how much can be built on a single lot? In…
Reason
Report: Federal Regulatory Compliance Costs $2 Trillion Annually
Reason cites CEI’s Clyde Wayne Crews on the release of his new report, the 2026 edition of Ten Thousand Commandments. “Federal regulation’s total compliance costs and…
Blog
The week in regulations: Spinach proteins and seat belt reminders
The Artemis II mission landed safely after orbiting the moon. Inflation took a huge jump in March from the Iran war’s effects on energy prices.
Blog
Learning Resources and the limits of the foreign affairs paradigm
The conventional story about presidential power in trade law runs something like this: Congress enacts broad statutory language, courts treat foreign affairs as the president’s…
News Release
Energy and oil prices driving force behind March inflation increase: CEI analysis
The Consumer Price Index (CPI) report for March shows a 0.9 percent increase across all sectors, mainly driven by significantly higher energy and oil…
Blog
Congress needs to curtail the FCC’s public interest authority
How do we know when a broadcaster is acting in the “public interest”? Under current law, the answer is simple: when the Federal Communications Commission…
Blog
Ten Thousand Commandments 2026 is out now
Today is release day for this year’s edition of Wayne Crews’ Ten Thousand Commandments. This year also marks the 30th anniversary of CEI’s first…
Blog
Free the Economy podcast: Consumer-regulated energy with Travis Fisher
In this week’s episode we cover economic growth in China, the political legacy of Viktor Orban in Hungary, and the one-year…
Politico
Ethics, DeFi and memecoins, oh my
Politico cites CEI’s Clyde Wayne Crews on the release of his new report, the 2026 edition of Ten Thousand Commandments. The Competitive Enterprise Institute estimates that…
InsideEPA.com
CEI questions Trump’s deregulatory agenda
InsideEPA.com cites CEI’s Clyde Wayne Crews on the release of his new report, the 2026 edition of Ten Thousand Commandments. The Competitive Enterprise Institute (CEI), the…
The Washington Times
Impact of Trump’s 646 deregulatory actions diluted by tariffs, executive orders
The Washington Times cites CEI’s Clyde Wayne Crews on the release of his new report, the 2026 edition of Ten Thousand Commandments. Report author Clyde Wayne…
News Release
Report: Regulations cost $2 trillion annually, but only Congress can fix the problem
The Competitive Enterprise Institute today released its annual report documenting the vast burden that federal regulations impose on American businesses and citizens. “Government regulations continue to cost Americans more…
Products
Chapter 13: Getting things undone: An agenda for rightsizing Washington
We close with an appeal to restore enumerated powers. This would solve the overregulation dilemma, and would have prevented it in the first place. Reforms…
Products
Chapter 7: Unified Agenda of regulatory actions
Along with the Report to Congress, the Federal Register, and the Code of Federal Regulations, another vehicle for regulatory disclosure is the spring and fall…
Products
Chapter 5: Over 19,000 agency public notices annually
Presidents issue a few dozen memoranda and other proclamations each year. Departments and agencies, however, issue thousands of public notices in the Federal Register every…
Products
Chapter 4: Regulatory dark matter
Although executive actions are typically understood to deal with the internal operations of the federal government, they increasingly can have binding effects and influence private…
Products
Chapter 10: Federal rules affecting state and local governments
State and local officials’ concerns about federal mandates overriding their priorities resulted in passage of the Unfunded Mandates Reform Act (UMRA) of 1995. The law…
Products
Chapter 2: Why we need a regulatory budget
Federal spending programs are funded either by taxes or by borrowing, with interest, from future tax collections. The public can readily inspect the costs of…
Products
Chapter 8: Economically significant rules
From 1993 until April 2023, rules with annual economic effects of at least $100 million were classified as economically significant. Biden’s EO 14094 raised the…
Products
Chapter 9: Federal regulations affecting small business
The National Association of Manufacturers report reaffirmed that average annual per-employee regulatory costs vary by firm size. The smaller the organization, the higher the per-employee…
Products
Chapter 3: Numbers of rules and page counts in the Federal Register
The Federal Register is the daily repository of all proposed and final federal rules and regulations. Although its page counts are often cited as a…
Products
Chapter 1: Trump 2.0: Year one and the regulatory state’s uneven reset
“It is the policy of my Administration to focus the executive branch’s limited enforcement resources on regulations squarely authorized by constitutional Federal statutes, and to…
Products
Chapter 11: GAO database on rules and major rules
The federal government’s regulatory reports and databases serve different but intertwined purposes. The Federal Register presents all proposed and final rules, along with numerous presidential…
Products
Chapter 6: A note on rule reviews at OMB
Rule reviews at OMB are a useful variable to examine alongside costs, page counts, rule counts, and guidance documents, among others. Figure 17 depicts 449…
Products
Chapter 12: The 2026 Unconstitutionality Index: 18 rules for every law
Article I of the Constitution vests legislative power in Congress. In practice, however, administrative agencies issue the vast majority of binding rules governing economic activity…
Study
Ten Thousand Commandments 2026
Introduction Record federal spending and record-setting regulatory burdens often march in lockstep. New spending is straightforward to track, but regulations obliging the private sector to…
Blog
Privatize a little, fix a little: Why Trump’s TSA contracting plan is not meaningful privatization
If this latest Department of Homeland Security (DHS) shutdown has confirmed anything, it is how deeply structural the drawbacks of the Transportation Security Administration…
Blog
When solar tax incentives overheated, the residential solar market became scorched
Residential solar has long been sold as a win-win for consumers and the environment. It was marketed as an affordable way for homeowners to reduce…
Blog
The week in regulations: Lead paint and mailing firearms
Gas prices topped $4.00 per gallon. The one-year anniversary of President Trump’s Liberation Day tariffs was solemnly observed. Trump fired Attorney General Pam Bondi. Agencies…
Freedom Works Radio
AUDIO: CEI’s Wayne Crews Joins Freedom Works Radio to Discuss the 2026 Release of Ten Thousand Commandments
CEI’s Clyde Wayne Crews joined Freedom Works Radio to discuss the current state of regulations in America, as outlined in his new report, 2026’s…
News Release
Economy adds 178,000 jobs in March, mixed revisions signal remaining uncertainty: CEI analysis
While the economy added 178,000 jobs in March, mixed revisions for previous months still indicate an uncertain labor market. Policy instability remains an inhibiting factor…
Blog
Quartz tariffs are looming and your kitchen could pay the price
Earlier this week, the US International Trade Commission (ITC) ruled that increased quartz imports are injuring the domestic quartz industry. The petitioners, the Quartz…
Blog
Let’s put the next SpaceX in our 401(k)s before its launch onto public markets
As Artemis II achieved liftoff for the first moon voyage in more than 50 years, space news also rocked the investment world with the breaking…
Blog
One year of Liberation Day
Today marks one year since President Trump’s Liberation Day press conference in the White House Rose Garden. Trump declared a national emergency because Americans import…
Blog
DOJ files suit to end California’s unlawful climate and auto power grab
The Trump administration’s rollback of Obama and Biden administration climate policies keeps rolling along. The latest initiative is a lawsuit filed by the Department…
Blog
Free the Economy podcast: Kids, social media, and the First Amendment with Jessica Melugin
In this week’s episode we cover budget reconciliation and deficit spending, the burdens of Total Boomer Luxury Communism, and how to counteract…
Blog
Federal regulation 1st quarter 2026 report: Bureaucracy on the back foot
Here at the close of the first quarter of 2026, the March 31 Federal Register stands at 16,115 pages, containing 609 final rules and 416…
Blog
Fair notice and the nondelegation doctrine: A due process lens
Debates over the nondelegation doctrine usually begin with constitutional structure. Article I vests “[a]ll legislative Powers” in Congress, so when Congress gives agencies sweeping discretion…
Blog
Review of Michael Sheridan’s The Red Emperor: Xi Jinping and His New China
In my continuing quest to learn more about the US’s number one strategic rival, I recently finished reading (i.e., listening to it on Audible) the…
Blog
From airport security lines to the Danger Zone: TSA delays and public safety
The Transportation Security Administration’s (TSA) staffing shortfall is creating more than long lines. It may already be putting travelers’ lives at risk. Since the partial…
Real Clear Energy
Quibbling Over Carbon Metrics: Senator Cramer’s Ill-Advised, Unauthorized Carbon Tax Trojan Horse
The U.S. may stumble into a carbon taxed future due to a provision furtively inserted into the House committee report accompanying the energy and water…
Blog
The week in regulations: Resettling refugees and sea otter casualties
TSA lines reached their longest-ever wait times, bolstering the case for privatizing airport security. President Trump’s signature will appear on US currency starting later this…
News Release
Shutdown underscores the need for privatized airport security
A partial shutdown stretching beyond 40 days is a reminder that when government controls essential services, those services can easily become tools of political leverage,…
Blog
License to misfire: The new CDL rule backfires on safety and prices
The American economy runs on trucks. From groceries to medical supplies to construction materials, nearly everything travels by road at some point. In the absence…
Blog
Free the Economy podcast: Population and abundance with Gale Pooley
In this week’s episode we cover income inequality, myths about homelessness, First Amendment protections for AI, and reforming unfunded mandates.
Blog
Tariffs are taxes: February’s PPI shows where they land
February’s Producer Price Index (PPI) report came in hot. Final demand increased by 0.7 percent from January, for an annualized rate of nearly 9…
News Release
‘Tech Panic’ Wins in Court, at the Expense of Free Speech
Today a California jury found Meta and Google liable for depression and anxiety suffered by a 20-year-old woman who claimed to have been addicted to…
Bloomberg Law
Trump’s Deregulatory Project Gets Mixed Grade in New Report
Bloomberg Law cites CEI’s Clyde Wayne Crews on the release of his new report, the 2026 edition of Ten Thousand Commandments. The price tag…
Blog
The consequences of American socialism: A review of John Kenneth Galbraith’s Economic Development
John Kenneth Galbraith’s 1963 book Economic Development asks the same question Adam Smith asked: where does wealth come from? His answers are very different…
Blog
End minimum parking requirements and let the housing market drive
It may sound counterintuitive, but some significant housing policy is tucked away in the parking sections of local zoning codes. A minimum parking requirement (MPR)…
Blog
Trump’s AI plan clears the field — then occupies it
Preempting state overreach in artificial intelligence (AI) regulation is urgent — but it’s only half the job. Firm limits on federal power matter just as…
Blog
CEI’s The Surge: EU forest regulation, power scarcity, and more
If you are interested in analysis and perspective on current energy and environmental issues, then we encourage you to subscribe to this new publication and…
Blog
The week in regulations: Library pictures and aerobatic airplanes
The Iran war entered its fourth week. ICE agents might be reassigned to airport security. The Federal Reserve held interest rates steady. President Trump expressed…
News Release
Statement of Support for the Unfunded Mandates Accountability and Transparency Act
The Unfunded Mandates Accountability and Transparency Act (UMATA) represents a timely and necessary modernization of federal oversight. Nearly three decades ago, the original and overwhelmingly…
Blog
How CEI helped advance sound energy and environmental policy in 2025
When I started at CEI in December 2024, the energy and environment team already had its foot on the gas pedal. As the new administration…
Blog
Executive order embraces limited government approach to housing affordability
A March 13 Trump executive order, “Removing Regulatory Barriers to Affordable Home Construction,” offers a number of good ideas for addressing high housing costs.
Blog
The Jones Act: High seas, higher costs than necessary
As the war with Iran intensifies, the Strait of Hormuz, through which about one-fifth of global oil flows, has seen dramatic disruptions that have…
Pacific Legal Foundation
Energy producers join lawsuit supporting repeal of EPA’s 2009 greenhouse gas rule
Washington, DC; March 19, 2026: A group of energy producers filed a motion today to join a lawsuit to support the Environmental Protection Agency’s decision to repeal its 2009 Greenhouse Gas…
Litigation
American Public Health Association v. Environmental Protection Agency
Energy producers urge courts to affirm the repeal of the EPA’s 2009 greenhouse gas endangerment finding Case Stake(s): Restoring constitutional limits on agency power is…
Blog
Free the Economy podcast: Enduring policy principles with Richard Stern
In this week’s episode we cover housing affordability, labor unions and train safety, the late Paul Ehrlich (1932-2026), and the late…
News Release
Federal Reserve keeps interest rates steady, higher inflation likely to continue: CEI analysis
The Fed has decided to keep interest rates steady, with inflation still too high to warrant rate cuts. With Fed Chairman Jerome Powell’s term…
Blog
Remembering Brian Doherty (1968–2026)
Journalist and author Brian Doherty died last week at the age of 57. A longtime Reason magazine contributor and chronicler of the world of…
Blog
Idaho’s successful regulatory reform
Over at National Review, my colleague Hayden Stolzenberg and I examine some of Idaho’s recent regulatory reforms, as outlined in a recent CEI paper.
Op-Eds
Sunset for Regulations, Sunrise for Opportunity
Affordability is the big concern in households across the country, yet politicians are overlooking one big solution: regulatory reform. Federal regulations drive up the price of…
News Release
CEI commends US Senate for confirming nomination of attorney Anna St. John for judicial appointment
The Senate voted today to confirm the nomination of attorney Anna St. John, a former CEI attorney, to be a judge for the Eastern District of Louisiana.
Blog
The infrastructure cartel trap
At last week’s BlackRock US Infrastructure Summit in DC, federal and state policymakers, investors, and corporate leaders gathered to map out the next wave…
News Release
SEC to seek end to quarterly reporting mandate: CEI analysis
The Securities and Exchange Commission will propose to end mandatory quarterly reporting for public companies, and give companies the option to file semi-annually instead, according…
Blog
Shutdown woes show why it is time to privatize the TSA
Imagine arriving at the airport for a long-anticipated vacation, only to face a line longer than an airport runway. The excitement quickly gives way to…
Blog
The missing guardrail in crisis politics: Discipline
Modern American governance has developed a troubling pattern. Economic shocks like the 21st century’s financial panics and pandemic are often met with vast expansions of…
The Daily Signal
A Sneaky Effort to Undermine the Fight Against Carbon Taxes
President Donald Trump has shown bold leadership by rejecting the radical global climate agenda. But now some lawmakers, including a handful of Republicans, have set…
Blog
The week in regulations: Music royalties and avocado maturity
The Iran war continued to raise oil prices. The Trump administration took steps to raise tariffs under Section 301 of the 1974 Trade Act, but…
Comment
CEI Comments on Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, HHS Notice of Benefit and Payment Parameters for 2027; and Basic Health Program
Comments of the Competitive Enterprise Institute Dear Dr. Oz, The Competitive Enterprise Institute (CEI) submits these comments in support of several provisions in the rule…
Blog
Illiberalism: The bipartisan tradition
After experiencing the horrors of World War I and fearing a second World War could be imminent, Ludwig von Mises wrote Liberalism: The Classical…
Human Progress
Olive Oil Prices Are Falling—So Should Olive Oil Climate Hysteria
Summary: Olive oil prices spiked in 2023 amid heat and drought in Spain, prompting widespread claims that climate change was driving the industry into crisis.
Blog
Good and bad trade news: Jones Act suspension, but more tariffs on the way
Two conflicting bits of trade news came out yesterday. The good news is that the Trump administration is considering temporarily suspending the Jones Act,…