News Release
White House Finally Releases “Unified Agenda” on Upcoming Regulations, Signaling a Rise in Big, Costly New Regulations
Today, at last, the White House released the fall 2022 Unified Agenda of Federal Regulatory and Deregulatory Actions, where federal regulators report on what they have planned for…
National Review
Puerto Rico Libre
E&E News
White House releases latest regulatory plans
The White House on Wednesday afternoon released its latest plans for rulemaking on energy, the environment and beyond. The fall Unified Agenda emerged…
Blog
This Week in Ridiculous Regulations – Year-End 2022
Happy new year, everyone. Year-end totals for 2022’s new regulations are in. The 2022 Federal Register weighs in at 80,756 pages. It includes 3,168 final…
Forbes
118th Congress Should Confront Biden Administration On Overdue Regulatory Cost Benefit Reports
Not later than February 5, 2001, and on the first Monday in February of each year thereafter, the President, acting through the Director of the…
forbes
118th Congress Should Confront Biden Administration On Overdue Regulatory Cost Benefit Reports
Not later than February 5, 2001, and on the first Monday in February of each year thereafter, the President, acting through the Director of the…
The Hill
Congress can promote growth by lowering regulatory barriers for consumers and businesses
Three quarters of Americans surveyed by Gallup say they disapprove of the way Congress handles the job of governing. We also know that…
Issues and Insights
Customers, Not Regulators, Should Hold Southwest Accountable
Southwest Airlines’ scheduling meltdown over the holiday weekend has prompted Capitol Hill lawmakers to propose hearings and federal regulators like Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg to promise a…
Blog
Customers, Not Regulators, Should Hold Southwest Accountable
Southwest Airlines’ scheduling meltdown over the holiday weekend has prompted Capitol Hill lawmakers to propose hearings and federal regulators like Transportation Secretary Pete…
National Review
Southwest’s Debacle Should Cost It Dearly
It is by now clear that the airline chaos of the past week, which started during the punishing winter storm shortly before Christmas, is largely…
Blog
Climate Fact Check 2022 Report Debunks Mainstream Media’s Tall Tales
Climate Fact Check 2022, a report issued this week by CEI and several other nonprofit groups, debunks claims made in the mainstream media this…
Study
Climate Fact Check 2022
Presented by the Competitive Enterprise Institute (CEI), the Heartland Institute, Energy & Environment Legal Institute, Committee for a Constructive Tomorrow (CFACT), and the International Climate…
Fox News
Liberal media made slew of dubious claims about climate change, year-end report finds
Fox News cites CEI’s Climate Fact Check report: The “Climate Fact Check 2022” report, presented by the Competitive Enterprise Institute (CEI),…
Blog
Where Is the Fall 2022 Unified Agenda of Federal Regulatory and Deregulatory Actions?
Federal budgets are chronically late and always unbalanced, but we do get them eventually. Increasingly, we get them good and hard, as we did…
Blog
This Week in Ridiculous Regulations
A massive snowstorm with heavy winds hit most of the U.S. just in time for Christmas. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy traveled to Washington and addressed…
Blog
Free the Economy Episode 1: Deregulating Abundance
Free the Economy is a new podcast from the Competitive Enterprise Institute focused on how we all can become happier, healthier, and wealthier in a…
Blog
Omnibus Bill Throws More Money at CDC, Does Not Reform It
Congress has passed the $1.7 trillion fiscal 2023 omnibus appropriations bill. The 4,155-page legislation, which covers everything from agriculture to veterans, includes a section…
Blog
Microsoft’s Acquisition of Activision Faces Needless Challenges
Emboldened antitrust bureaucrats on both sides of the Atlantic are flexing their muscles with challenges to Microsoft’s planned acquisition of the game developer Activision, maker…
Blog
The Deregulatory Pony for Small Biz Buried in the Omnibus Pile
There’s not much good to say about an “omnibus” bill crammed in at the end-of-year lame duck session of Congress that contains a grab bag…
News Release
Senate Passes $1.7 Trillion Spending Bill, No Help to Inflation Reduction
The Senate today voted to pass a $1.7 trillion omnibus package to fund the federal government through September next year. CEI Senior Economist Ryan…
The American Spectator
What Do Americans Really Think of ‘ESG’ Investing?
Investing to promote environmental, social, and governance (ESG) outcomes — rather than to just maximize profit — became the hot topic in finance this year…
City Journal
Ignore the “Tripledemic” Hype
Winter is back, and so are warnings from “experts” for Americans to don masks. A resurgence of influenza (flu) and respiratory syncytial virus (RSV)—respiratory illnesses…
News Release
CEI Experts View Proposed FY 2023 Omnibus as Wasteful, Ineffective Big Government Progressivism
The Senate Appropriations Committee released the text of an omnibus appropriations bill for Fiscal Year 2023 early in the morning on Tuesday. CEI experts…
The Boston Herald
Lieberman: Whales on losing side of wind energy
Environmentalists want to crack down on the Maine lobster industry in the name of protecting endangered whales, but they turn a blind eye to the…
Wall Street Journal
Save the Carbon-Consuming Whales
The Wall Street Journal cites Senior Fellow Ben Lieberman on the lobster industry: Ben Lieberman of the Competitive Enterprise Institute opines in the…
Blog
CNN Cheers Proposed New Restrictions on Light Bulbs
CNN has some great news for American consumers—your choices in light bulbs are being reduced! The Department of Energy (DOE) will soon propose a new…
Blog
Biden Mocks Republicans as “Socialists;” Don’t Prove Him Right on the 2023 Omnibus
Several times in recent months, President Joe Biden mocked Republicans who had called his legislative agenda “socialist,” but afterward worked to channel some of the…
Real Clear Energy
The DOE’s Press Release on Federal Building Standards Is Inaccurate and Misleading Puffery
The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) recently released the pre-publication version of a proposed rule to “establish energy performance standards for the construction of new federal…
Reason
Can the FTC block technology mergers based on future market predictions?
Senior Policy Analyst for Reason Foundation, Max Gulker, discusses the FTC’s bid to block Meta’s acquisition of virtual reality fitness app, Supernatural.
Blog
This Week in Ridiculous Regulations
CEI released its latest Agenda for Congress. Inflation slowed down in November, though there is still a ways to go before it’s…
Blog
What Republicans Can Do about the Federal Budget Now
When the new 2023 fiscal year began October 1, Washington had been running a series of trillion-dollar deficits. This year’s Christmastime budget showdown, and the adventures…
Blog
Agenda for Congress: Inflation
CEI’s Agenda for Congress is out now. This post summarizes its recommendations for inflation. Since inflation is mostly a monetary phenomenon, it is…
Products
Free to Prosper: Infrastructure Permitting Reform
In the midst of an economic crisis that has seen American families squeezed at the pump and in their home electricity bills, America needs to…
Products
Corporate Governance
Retirement Security Congress passed the Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA), which governs private pensions, in 1974, in response to widespread concerns at the time…
News Release
CEI Releases Pro-Growth Regulatory Reform Agenda for the 118th Congress
Today the Competitive Enterprise Institute (CEI) offered a set of important policy reforms for the 118th Congress to consider when it convenes in…
Products
Free to Prosper: Civil Asset Forfeiture
Civil asset forfeiture is a controversial tool used by federal, state, and local law enforcement agencies to seize cash, vehicles, houses, or other property that…
Products
Free to Prosper: Antitrust
Efforts to expand the scope and enforcement of antitrust law are playing out on a global scale and, so far, have mostly targeted large technology…
Products
Free to Prosper: Broadband Connectivity
Improved Internet connectivity is essential to reduce socioeconomic inequality at home and to improve America’s global economic competitiveness abroad. Recent increases in broadband investment and…
Products
Free to Prosper: Labor and Employment
With employers struggling to fill open positions and supply chains still playing catchup, federal employment policy needs to adapt to new economic realities rather than…
Products
Free to Prosper: Trade
Trade policy took a turn for the worse during the Trump administration, and the Biden administration has committed largely to the same course. Tariffs have…
Products
Free to Prosper: Environment, Energy, and Climate
President Biden campaigned on a promise to “end fossil fuel.” Some dismissed it at the time as rhetorical bluster. We now know he was serious.
Products
Free to Prosper: Online Speech and Section 230
Section 230 of the Telecommunications Decency Act of 1996 governs liability online. It clarifies that the creator of speech, not its carrier, bears legal responsibility…
Products
Free to Prosper: Transportation
Mobility for both people and goods is one of a modern economy’s most important needs. The COVID-19 pandemic changed our transportation patterns considerably and put…
Products
Free to Prosper: Banking and Finance
Access to safe and reliable financial services is fundamental to Americans’ prosperity. However, since the passage of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act in 2002, regulators have used…
Products
Free to Prosper: Inflation
In 2022, inflation reached its highest levels in 40 years and became a hot-button economic issue. Confusion surrounding the causes of inflation has resulted in confusing…
Study
Free to Prosper
Free to Prosper: A Pro-Growth Agenda for the 118th Congress highlights specific steps lawmakers can take to prevent overreach by executive branch agencies, reduce the costs…
News Release
Fed Raises Rates Again to Slow Inflation
The Federal Reserve has been trying to slow inflation by raising interest rates, today issuing its smallest rate increase since June – raising the federal…
Blog
Bailout Suggests It’s Time to Rethink Multiemployer Pensions
President Biden announced last Thursday that the government would give $36 billion to bail out the multiemployer Teamsters Central States Pension Fund. It is…
Blog
DOE’s Press Release on Federal Building Energy Standards Is Inaccurate, Misleading, and Unserious
The Department of Energy (DOE) last week released the pre-publication version of a proposed rule to “establish energy performance standards for the construction of…
Citation
CEI’s Kent Lassman Joins Ricochet’s Giving Ventures Podcast
CEI President Kent Lassman joins Ricochet’s Giving Ventures podcast to discuss regulatory reforms that make energy more affordable and accessible to everyone. Listen here: https://ricochet.com/podcast/giving-ventures/energy-policy-that-works/…
Blog
Agencies Are Limited in Which Congressional Power They Can Exercise
Can unelected federal bureaucrats force people to hire police to ensure that the law is complied with—even if Congress never said anything about hiring cops…
Giving Ventures
PODCAST: CEI’s Kent Lassman Joins Giving Ventures
CEI President Kent Lassman joins Giving Ventures to discuss areas for energy policy reform. Click here to read more.
Wall Street Journal
The Meaning of the Bankman-Fried Indictment
The Wall Street Journal cites Senior Fellow John Berlau on the Sarbanes-Oxley law: “Earlier this year John Berlau and Josh Rutzick wrote in the Journal on the…
Blog
The Federal Trade Commission Is in Dire Need of an Intervention
In recent years, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) has become increasingly aggressive in its antitrust actions and policies. This expansion will be harmful to American…
Blog
New Unfunded Federal Mandates on State and Local Governments Could Spark Regulatory Reform
Substantial upticks in final and proposed regulation affecting small business beyond that seen already in the Biden administration appear likelier than not. A…
Blog
FTX Hearings Should Probe Fraud Charges and the SEC’s Misplaced Priorities
In the wake of the arrest of and charges of fraud against Sam Bankman-Fried, the disgraced founder and former CEO of the FTX…
News Release
November Inflation Less Bad Than Before, but the Fed Should Stay Focused on It
The latest consumer price index (CPI) released today by the Labor Department revealed that inflation, while still high, has been slowing as of November. That…
DJ Journal
NLRB Doesn’t Want Workers to Hear Both Sides on Unions
Amazon isn’t the only corporation to face such charges. Starbucks CEO Howard Schultz was hit in October for comments regarding unions, indicating that the…
Inside Sources
NLRB Doesn’t Want Workers to Hear Both Sides on Unions
Letters
CEI Joins Coalition Letter Rejecting Building American Energy Security Act of 2022
Dear Majority Leader Schumer, Minority Leader McConnell, Speaker Pelosi, and Minority Leader McCarthy: The undersigned organizations write to express our strong opposition to Senator Joe…
Blog
Conversations from COP27: Kent Lassman Interview Series
CEI President Kent Lassman attended the annual COP27 conference in Sharm el Sheikh, Egypt as a non-governmental observer, formally the 27th meeting of the Conference…
Blog
Living in Capitalism: The Fat of the Land
Some of capitalism’s critics like to depict a market economy as a ruthless system in which making a living and paying expenses is inherently (or…
Blog
Does Artificial Intelligence Have a Statist Bias?
I recently asked the ChatGPT AI to “write an essay critiquing the Biden administration’s trade policy.” This is what I got:…
Blog
This Week in Ridiculous Regulations
A former president called for terminating the U.S. Constitution. Socialism failed again, this time in Peru. Congress passed a bill to protect…
USA Today
America needs the nuclear option to keep our homes warm – and to fight climate change
In early November, the U.S. Department of Energy chose Westinghouse to build a new, much-needed nuclear-power plant, one that will employ “the most advanced light…
Barrons
Opinion: Two App Stores Don’t Make a Monopoly
Elon Musk and others’ complaints about the fees Apple and Google ‘s App Stores charge developers are putting pressure…
Blog
Gas Prices Are Lower than a Year Ago: What Does that Mean for Inflation?
Even with inflation near 40-year highs, gas prices are lower than a year ago, and not just in real, inflation-adjusted terms. They’re lower even…
Blog
COP27: CEI’s Kent Lassman Interviews Rep. Miller
CEI President Kent Lassman attended the annual COP27 conference in Sharm el Sheikh, Egypt as a non-governmental observer, formally the 27th meeting of the Conference…
Blog
COP27: CEI’s Kent Lassman Interviews Rep. Palmer
CEI President Kent Lassman attended the annual COP27 conference in Sharm el Sheikh, Egypt as a non-governmental observer, formally the 27th meeting of the Conference…
Blog
Regulatory Reform in Mississippi
Washington isn’t the only place that needs regulatory reform. States have their own excesses to deal with. To that end, our friends at the Mississippi…
Blog
COP27: CEI’s Kent Lassman Interviews Rep. Cloud
CEI President Kent Lassman attended the annual COP27 conference in Sharm el Sheikh, Egypt as a non-governmental observer, formally the 27th meeting of the Conference…
National Review
ESG Isn’t Going Away Anytime Soon
While the “Red Wave” never emerged in this November’s midterm elections, the issues that have riled up conservative voters the most in the past two years…
Blog
Quick Observations on NDAA in Light of the Biden “Whole-of-Government” Agenda
Across the board, the Biden administration’s policies call for agencies to “prioritize action on climate change in their policy-making and budget processes, in their…
Blog
COP27: CEI’s Kent Lassman Interviews Rep. Weber
CEI President Kent Lassman attended the annual COP27 conference in Sharm el Sheikh, Egypt as a non-governmental observer, formally the 27th meeting of the Conference…
Blog
Setting a Baseline for Proposed Rules Affecting Small Business
In what way are proposed rules affecting small business rising or falling, and should policy makers be on guard? The answer to the second part…
Blog
COP27: CEI’s Kent Lassman Interviews Rep. Curtis
CEI President Kent Lassman attended the annual COP27 conference in Sharm el Sheikh, Egypt as a non-governmental observer, formally the 27th meeting of the Conference…
Blog
A Surge in Small Business Burdens May Propel Regulatory Reform
Given heavy post-COVID spending and regulation, sentiments against expanding government have not been as strong as those in favor of Washington’s growth. It remains…
National Review
Antitrust’s Cloudy Crystal Ball
Even in the wake of Meta’s biggest mass layoff ever and a $71 billion loss this year, antitrust regulators around the world are peering into crystal…
Blog
Will the Second Chapter of the Renewable Fuel Standard Be Worse than the First?
Enacted in 2005 and expanded in 2007, the Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS) requires that specified amounts of biofuels like ethanol and biodiesel be added to…
Blog
This Week in Ridiculous Regulations
The World Cup is underway in Qatar and the labor market had another good month. Meanwhile, agencies issued new regulations ranging from canola oil jet…
Blog
Some Climate-Related Items that Recently Caught My Eye
Manhattan Contrarian Francis “Buddy” Menton hit two homers this week. In “Don’t Be So Sure the Climate Extremists Have Won,” Menton offers hopeful words…
Blog
More on Moore: A History of Direct Taxes and their Application to Moore v. United States
Many politicians, such as Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-MA), advocate taxes on wealth. These taxes are easy to abuse, which is why the Founders placed…
Blog
Retro Review: George Selgin, Less Than Zero: The Case for a Falling Price Level in a Growing Economy (Institute of Economic Affairs, 1997)
This year, inflation reached levels not seen in 40 years. The Federal Reserve spent most of 2022 trying to undo its runaway money creation in…
News Release
Job Gains in November 2022 Amid Inflation, Economic Problems: CEI Analysis
The U.S. economy added 263,000 jobs in November while the unemployment rate held steady at 3.7 percent, according to the Labor Department. CEI experts break…
News Week
Climate Policies Not Based on Market Principles Will Fail
Financial flows and trading markets were high on the agenda at COP27, the United Nations‘ latest climate conference. Unfortunately, economic rationality was not, as the…
CEI Planet
CEI Planet Winter 2022
News Release
Fed Should Do More to Fight Inflation with Interest Rate Increases
The Federal Reserve Chairman today confirmed that further interest rate increases are likely, maybe as soon as December. CEI economy expert Ryan Young says…
News Release
House Premature on Rail Strike Intervention: CEI Analysis
The House today voted today on a resolution aimed at averting an impending strike by freight rail workers on December 9 – over a…
National Review
Senate, Forget about Rolling Back the Government Takeover of Health Care
Elections have consequences. Republicans’ failure to capture the U.S. Senate means that the Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions — known as the HELP…
Wall Street Journal
House Approves Imposing Railroad Labor Deal, Paid Sick Leave Measure
The White House said Mr. Biden broadly supports providing more sick leave for rail workers, but he opposes measures that could slow down passage of…
Fox 26 News
Some states still delivering final round of stimulus payments as inflation lingers
Blog
Biden Hits the Brakes on Possible Railroad Strike
President Biden’s call on Monday for Congress to intervene in contract negotiations between railroad workers and the industry to prevent a strike is…
Blog
Why Choke Point Should Bar Gruenberg from Being FDIC Chair
Tomorrow morning, the Senate Banking Committee will hold a hearing on President Biden’s nomination of Marty Gruenberg to once again serve as Chair of the…
Blog
This Week in Ridiculous Regulations
We hope everyone enjoyed Thanksgiving and/or Black Friday. Meanwhile, agencies issued new regulations ranging from nuclear drug tests to food tracing. On to the data:…
City Journal
End the Vaccine Mandates
One year ago, the Center for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) issued an interim final rule requiring 15 types of health-care facilities that…
DC Journal
How Civil Forfeiture Makes It Harder for Cops to Do Their Jobs
Every year, law enforcement officers seize billions of dollars in cash and property from the public. Mostly, these seizures take place without any proof of…
The New York Post
Biden Wastes Billions on COVID Boosters No One Wants
When it comes to wasting money, the Biden administration has few peers. Earlier in the year, Team Biden re-purposed billions of dollars to buy 170…
Net Zero Watch
Video: Mario Loyola Joins Net Zero Watch to Discuss COP27
Senior Fellow Mario Loyola joined Net Zero Watch to discuss COP27 and international climate policy.
Blog
Ninth Circuit Refuses to Reconsider Allowing Wealth Taxes
Moore v. United States—a case in which CEI represents the Moore family—is likely to be the most important tax case of the 21st century. Yesterday’s…
Fox News
5 Reasons to drill in Arctic National Wildlife Refuge instead of draining petroleum reserve
In response to continued high gasoline prices, President Joe Biden recently announced an extension of withdrawals of about 1 million barrels per day from the Strategic Petroleum…