Blog
The Jones Act vs. Puerto Rico, Again
Puerto Rico is almost entirely without power after Hurricane Fiona. Right now, there is a ship just offshore, ready to help. It…
Blog
The Manchin Bill Will Not Reform Permitting Process
The Manchin-Schumer permitting bill, which has been attached to the Continuing Resolution funding the federal government beyond September 30, contains many promising-sounding reforms…
News Release
Comprehensive Permitting Reform is Vital to Unleashing America’s Energy Abundance
WASHINGTON—The Biden administration and many environmental activists insist the United States and the rest of the world must transition to non-fossil fuel energy sources…
Study
Unleashing America’s Energy Abundance
As a side deal to the Inflation Reduction Act of August 2022, Sens. Joe Manchin (D-WV) and Chuck Schumer (D-NY) agreed to streamline infrastructure…
Blog
Government May Not Avoid Just Compensation in Debt Seizures
Some state governments have been acting as if the Fifth Amendment’s requirement of just compensation doesn’t apply in the course of collection of government…
Blog
This Week in Ridiculous Regulations
The Federal Reserve raised the federal funds rate by 75 basis points, with more increases likely to come. Meanwhile, agencies issued new regulations…
Blog
Senate Ratifies Anti-Consumer Kigali Amendment–but with A Silver Lining Regarding China
Last Wednesday, the Senate ratified the Kigali Amendment, a United Nations treaty restricting supplies of hydrofluorocarbons (HFCs), a widely used class of refrigerants now…
News Release
Negatives Outweigh the Positives in Manchin-Schumer Permitting Bill
Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) and Senator Joe Manchin (D-WV) released the text of a bill proposing minor changes to the federal…
News Release
CEI Supports Sullivan-Lee Amendment to Eliminate Unfair Advantages Given to China in Kigali Treaty
The Competitive Enterprise Institute strongly supports the Sullivan/Lee Amendment that would eliminate the unfair advantages given to China under the Kigali Amendment, but still…
News Release
Court Rules Against Vaccine/Mask Mandates Imposed by Federal Agency
Today, a federal judge in Louisiana ruled the federal government cannot require Head Start program teachers, staff and volunteers be vaccinated against COVID-19 nor…
Blog
Fed Raises Federal Funds Rate
As expected, the Federal Reserve raised the federal funds rate by 75 basis points as part of its inflation-fighting efforts. Its target range…
Blog
FTC To Use Algorithms in Bid to Hobble Gig Economy
The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) has announced that it will use its “full authority” to investigate “unfair, deceptive, and anticompetitive practices” by so-called…
Blog
The Founding Fathers and Free Trade
There is an ongoing small cottage industry of historical revisionism aimed at showing that America since its founding was friendly to protectionism and that…
Blog
America Needs an Emergency Declaration to End All Emergency Declarations
Last night President Biden declared on 60 Minutes hat “The pandemic is over.” “If you notice, no one’s wearing masks, everybody seems…
Blog
This Week in Ridiculous Regulations
CEI hosted its annual Julian Simon dinner on Thursday. The Consumer Price Index gave a mixed picture of inflation. A railroad strike…
The Daily Caller
A Little-Known UN Treaty Is A Raw Deal For America And The Senate Can’t Wait To Pass It
It’s the worst United Nations treaty that you’ve never heard of, and the Senate is on the verge of ratifying it. The Kigali Amendment is…
Blog
FTC Goes Back to Bad ‘70s Policies in Motor Vehicle Dealer Rule
Last night at CEI’s annual Julian L. Simon Memorial Award Dinner, CEI celebrated the 1970s—both the fashions and the deregulation toward the end of…
Blog
FTC Hearing on Vaping Case Shows Antitrust at its Worst
Earlier this week, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) held a public hearing about a seemingly resolved antitrust case about the vaping market. In…
The Washington Times
‘1970s politics’
Blog
No, We Don’t Need Federal Licenses for Big Tech
In the wake of congressional testimony by former Twitter security chief Peiter Zatko, Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-SC) has suggested that he will partner…
Blog
Virtual Reality and the Relevant Market Fallacy
The relevant market fallacy is one of the most common analytical mistakes in antitrust policy. One of the first legal questions in an…
Inside Sources
Looming Railway Strike Puts Biden on Collision Course With Unions
The Washington Times
The Grass Grows Greener
National Review
Virtual Reality and the Relevant-Market Fallacy
Facebook’s parent company, Meta, is at a crossroads. Its main social-media platform is declining under heavy competition and faces twin federal and …
Blog
Inflation Reduction Act and West Virginia v. EPA: Legislative History Refutes Sen. Carper’s Spin
“And whatever interpretive force one attaches to legislative history, the Court normally gives little weight to statements, such as those of the individual legislators,…
Politico
Twitter Whistleblower Faces the Senate. Then What?
Politico cites Director for the Center for Technology and Innovation Jessica Melugin on congressional hearings on the tech industry: “I am…
Blog
Many Federal Agency Rules and Guidance Documents are Still Not Properly Reported to Congress and the GAO
A 2014 white paper prepared for the Administrative Conference of the United States (ACUS), “Congressional Review Act: Many Recent Final Rules Were Not…
Blog
The European Union’s Crypto Protectionism Threatens Financial Freedom
Stablecoins, digital assets pegged to a financial asset like the U.S. dollar, are becoming increasingly popular around the globe. Some people use them…
Blog
Could Heating Costs Set Records This Winter?
Gasoline prices reached their peak at over $5 per gallon last June before declining to the current $3.70, but the worst may be…
Blog
Why Railway Unions Oppose the Deal Biden Helped Arrange
The Chamber of Commerce today urged Congress to step in and impose a settlement should talks between the rail industry and the…
Blog
CEI Leads Coalition Opposing Increased Government Interference in Rail Operations
CEI and 21 other organizations and individuals have signed a letter opposing the misleadingly named Freight Rail Shipping Fair Market Act, which…
Blog
Mixed News on CPI: Headline Rate Improves, Core Rate Accelerates
The Consumer Price Index (CPI) for August is out. It increased 8.3 percent over the last year, down from 8.5 percent in July.
Letters
Coalition Letter Opposing Freight Rail Shipping Fair Market Act
Dear Member of Congress: We, the undersigned individuals and organizations, oppose the inaccurately named Freight Rail Shipping Fair Market Act. It will cause…
New York Post
It seems clear Dems pressured the FDA to delay the COVID vaccine to hurt Trump
For every week we didn’t have a COVID-19 vaccine, more people died, more children were kept out of school, and more damage was done…
Politico
Climate Bill Boosts California Move to Clean Cars
Politico cites Senior Fellow Marlo Lewis on California’s new climate bill: Marlo Lewis, a senior fellow at the Competitive…
Comment
Comments to the Federal Trade Commission Regarding the Motor Vehicle Dealers Trade Regulation Rule
Comment Submitted: September 12, 2022 Docket No. FTC-2022-0046-0001 On behalf of the Competitive Enterprise Institute (CEI), I respectfully submit the following comments…
Blog
This Week in Ridiculous Regulations
Queen Elizabeth II passed away at age 96. Meanwhile, in a four-day week, agencies issued new regulations ranging from St. Louis bridges to Atlantic…
Blog
Fed Chairman Powell’s Remarks at Cato Monetary Conference
Every year, our friends at the Cato Institute hold a monetary policy conference. This year’s conference opened with Cato President Peter Goettler interviewing…
Blog
Paternalistic FTC Rule Would Stifle Consumer Choice in Auto Market
As if American drivers didn’t face enough headwinds with high gas prices, supply chain constraints, and state rules that may force them out…
The Economic Standard
Stablecoins Could Make Greenback the Internet’s Reserve Currency
Pick any global hotspot and search it with the term stablecoins. On the first search result page you’ll likely find Hong…
Litigation
Competitive Enterprise Institute et al. v. EPA
National Review
ESG’s Midlife Crisis
For the last several years, much of the corporate world has, to a greater or lesser degree, adapted to the demands imposed by “environmental, social,…
News Release
National AI Strategy Needs Key Updates to Strengthen U.S. Position as Global Leader
WASHINGTON—The United States should make key revisions to its national Artificial Intelligence (AI) research and development strategy in order to stay ahead of competitors,…
Study
Strategies to Improve the National Artificial Intelligence Research and Development Strategic Plan
Few policy issues are as crucial to the future of U.S. national security and global economic competitiveness as the development of artificial…
The Washington Times
Critics of NLRB’s ‘joint employer’ rule predict job losses, more red tape for businesses
The Washington Times cites Research Fellow Sean Higgins on the NLRB joint employer rule: The board’s apparent goal is to encourage…
Blog
Pondering the Paradox of the Paltry Proliferation of Prominent Proposed Rules in the Federal Register
Spending is up, the debt is up, and Republicans keep helping raise the debt ceiling. Armageddon does not result, we have learned.
News Release
NLRB Democrats Unveil New Rule Expanding Joint Employer Liability…Again
Democrats on the National Labor Relations Board have put forward a new rule expanding “joint employer” liability for businesses nationwide. CEI labor policy…
Blog
NLRB Proposes Third Rewrite of Joint Employer Rule in Four Years
As expected, the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) has proposed a new version of the “joint employer” rule, which establishes when…
Blog
The Inflation Reduction Act’s Implications for West Virginia v. EPA: A Response to Professor Dan Farber
An environmental reporter last week asked for CEI’s thoughts on University of California, Berkley law professor Dan Farber’s article on the Inflation…
Blog
CEI Leads Coalition Letter Against EPA Interference with Alaska’s Pebble Mine
Mining is one of the relatively few environmentally related issues where federal agencies other than the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) have been given the…
National Review
Unions’ Cynical Minimum-Wage Gambit
We want California to be the first in the nation as it is in so many fronts, and to be able to spread this to…
Comment
Coalition Comments on Proposed Determination to Prohibit Disposal Sites in Pebble Deposit Area
Comments of the Competitive Enterprise Institute, 60 Plus Association, Heritage Action for America, Freedom Works, Project 21, Reaching America, American Lands Council,…
Blog
Threats to Democracy Posed by an Unleashed Administrative State
President Joe Biden’s much-covered Independence Hall remarks last week have drawn their share of praise, condemnation, and memes. Prominent was Biden’s easy deployment…
Blog
This Week in Ridiculous Regulations
The labor market continues to look strong, and the Federal Trade Commission lost its attempt to keep an early cancer-detection test off…
Inside Sources
How Sandbox Programs Can Help Promote Innovation and Consumer Welfare
Technological innovation is spurring startups and financial companies to make consumer transactions more accessible, faster and more affordable. Around the world, leading financial centers…
The Hill
This Labor Day, let’s ensure that individual workers are empowered, too
Ideas never die. If they become unpopular, people forget about them, but then they bounce back when a new generation rediscovers them. And whatever…
News Release
CEI Experts React to August Jobs Numbers
The Labor Department’s Bureau of Labor Statistics reported 315,000 new jobs in the month of August, slightly below market expectations. The unemployment rate rose…
News Release
Judge Rules Illumina-Grail Merger is Legal Despite FTC Antitrust Accusations
In a decision reached today, an administrative judge ruled that a proposed merger between Illumnia and Grail can proceed after ruling against a…
City Journal
A Pox By Any Other Name
Anyone wondering why medical authorities seem so ineffectual need look no further than their newfound obsession with renaming the monkeypox virus and the disease…
Blog
Starbucks Alleges an NLRB Whistleblower Reveals Election Shenanigans
A challenge by Starbucks to a recent union election overseen by the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) includes a remarkable claim by the company:…
Blog
Dispelling Misleading Claims about the Inflation Reduction Act and West Virginia v. EPA
In adversarial proceedings, it is seldom prudent to rely on your opponents’ assessment of the outcome. Alas, some conservatives seem inclined to believe Democrats’…
Wall Street Journal
Renewable Energy? Where’s Your Permit?
The U.S. has one of the developed world’s most costly, time-consuming and unpredictable systems for authorizing big infrastructure projects. In the Inflation Reduction Act,…
Real Clear Energy
No, Democrats’ Climate Law Does Not Overturn West Virginia v. EPA
“And whatever interpretive force one attaches to legislative history, the Court normally gives little weight to statements, such as those of the individual legislators,…
National Review
Monkeypox Outbreak Leveling Off, No Thanks to Government
Something that apparently surprised government bureaucrats and left-wing commentators but is, in fact, completely predictable is happening: The growth in new monkeypox cases is leveling…
Blog
This Week in Ridiculous Regulations
President Biden announced partial student loan forgiveness for people earning up to $125,000. The number of new final regulations this year topped 2,000. Meanwhile,…
National Review
The Skyrocketing Cost of Staying Cool This Summer — and Future Ones
Add air conditioning to the long list of items experiencing inflation under the Biden administration. Whether it is fixing your home’s existing system or buying…
Fox Business
Video: CEI’s Jessica Melugin Joins Fox Business to Discuss Twitter and Free Speech
Director of the Center for Technology & Innovation Jessica Melugin reacts to the judge’s decision to order Twitter to issue a subset of data…
Blog
The Fed’s Preferred Inflation Measure Improves, Mixed Picture on Consumer Spending
Two new economic indicators published Friday morning give reason for cautious optimism. The Consumer Price Index (CPI) is the inflation measure that gets…
Blog
Student Loan Forgiveness Is Regressive, Will Increase Tuition
When the Inflation Reduction Act passed, I pointed out that its $300 billion in tax increases and spending cuts would not begin to…
Blog
SEC Small Business Committee Throws Down the Gauntlet on State Trading Preemption
The Securities and Exchange Commission’s (SEC) Small Business Capital Formation Advisory Committee (SBCFAC) has thrown down the gauntlet. As the SEC’s website explains,…
Blog
New York Right to Repair Bill Is a Bad Idea
Do consumers have the right to repair their smartphones, tablets, and laptops? The short answer is yes. While copyright law may have some room…
Citation
CEI’s Joel Zinberg Joins Mornings with Maria to Discuss the Inflation Reduction Act
CEI Senior Fellow Joel Zinberg joined Mornings with Maria on Fox Business Network to discuss the Inflation Reduction Act.
Real Clear Policy
New York’s Digital Fair Repair Act Doesn’t Defend Property Rights, It Attacks Them
Consumers shouldn’t face legal penalties for fixing or altering personal electronic devices like smartphones for their own use. The “right to repair”…
Letters
CEI Joins Coalition Opposing Credit Card Competition Act
Dear Member of Congress: We, the undersigned organizations, oppose the inaccurately named Credit Card Competition Act of 2022 (S. 4674).
The New York Post
Key to CDC reform is undoing mission creep — and tossing woke programs
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Director Rochelle Walensky has finally admitted what has been obvious to most observers for 2½ years: The agency has…
Blog
This Week in Ridiculous Regulations
The 2022 Federal Register surpassed 50,000 pages last week. Meanwhile, agencies issued new regulations ranging from hearing aids to vessel repair duties. On…
Blog
CDC Restructuring Shows that Institutions Matter
One of my policy mantras is that institutions matter. That’s why the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s (CDC) restructuring announcement is…
Blog
Prominent Short Sellers Target ESG-themed Firms
For a long while, my CEI colleagues and I have touted the vital role that short sellers play in a free market economy. CEI…
News Release
Regulations Impede Innovation in Financial Services; Regulatory Sandboxes Are the Solution: CEI Report
A new Competitive Enterprise Institute report discusses the regulatory barriers financial services companies face in trying to bring innovative products and services to…
Study
How Regulatory Sandbox Programs Can Promote Technological Innovation and Consumer Welfare
Around the world, leading financial centers seek to attract companies capable of developing innovative financial products and services. From blockchain-based payments to alternative credit…
Blog
SEC Attempts to Regulate Indefinable “ESG” Topics
Today is the filing deadline for public comments on a new Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) proposed rule titled “Investment Company Names.” This…
Blog
Megaportals for Guidance Documents: Toward Emergency 2025 Legislation to Correct Biden’s “Whole-of-Government” Incursions
In preparing an August 2022 update on executive branch sub-regulatory guidance documents and memoranda (the observable tally is 107,000 but vastly more exist),…
Comment
CEI Comment on SEC ‘Investment Company Names’ Rule
Introduction The Competitive Enterprise Institute (CEI) is pleased to have the opportunity to comment on the Securities and Exchange Commission’s (SEC) current notice of…
Blog
This Week in Ridiculous Regulations
The FBI raided former President Trump’s Mar-a-Lago residence in Florida. Meanwhile, agencies issued new regulations ranging from street markings to salmonella prevention. On…
Blog
Progressives Need Democracy, Not Technocracy
As Democrats debate the merits over legislative versus administrative action on topics ranging from climate change to gun control, they face a fundamental decision:…
Real Clear Energy
An Update on Anti-West Virginia Scheming in the Schumer-Manchin Reconciliation Bill
Last Friday I discussed two provisions in the misnamed Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) that seemingly aim to rebut the Supreme Court’s recent landmark decision in West…
Blog
How the Inflation Reduction Act Favors Unions over Taxpayers
The word “prevailing” appears 27 times in the text of the misleadingly named Inflation Reduction Act, which was passed by Congress Sunday…
Blog
CPI Gives Reason for Cautious Optimism on Inflation
Inflation may finally be coming down. July’s month-to-month Consumer Price Index (CPI) increase dropped to zero last month, down from 1.3 percent in June.
Blog
Federal Agency Guidance Document Inventory Tops 107,000 Entries
Federal statutes appear in the U.S. Code. Regulations, pass through the Federal Register, and come to rest in the Code of Federal Regulations. But…
Blog
CEI Submits Comment Opposing EPA Proposed Rule Allowing States to Use Clean Water Act as a Climate Policy Tool
Today, the Competitive Enterprise Institute submitted a comment to the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) on its proposed regulatory changes to Section 401 of…
Comment
CEI Comments to EPA Regarding Environmental Protection Agency, Clean Water Act Section 401 Water Quality Certification Improvement Rule, Proposed Rule
INTRODUCTION The Competitive Enterprise Institute is a policy and analysis organization committed to advancing the principles of free markets and limited government. We…
C-SPAN
Video: Senior Fellow Joel Zinberg Joins C-SPAN to Discuss Senate Democratic Health Care and Prescription Drug Proposals
Senior Fellow Joel Zinberg joined the Washington Journal to discuss Senate Democratic Health Care and Prescription Drug Proposals. Click here to read more.
Wall Street Journal
The FTC Heads for Legal Trouble
For students of federal regulatory power, the most interesting agency in Washington these days is the Federal Trade Commission. But not for the reasons…
Wall Street Journal
The FTC Heads for Legal Trouble
For students of federal regulatory power, the most interesting agency in Washington these days is the Federal Trade Commission. But not for the reasons…
Blog
How the Inflation Reduction Act Will Expand Regulation
Ever since observers began tallying rule counts and pages in the Federal Register, detractors have complained about what poor measures such devices are. They…
Blog
This Week in Ridiculous Regulations
The Inflation Reduction Act, which would not reduce inflation, is now expected to pass after Sen. Kyrsten Sinema agreed to sign on. Meanwhile, agencies…
Inside Sources
Counterpoint: Manchin Disappoints With Inflation Reduction Act
Throughout Joe Biden’s presidency, Sen. Joe Manchin, D-W.Va., has acted as a check on his party’s worst excesses. Manchin has stopped billions, possibly trillions,…
Crowdfund Insider
The Crypto Revolution Has Just Started
Hot summer temperatures have done nothing for the current “crypto winter,” which has seen a $2 trillion market drop from highs last…
Wall Street Journal
How Miami ‘Caught a Wave’ and Became the Hot New Tech Hub
This city has become the favorite destination for people escaping progressive dystopias like San Francisco and New York. During the pandemic it had the…
Blog
Why Carried Interest Tax Hike Deserves to Die in IRA and Otherwise
The Inflation Reduction Act (referred to by critics such as Phil Kerpen as the Income Reduction Act) will likely be voted on in…