News Release
CEI praises EPA Administrator for proposing the repeal of greenhouse gas rule and to amend mercury rule
Environmental Protection Agency Administrator Lee Zeldin today announced the forthcoming proposed repeal of the Biden era Clean Power Plan 2.0 rule regulating greenhouse gas emissions…
Blog
Matt Ridley’s wisdom on trust and trade
In 1834, Charles Darwin encountered a group of natives in Tierra del Fuego, at the southern tip of South America. Although both parties were unable…
Blog
Africa (and America) need free trade and deregulation, not generosity
Here is a letter I recently wrote to the Wall Street Journal. Africa (and America) need Free Trade and Deregulation, not…
News Release
Inflation increased 0.1 percent in May, less severe than previous months: CEI analysis
Today, the Consumer Price Index report for May showed inflation increased across all sectors by 0.1 percent, compared to 0.2 percent in April. CEI…
Blog
Good things happen when spectrum is allocated to the marketplace
There has been recent legislative activity on spectrum allocation, so it is a good time to remind ourselves why moving as much spectrum as…
News Release
Trump’s trade negotiations with China put US at disadvantage
U.S. Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick is immersed in trade talks with China in London this week, hoping for a resolution to conflicts over restrictions and…
Blog
Trump’s newborn nest egg accounts
In the face of recurring economic shocks—we’ve suffered 9/11, the 2008 financial crisis, and COVID-19 in the 21st century alone—the reflex to throw hundreds of…
Blog
The broken window fallacy: America doesn’t know what it pays for
If a kid breaks a shopkeeper’s window and a glazier fixes it, is the economy better off? It has created work for the glazier, so…
Blog
The week in regulations: Paper packaging promotion and bridge conditions
President Trump ordered National Guard troops to deploy against American citizens. Agencies issued new regulations ranging from hot air balloons to authorizing ski areas. On…
Blog
Congress should codify the National Listing Workplan
In the 15 years after the Endangered Species Act (ESA) was passed in 1973, it was repeatedly amended. Congress passed major amendments that updated…
Blog
Chapter and verse: The case against mandatory ESG standards
This week De Gruyter Brill published the book ESG Investing: Current Theory and Practice, edited by John Hill of Fairfield University’s Dolan School…
Blog
CBO likely overestimates effects of Medicaid reforms
Yesterday, the Congressional Budget Office (CBO) released its estimates of the costs, both financial and in coverage, of the One Big Beautiful Bill Act…
News Release
Economy adds 139,000 jobs in May, labor market growth slows: CEI analysis
May added 139,000 jobs to the economy, with the unemployment rate staying unchanged at 4.2 percent. Trump’s policies, namely his mission to shrink the…
Blog
Free the Economy podcast: Tariffs and corruption with Justin Callais
In this week’s episode we cover Autumn Billings on donor privacy, Wayne Crews on the DOGE legacy, and Joey Politano on the…
WSJ Opinion
A Day of Defiance—and Donuts
It’s time to double down on National Donut Day. As Secretary of Health and Human Services Robert F. Kennedy Jr. begins pushing his Make America Healthy Again…
Blog
The total cost of federal red tape last year was…
$2.15 trillion is CEI’s latest estimate of the costs of all federal regulations. It is an intentionally conservative estimate. Think of it as a floor,…
Politico
The lose-lose housing market
Politico cited CEI’s coalition letter addressing prediction markets First in MM: Free market advocates want to free the betting markets — More than a dozen…
Blog
Two courts, one message: Tariffs need congressional backing
Within the last few days, two courts have enjoined President Trump’s tariffs under International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA) finding them unlawful. First, the US…
Blog
Don’t socialize health care through private insurance
Four senators have introduced the “Supporting Healthy Moms and Babies Act,” which would mandate full coverage, no copays, no out-of-pocket costs for beneficiaries…
News Release
Coalition urges Commodity Futures Trading Commission cut red tape on prediction markets
The Competitive Enterprise Institute today sent a coalition letter to the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) urging it to adopt a policy of permissionless innovation…
Letters
CEI leads a Coalition Letter to End CFTC Red Tape Prediction Markets
Dear Acting Chair Pham and Commissioner Johnson: As leaders of conservative and free-market groups, we believe that government should not stand in the way of…
Blog
Clearing the tracks: CEI’s three-point blueprint to DOT deregulation
Background The Trump administration has made good on some of its promises of deregulation – namely with two executive orders from the beginning of this…
Blog
Senate should reject lobbyist sales pitches for alternative energy subsidies
Lobbyists for the companies hoping to cash in on the many alternative energy subsidies in the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) are crying foul now…
Blog
CEI’s The Surge: Expert testimony, Spanish blackout, 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
DOGE after Musk: From meme to momentum
Elon Musk’s short but headline-grabbing stint with the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) has concluded, but the broader deregulatory agenda remains robust and far from…
Blog
The week in regulations: Low-moisture human foods and grass promotion
Lots of transportation-related regulatory cleanup this week. Friday alone had 47 proposed rules, most of them to repeal obsolete regulations. Two courts struck down Trump’s…
Blog
Medicaid cost explosion
Over the past five years, Medicaid has defied all expectations and projections. It is the third largest program that the government administers, and it has…
Blog
Life is made of trade
If I hadn’t become an economist, I might have found happiness as an evolutionary biologist. The two ways of thinking have a lot in common.
Blog
How IAIS advances DEI policies
As explained in an earlier blog post, the National Association of Insurance Commissioners (NAIC) has drifted away from its mission and is actively working…
Blog
Big Beautiful Bill threatens the Costco of health care
You’ve probably never wondered why you buy peanut butter from the grocery store instead of directly from the J.M. Smucker Company or your TV from…
Blog
Eight energy policies that reduce competition and increase energy prices
The US Department of Justice’s Anticompetitive Regulations Task Force was accepting comments from the public in part “seeking information about laws and regulations that…
Real Clear Markets
“Andrew Ferguson’s Crucial Disdain For the Digital Markets Act”
Charles Sauer with the Market Institute writes about FTC Chair Ferguson’s recent speech criticizing the EU’s Digital Markets Act.
Blog
Congress needs to do more to address the IRA energy tax credits
Many of the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) tax credit reforms that exist in the House version of the One Big Beautiful Bill Act comes…
Citation
Impact Of Biden’s Inflation Reduction Act – ‘Clean Energy Ghost Towns’
MRCTV cited CEI’s expert on Inflation Reduction Act Ben Lieberman of the Competitive Enterprise Institute recently testified before the House Oversight Committee on the impacts of…
Blog
For the sake of user privacy, keep Google search remedies narrow and germane
The movement in the Biden and Trump administrations of antitrust officials away from consumer welfare and towards a federal judiciary of active regulation is on…
News Release
Trump’s IEEPA tariffs overturned by international court, setting up Congress to reclaim taxing powers: CEI analysis
Last night, the Court of International Trade overturned the tariffs that President Trump implemented under the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA). CEI senior economist…
Blog
Free the Economy podcast: Protecting consumer credit with Caroline Melear
In this week’s episode we cover new research on trade and tariffs, how to understand market forces, and good news for…
Blog
Deregulation deferred—not defeated—by the Big Beautiful Bill
In my latest Forbes column, I detail how the House-passed “One Big Beautiful Bill” (BBB) had the potential to revolutionize federal regulatory policy. But…
Truth on the Market
“Could the DOJ and FTC Reform Regulations that Harm Competition?”
Eric Fruits with ICLE discusses the DOJ and FTC comment period on reducing anti-competitive regulatory barriers.
Forbes
How The Big Beautiful Budget Bill Can Deliver Decisive Deregulation
Media coverage of the House-passed One Big Beautiful Bill (BBB; see committee report) naturally focuses on the spending. And that…
News Release
Restoring Gold Standard Science executive order directly confronts the reproducibility crisis in scientific research
On May 23, 2025, President Trump issued Restoring Gold Standard Science, an executive order (EO) that requires federal agencies to prioritize transparency, reproducibility, objectivity,…
Blog
Spanish blackout should serve as a warning
If policymakers don’t want Americans to find themselves in the dark, then they should pay attention to the harmful electricity policies in Spain. Spain experienced…
Comment
CEI Comments on Reducing Anti-Competitive Regulatory Barriers
RE: Request for Public Comment Regarding Reducing Anti-Competitive Regulatory Barriers Docket No.: FTC-2025-0028 On behalf of the Competitive Enterprise Institute (CEI), we submit comments to…
Reason
“More Government Intervention Won’t Make Concert Tickets Cheaper”
Jack Nicastro with Reason talks about the DOJ and FTC request for comment on “Unfair and Anticompetitive Practices in Live Ticketing.”…
News Release
Report offers trade reform blueprint for Congress
President Trump’s Liberation Day trade tariff policies are failing, just as economists predicted. What can stop the tariff-imposed pain of higher prices, fewer choices, and…
Comment
CEI Comments to Department of Justice Anticompetitive Regulations Task Force
Dear Anticompetitive Regulations Task Force Members: We appreciate this opportunity to provide comments to the task force regarding anticompetitive laws and regulations. There is often…
Blog
New CEI paper: How to break the trade blockade
Today is release day for a new CEI paper by Kent Lassman, Iain Murray, and me, Trade Under Blockade: Navigating a Global Trade War.
Blog
The week in regulations: Postage prices and outdoor burning
Former President Joe Biden announced a cancer diagnosis. The House passed a big spending bill. A political activist murdered a young Jewish couple. Agencies issued…
Study
Trade Under Blockade
Introduction President Donald Trump threw the world trading system into disarray with his “Liberation Day” announcement on April 2, 2025. The principles behind the General…
Blog
Senate pulls plug on California’s gas car ban
The US Senate on Thursday voted 51-46 for H.J. Res.88, a Congressional Review Act (CRA) resolution of disapproval to repeal the Environmental Protection…
Blog
The flaw in Justice Kagan’s defense of the NLRB
Justice Elana Kagan authored a lengthy dissent to the Supreme Court’s decision on Thursday granting the Trump administration’s request to keep the Gwynne Wilcox,…
Truth on the Market
“RIP RPA?”
Dan Gilman with ICLE discusses the FTC’s decision to drop its Robinson Patman Act (RPA) suit against Pepsi.
Comment
CEI comments on proposed regulation of the Virginia Department of Labor and Industry
Re: Proposed regulation of the Department of Labor and Industry, “Local Government Union Requirements and Employee Protections” Dear Ms. Bernhardt: I appreciate the opportunity to…
News Release
MAHA Commission recommendations on improving government-directed research merit consideration
President Trump’s Make America Healthy Again Commission released the “Making Our Children Health Again” report, which seeks to evaluate health trends among America’s youth,…
News Release
Newly announced tariffs on EU and Apple will harm U.S. economy, raise costs for consumers
This morning, President Trump announced a 50 percent tariff on the European Union starting on June 1 and a 25 percent tariff on iPhones…
News Release
Senate votes to rescind the Biden EPA’s California waiver on gas-powered cars
Today, the Senate voted to rescind the Biden EPA’s waiver allowing California to ban the sale of new gas-powered cars by 2035. This follows a…
Reason
“A Top Antitrust Enforcer Is Open To Prosecuting People Who Disagree With Him”
Jack Nicastro discusses a recent speech given by FTC Commissioner Mark Meador.
Reason
“Trump’s FTC Chair Is Continuing To Push Lina Khan’s Antitrust Ideology”
Jack Nicastro with Reason shows how the Ferguson FTC is continuing along similar paths as the Khan FTC.
Wall Street Journal
“Antitrust Cops Say BlackRock, Other Fund Giants May Have Hurt Coal Competition”
The Wall Street Journal reports on the FTC’s filing of a statement of interest in a state attorney general’s suit against investor groups.
Blog
Free the Economy podcast: Next steps for nuclear with Deric Tilson
In this week’s episode we cover Jamie Dimon on tariff jitters, the Tax Foundation on the One Big Beautiful Bill, Jesse Walker…
Blog
Tariffs and the anchor heuristic
It feels like President Trump is cutting tariffs. He has agreed to tariff deals with China and the UK, and he paused his biggest Liberation…
National Review
The Tariff Roller Coaster Is Playing Tricks on You
It sure feels like President Trump has reduced tariffs. The recent China deal cut tariff rates from 145 percent to 30 percent, and de minimis tariffs…
Testimony
Testimony of Paige Lambermont: Examining the Use of Federal Lands to Power American Technological Innovation
Hearing on “Unleashing a Golden Age: Examining the Use of Federal Lands to Power American Technological Innovation” Written Statement of Paige Lambermont Research Fellow, Center…
Comment
CEI Comments on Technology Platform Censorship
RE: Request for Public Comment Regarding Technology Platform Censorship Docket No.: FTC-2025-0023 Introduction The authors of this submission would like to thank the Federal Trade…
Reason
“The FTC’s Probe Into ‘Potentially Illegal’ Content Moderation Is a Blatant Assault on the First Amendment”
Jacob Sullum with Reason explores how the FTC’s contemplated actions against tech platform “censorship” could violate the First Amendment.
News Release
CEI leads coalition backing Senate votes to rescind waivers allowing California to reshape car, truck industry
The Competitive Enterprise Institute (CEI) today sent a letter to the Senate signed by a coalition of over 50 free market and conservative policy…
Letters
CEI leads coalition letter supporting Senate CRA votes against EPA California waivers
Dear Senator: The House recently passed, in a bipartisan manner, three Congressional Review Act (CRA) resolutions rescinding Biden EPA waivers allowing California to reshape the…
Testimony
Testimony of Ben Lieberman: Mandates, Meddling, and Mismanagement: The IRA’s Threat to Energy and Medicine
Summary The costs to the American people of the Inflation Reduction Act’s Green New Deal-style climate change provisions are proving to be far higher than…
Blog
CEI’s The Surge: CRA resolutions, IRA reform, 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…
News Release
DOE adopts CEI view on appliance water and energy limits
The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) released new rules on appliance energy and water limits Friday that agreed with the Competitive Enterprise Institute’s (CEI)…
Citation
GOP Ready Rollbacks of Biden’s ‘Efficiency’ Mandates For Home Appliances
MCRTV cited CEI’s expert on home appliances “Responding specifically to Trump’s executive action, Devin Watkins, attorney at the Competitive Enterprise Institute (CEI), observed: ‘Federal…
Citation
Newsom Looks To Extend Carbon Cap Policy, Fund Rail Boondoggle As Possible Gas Crisis Looms
Daily Caller cited CEI’s expert on gas prices “California refining capacity is dying, it is dwindling,” Marlo Lewis Jr., a senior fellow at the Competitive…
Blog
The week in regulations: Flight safety and organic pet food
Qatar’s government gave Trump a $400 million jumbo jet that he can use after leaving office. The US and China agreed to lower their tariffs…
Blog
States can keep Medicaid whole if they want
Congress is considering slowing Medicaid growth over the next 10 years enough to reduce federal spending by $625 billion. Many Republicans argue that the…
DC Journal
EPA Should Consider the Harm of Regulating Greenhouse Gases
Even for the least essential choices we make in our daily lives, such as what we should have for dinner, we consider the pros and…
Blog
CEI sends letter to Senate regarding California waiver CRA resolutions
The US Senate has a unique opportunity to overturn what may well be the most egregious case of unlawful bureaucratic overreach of the past 50…
News Release
Consumer sentiment down nearly 30 percent, tariffs and inflation to blame: CEI analysis
Consumer sentiment is down nearly 30 percent according to an April survey conducted by the University of Michigan. CEI senior economist Ryan Young…
The Washington Examiner
Capping drug prices will cripple innovation and harm public health
The Washington Examiner cited CEI’s expert on life-saving drugs and technology The Competitive Enterprise Institute was similarly scathing. “As with many industries, the United States…
Blog
Free the Economy podcast: Reforming Medicaid with Brian Blase
In a recent episode we cover biofuels and farm tariffs, the decline in green investing, and the effort to stop state governments…
News Release
Producer Price Index fell by 0.5 percent in April, price increases and lower demand likely cause: CEI analysis
The Producer Price Index for April shows the seasonally adjusted final demand fell by 0.5 percent. CEI senior economist Ryan Young says the…
The Center Square
Producer prices fell unexpectedly in latest data
The Center Square cited CEI’s expert on tariffs and lower consumer demand Ryan Young, senior economist with the Competitive Enterprise Institute, said in a statement…
Testimony
Testimony of John Berlau: Enhancing Competition: Shaping the Future of Bank Mergers and De Novo Formation
Chairman Barr, Ranking Member Foster, and honorable members of this Subcommittee, thank you for this opportunity to present testimony on behalf of my organization, the…
Blog
Record tariff revenue is no match for record spending
Tariffs raised a record $16.3 billion of tax revenue in April, according to the Wall Street Journal. Averaged out over a whole year, this…
PYMNTS
Bankers Tell Congress Regulation Hinders M&A and ‘De Novo’ Formation
PYMNTS cited CEI’s expert on bank mergers and de novo banks “In every business sector, new entrants are essential to the functioning of a competitive,…
The New York Times
Make Dishwashers Great Again?
The New York Times cited CEI’s expert on the appliance industry “Federal limits on water and energy use have made appliances slower and less…
Blog
A light in the darkness: Federal preemption for AI regulation
The joy of federal preemption may soon be upon us. The House Energy and Commerce Committee included a ten-year moratorium on state AI regulation…
The Epoch Times
What to Know About Trump’s Plan to Slash Drug Prices
The Epoch Times cited CEI’s expert on drug prices “Jeremy Nighohossian, a senior fellow at the Competitive Enterprise Institute, a libertarian think tank, told The…
Newsweek
Did Donald Trump Lose China Trade War? 10 Experts Weigh In
Newsweek quoted CEI’s expert on the trade war Ryan Young, Competitive Enterprise Institute (CEI) Young, a senior economist with the CEI, told Newsweek that the agreed-to reductions…
Washington Free Beacon
Free the Gas Stoves: Trump’s Energy Department Axes Dozens of Biden Appliance, Energy Regulations
Washington Free Beacon cited CEI’s expert on appliance energy regulations “This is very good news for consumer freedom,” Ben Lieberman, a senior fellow at the…
Blog
GOP proposal includes reductions in health care expenditures
Over the weekend the House Committee on Energy and Commerce released a proposal describing how it would achieve the expenditure goals for the Reconciliation…
News Release
Inflation gentler than expected in April, Trump’s tariff drawbacks helpful in easing costs: CEI analysis
The Consumer Price Index report for April shows inflation increased 0.2 percent across all sectors, a less severe rise than many economists anticipated. CEI…
News Release
Trump executive order restores consumer choice for home appliances
In 2018, the Competitive Enterprise Institute (CEI) petitioned the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) to adopt regulations allowing dishwashers that complete a full cycle…
Reason
Why DOGE Failed
Reason quoted CEI’s expert on DOGE Misunderstanding How the Federal Budget Works “DOGE failed because they got the order of operations wrong,” said Ryan Young, a…
Blog
Regulatory reform takes all three branches
Over at The Hill, Wayne Crews and I argue that regulatory reform requires all three branches of government. Not only is a healthy separation…
Blog
What the DOGE debates really reveal
Last week I took part in a point/counterpoint on the Elon Musk-led Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), making a brief case for its mission and…
News Release
President Trump MFN Drug Price for Medicare Executive Order
President Trump is expected to sign an executive order today directing his administration to pursue a “Most Favored Nation” approach to prescription drug prices…
Blog
Under Biden or Trump, taxing carried interest is stupid and destructive policy
No matter who’s in charge of the presidency or Congress, flawed proposals to close the so-called carried interest loophole just keep coming back. News outlets…
Blog
Why IRA energy subsidies should be dismantled: A guide
This article is intended to be a useful resource about the Inflation Reduction Act’s (IRA) energy subsidies and is broken into three sections: The first…
Blog
The numbers don’t add up in new Medicaid paper
In a recently released working paper, authors Angela Wyse and Bruce D. Meyer purport to show that the ACA Medicaid expansion saved 27,400 lives…
Blog
US-China tariff pause is good news, needs context
The Trump administration and the Chinese government announced a 90-day tariff reduction. While this is good news, it deserves context. The risk of recession…